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Norseman 2004
MICKY GENOA AND THE GINGER PRINCE GO XTREME IN NORWAY.
4.30 am on Wednesday 4th August Mick Clark and Adam Laycock set off for Eidfjord, Norway for what was advertised as the toughest iron-distance race in the world.
Months of planning, training and preparing was now over, all that we had to do was get there and race. Our route was to drive to Newcastle and then take the Fjordline ferry to Bergen and continue the drive to Eidfjord which is about 80 miles from Bergen. We took with us everything we thought that we would need food, camping equipment, clothing for warm or cold, wet or dry.
We arrived at Eidfjord at 6p.m. on Thursday evening and since landing in Norway we had been amazed by the breath-taking scenery, there seems to be no flat in Norway it is all up or down, steep sided cliffs dropping into clear fjords, better was to come though. Eidfjord is a small town, not very big at all but a tri-camp was available for those on a budget. We found the tri-camp which was a school gymnasium; it was modern, very clean and well equipped, a bit like the rest of Norway.
Mick and I immediately set about brewing-up and over a few mugs of tea we met Martin from Denmark, he had not raced a triathlon in 6 years we were somewhat surprised, then he told us that he had cycled here from Denmark over the past few days!
Chris and Ross the students from Exeter were there too and during the night Dave from the Isle of Wight joined us, we had quite a “ging gang gooly”. Ian and Neil from Gears and Tears were staying in Eidfjord as was Guernsey Mick and his two support team. Amongst the Brits experience varied Guernsey Mick is a seasoned Ironman, Ross a first time triathlete, the rest of us somewhere in between, we were all looking forward to what was to come.
Haarek, the race organiser came to see us and was amazed that we were attempting the race unsupported. The rules of triathlon had a Norwegian slant to them. Each participant was allowed a support car, to carry nutrition and drinks and even a bike change would be allowed. It soon became clear that as the race was a “point to point” this was more a necessity than a luxury. There were aid stations along the route for the unsupported racers.
The first H.P.Norseman was run last year when the Oslo Triathlon Club wanted to find the toughest Iron-distance race in Norway .The finish was decided first, the summit of Gaustatoppen, then the run and bike were planned backwards by finding the hardest 112 miles for the cycle(which we think they did).The start was then decided to be Eidfjord. The people of Eidfjord welcome the race and all participants. The Civil Defence create an exercise based around the H.P.Norseman and provide marshals, traffic control and even build a dam to stop the ice-water river running into the fjord by the finish to help warm the water .The people are all there to help in any way that they can.
Friday saw a Mini-triathlon for anybody who wanted to take part. Sharon from Gears and Tears took part and did very well. Young and old had a go, wet suits were not necessary, not because of the water temperature but because the people taking part didn’t care or feel the need for them. Safety was tight and the most important thing was taking part.
That evening was the race briefing, time to get serious. Firstly Haarek showed a DVD of last years race, the room was silent and the atmosphere electric. Despite the language barriers caused by a Norwegian race in which competitors from as far away as Thailand were taking part the task ahead was clear, long hours were ahead.
Hewlett Packard and Maxim were the main sponsors of the race and there were to be prizes awarded by local and Oslo businesses for achievements along the route. Some rules were emphasized but generally the rule book was not laboured. The logistics of a point to point race are difficult enough without an over zealous rule book. There was no sense of competition in the race briefing. The best rule ,and one which sums up the spirit of H.P.Noreseman was placed upon the support teams, who all received a race T-shirt, should any competitor approach any support team at any time during the race than they must give all the help that they can.
This gave entrants like us, the valuable safety and back-up that I didn’t think I would need how wrong I was!
Next was the Pasta Party and a busy night in Tri-camp, set the alarm for 3am. Tomorrow was the day we had planned for.
