Hi y’all!
Not long ago I posted a race report from the GTA stage race in the Alps. I’m hoping to return to the race again because we enjoyed it so much - the people were great, the challenge is huge but doable, and the scenery is wonderful. It’s a neat way to explore the mountains of eastern France. And I have a bit of unfinished business.
The race will not be held this year, but the organizer, Philippe Delachenal, has set the dates for 2008: August 31 to September 13. He tells me that the course will again go from Thonon-les-Bains (on Lake
Geneva) to Menton (east of Nice, on the Mediterranean). At least 30 runners are needed for the race to happen, which is slightly more than the field size for 2006. It is, of course, really early to be certain that the race will take place, but there are 3 of us in Texas who are bookmarking it on our schedule.
So if any of you are interested in this, I’d be more than happy to answer questions, tell you about our experience last year, etc. Bram van der Bijl from the Netherlands has finished it 3 times and I’m sure would also enjoy talking about it.
The gist of the race:
14 days on the GR5 trail (with occasional variants onto other GR trails).
Each day is 40-50 km, with 2000-3000 meters of climb/descent.
Elevation ranges from sea level to about 2800 meters (typical days are spent between 1500-2500 meters).
Racers spend between 5 to 12 hours per day on the course (typical was
6-9 hours).
The organization takes care of your lodging every night (including the night before and the night after the race) at hostels/group lodging, plus breakfast and dinner each day.
One aid station per day, with drinks and snacks available; also many places to get water on the course.
Your bags are transported to the next nightly stop while you are running, so you carry only what you need for the run (food, drinks, clothes).
Basic trail map-reading ability is important (the maps are good, but the permanent GR trail markings aren’t always reliable).
Cost in 2006 was 1200 Euros per person.
The website (in French and with no details yet about the GTA 2008) is:
http://www.couriretdecouvrir.com/
My race report (again):
http://www.kipley.com/marcy/gta_report_2006.html
I was thinking that if other English speakers wanted to do the race, we could get a little discussion group going next year so everyone had an idea what to expect, what to bring, etc. Then during the race I could help with translation of the briefing each night about the course the next day. I speak passable French and usually understand most of the parts related to running. I’ll send out another note to this list next year when it comes time to actually sign up.
Feel free to contact me at marcy.beard@gmail.com if you have any questions.
-Marcy
