Jungfrau Marathon

Saturday 5th September 2009

Above: Rob Mole with his supporters Jack and Harriet after finishing the marathon.

Above: The view from the train heading up from Wengen.

The Jungfrau region is in Switzerland and includes such mountains as the Eiger, Monch with the highest being Jungfrau at 4158m (13642 ft).  The Jungfrau marathon starts in Interlaken at 566m above sea level and runs around the town, through Lauterbrunnen, Wengen, Wengernalp, Eigergletcher and finishes at Kleine Scheidegg at 2100m, ie up the mountain towards the Eiger

This year's Jungfrau Marathon saw nearly 4200 runners line up on warm and sunny day (temperature was about 13 degrees) on the closed main road in Interlaken ready to race.

Above: Up one of the many hills with Jack and Harriet in the foreground.

Above: The mountains looming ahead of the runners.

The organisation was excellent with large coloured balloons attached to pacers, marked out race pace areas, baggage trucks and a huge marathon Expo tent adjacent to buy any last minute items. In typical Swiss fashion the race started exactly on time with the crowd going wild as the elite athletes started followed by the less able behind. The race took a circuit round the main square so those on the starting line could see the runners again before they proceeded out towards the Brienzersee (one of the two lakes that Interlaken sits between) and then headed towards the valley towards Zweilutschinen. The first half of the race had a few up and down sections with a few long steady hills and I managed to complete it in 1 hour 40 whilst still feeling strong and saving myself for the tougher second half. After passing the town of Lauterbrunnen we were sent through a series of switch backs which crucified any opportunities of running and most of us were reduced to doubled over walking. My pace for this section was about 15 minute miling so I was still doing okay for a decent time. The next section was steady uphill but as we were so much higher up the views were even more spectacular with us running away and then looping back towards the mountains. The crowd support through all the villages on route was fantastic with “hop, hop” being shouted as we went past and cow bells being rung along much of the course. The course continued uphill occasionally broken with some brief downhills most of which was on asphalt roads or hard forest trails. At about the 20m point the tracks became stone paths and the tracks became steeper and steeper until the final stinger when we were directed off road along a slippery grassy hillside and then up a very steep mountain path with massive drops on each side where even the elite runners had to walk. If you look at the photos on the Jungfrau site this is the area where you see all the runners walking in single file.  The finish was a slight down hill which was videoed and took us into Kleine Schedigg which was a huge relief after the previous uphill sections and the efforts of trying to run whilst trying to avoid cramping calves.

Above: The view from the train shows a typical alpine barn for those Milka cows.

After passing the finish line we were given plastic coats to keep warm, drinks and a rousing tune from the Umpa band of The Eye of the Tiger. The changing and shower facilities were excellent as was the free post race massage, food, drinks, technical T shirt and medal. Also included in the entry fee was a trip back down the mountain on the train so we could soak in a bit more of the atmosphere.

Overall it was an excellent race with the best fuelling stations on route I’ve ever seen comprising 3 energy drink flavours, coke, banana, energy bars and water which was a bit confusing when your trying to choose your drink, run through and avoid clashing with other runners. The winning time was

1. Wyatt Jonathan, DOB 1972, in     2:58.33,4 

Second place

2. Ançay Tarcis, DOB 1970, 2:59.55,4

These were the only 2 to beat the 3 hour mark. I was some way behind in 525 place overall of 4200 in 4:26.35,9.

In short it was a fantastic race that I would certainly do again but its no PB course. If you want to read more or see the photos or results check out the link below:

JUNGFRAU MARATHON

Also there are kiddies races, a 1 mile sprint, a wheelchair race and a mini-marathon of 2.62m over the weekend so it’s a great excuse to make this a family event and holiday so book early as it fills up early.

Above: The view from the train, only half way up, looking down in to the valley.