Defining What a Running Challenge Means

I recently learnt about some skiers who crossed the Pyrenees unsupported. Not easy, it would have taken them a month at least. Then I read the details of the article in a growing surprise: they hid five food containers along the road, they took a taxi, they had enjoyed saunas and all other “self-sufficiency” sort of things. I have to admit it pissed me off because the word “unsupported” has some very serious connotations. Just ask anyone who has run a race without any external help: the trouble to make the backpack lighter to insanity, starving as never before or miserably sleeping on the floor. Though this is not only applicable to competition, I believe it is fair to tell the others what we do and how we do it. As well as what happens in mountaineering, where you can use oxigen tanks or not, climb with the help of sherpas or do it solo, so we, the runners, have to do it. The judgement about the toughness of each challenge will be in the hands of others, but we have to be honest about how the activity is performed.

That’s why, using the above story as starting point, I’d like to clarify, with the help and colaboration of all of you, how we define the different types of races and challenges some of us are up to. I’d like this to be dinamic and get corrected on what is considered wrong or incomplete, or if someone wants to re-build the list, feel free to do it. Let’s get into it.

Unsupported

To depend on yourself and only yourself. No help except natural resources. Buying stuff in a grocery store is not running unsupported, neither is calling from a phone booth – if you can find one – or get food supply along the way. Given we have grown in a ‘Marathon Des Sables’ world and there’s no way you can carry all the water you need to complete a race, I would accept water supply as long as it is specified beforehand. I would also include a place to sleep as long it is only that, a roof to take shelter. How often you re-supply should be specified, as there’s a significant difference between carrying water for a 10 miles or 25 miles stretch. In personal challenges I accept help from local folks; we are first human beings and second athletes, and turning down water, some food or shelter without asking for it – that’s a key point – would be unpolite and unworthy. As a personal example, I crossed half of Mongolia on a bicycle pulling more than 12pounds. At some point I wasn’t able to call home for more than three days and knowing I wouldn’t in the next four, I accepted a cell phone from a local to call home to let them know I was ok. I think this is the perfect example of what cannot be called unsupported in a strict sense.

Examples of unsupported races are the Marathon des Sables,  The Libyan Challenge, 4Deserts or Jungle Marathon.

Self-supported

Neither fully supported nor completely ‘on your own’. There are several possibilities here:

• Self-supported with one re-supply: there are some races where you get support from the organization half way the event. This is the case of the Rock and Ice Ultra or the Trans Aq’. It makes things a little bit easier but the weight you are carrying is 70% that of the fully unsupported. This allows you to amend an error you had with your equipment or change clothes half way through the end.

• Self-supported in stages: there are races where you get water – or nothing – through the stage and then you have all your stuff in each camp at the end of each day. This is a ‘more athletic and less adventurous’ way of running races. In terms of a personal challenge, you would have your crew at the end of each day to provide you with food and a place to stay overnight (or you would pay for those services along the way in small villages or the like).

• Self-supported with stashes: applicable only to perosnal challenges, you put out stashes of supplies for yourself prior to the trip with food, clothing or anything else you need. The number of stashes should be announced beforehand as, again, it is not the same one every day than one every three days.

• Self-supported with crew: this would be a mountain course where your crew (usually driving on roads close to the trail) can only help you out every few hours. In this group we have the Himalayan Stage Race, the 100k of the Sahara or the Appalachian Trail record attempt by Karl Meltzer. Details should be specified as there could be fundamental differences in toughness and commitment.

Supported

Any other crossing or competition where you mostly have anything you need in terms of supplies and you can have drop bags in numerous spots along the course. We would have here the Ultra-Trail du Mont Blanc, Badwater, the Transrockies Run or the recent record of Kilian Jornet on the GR20. Though you carry a small waistpack, I’m not sure I would label the UTMB as semi self-sufficiency, as the organization does.

Suggestions, corrections, improvements, amendments,… are all welcome.

Written by Sergio · Sergio maintains the blog ser13gio.blogspot.com and these are the latest posts:
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