By 4.30 am, 92 Athletes from all over Europe and Asia were aboard boats heading down a fjord into the mist.3.8 K is a long way it had just begun to get light and although the mist obscured the finish the mountains rose behind the town of Eidfjord and provided sighting points. The water safety teams came paddling into view as the boat came to a halt and we were all asked to enter the refreshing fjord. There was a brief moment of complete silence as though time was still, and then Haarek started the second H.P.Norseman Xtreme. The crystal green water became a washing machine, we were off.
20 minutes into the swim, we all had our own water and the morning was light, swimming through fresh water, the bi-lateral breathing drills started to pay off as I looked to my right the steep cliffs rose out of the water and up I could barely see the top, to my left the same it was stunning .Without doubt it was the best open water swim I have ever been involved in. Exiting the water to a huge cheer from spectators and marshals, through transition and off on the “steel horse”.
A 15 km warm up led to the first climb of the day.1200m (that was not the length of the climb, but the height above sea level).25 km was the length, at about 7-8%.The gearing we had decided to use was 39x27 and it was used on every climb for most of the time. Mick and I came together on this first climb and used each other, another rule in Norseman side by side riding was allowed on the climbs but drafting rules were enforced on flat and descending sections. We rode past the tallest waterfall I have ever seen, wound around the hill-side using the old paths, not the tunnels for the traffic.2 hours after exiting T1 we reached the first aid station at Dyranaut, 40 km of the 180 had been covered.
As we went over the summit the first aid station came into view, a couple of minutes re-filling our bottles and having a good laugh with the people running the aid station then it was off again, into a strong wind over the plateau and then a descent, long sweeping turns spinning out .The second aid station at the half-way point was soon in site, again re-filling, some local food and Haarek was there to have a joke with.
Out of the aid station and we begin the first of another three climbs; we both knew that any attempt to “red-line” the effort level would prove very costly later in the race and judging the effort was critical. Again the 39x27 gearing to go up, into a strong wind across the plateau before a fast descent. Then came the final climb on the bike, Imingfjell, another 700m at8% complete with a false summit but over the top was the feeling that the bike was nearly over .Again the wind challenged the riders on the high section of plateau, the descent began with a couple of switchbacks and then a very long, fast run into the very welcome T2.
The whole ride was stunning but after almost seven hours and thirty minutes on the bike I was glad it had come to an end.
A few laughs with the people at T2 and it was off down the road, just a marathon to run. The run profile looked flat for the first 16 miles but it was gradually up-hill nothing too taxing though, but as the runners turn into a valley comes an awesome sight. In 220 last year was a small section about the H.P.Norseman and a picture of Haarek running down that valley in front is the mountain at Gausta, on the top is the finish. It was part of the reason I went to Norway. The reality of this sight is breathtaking and the enormity of the climb ahead is in no doubt. Time to throw away the watch just a finish would be enough.
Then the climb begins in Ernest. First through trees, hairpin turn after hairpin turn it was hot and hard. At this point the support teams became invaluable to me and the other unsupported athletes. Every team I passed offered me drinks and food; I didn’t care what it was I took as much fluid as possible. The 5km between aid stations seemed like a marathon in itself running was no longer an option as I dropped into a power walk. Once we the course took us above the trees the air cooled down my calves and thighs had stopped screaming at me and I managed to run a slightly flatter section to get to the mountain checkpoint at 37 km.
A small rucksack of warm clothing had to be handed in at the start of the race for this point, nobody would be allowed onto the mountain without suitable back-up. It was starting to chill off at this point so I could understand that the later competitors could suffer. The final section was off road, a brutal test of stamina. Over mud, rocks, scree and gravel upwards climbing towards the finish. Eventually the summit is within distance, and then the finish is right in front of you.
I crossed the finish line to a heroes welcome, as I turned to survey the landscape the true enormity of the H.P. Norseman was below me.
Times and place are irrelevant, Ian had a mechanical failure and could not finish, his disappointment was huge but I am sure he will be their next year.
Any athlete who gets on the boat understands that the H.P. Norseman Xtreme is about the Norwegian experience.
Mick Clark and Adam Laycock.