100km del Passatore, Florence Italy

Despite running Comrades last year as my first long distance race, I was feeling extremely nervous as I drove into the center of Florence to prepare for my first ever 100km ultra.  My training since January had gone very well so I felt confident physically to compete.  Mentally though I was really nervous, especially after I reading the first sentence of the race commentary notes - “This is a very hard race…”(!) 

The 100km del Passatore is Italy’s oldest Ultra, and used to be the host for the 100km World Championship.  It is a very hilly course, climbing from 65m above sea level to peak at 935m at the 49km  mark, before dropping down to the finish in Faenza at the 100km mark.  1,250 runners started the race at 3pm in the very heart of Florence, where the day before I had been shopping and sightseeing!  We ran through the beautiful streets of Florence before hitting the rolling hills of the Tuscany countryside.  The rolling hills became mountains as we climbed from the 35km mark to the peak at 49k, matching the climb in temperature which rose to a warm 31°C.  Since I live and train in Dubai I was certainly at an advantage in such heat, whilst a number of runners dropped out or fell back.  I kept a steady pace of approximately 10km per hour until around the 60k mark when I got a bad stitch. As the road dropped steeply downhill, the temperature also dropped almost immediately to 17°C.  As the sun set we started to run in pitch black conditions.  Running in the dark for the last 35km was one of the biggest psychological challenges of the race.  No spectators and no runners to talk to; I just focused and dug deep into my reserves of concentration and energy.  My husband was driving and providing me with moral support, flat coke and gel!   Through the wonders of the Blackberry, he kept Marcél and my running friends, who were relaxing the day before Comrades, well informed of my progress.  Text messages from Marcél, my family as well as my friends really kept my spirits up as I neared the 100km and my destination of Faenza.  As I entered the town the medieval churches and piazza were all lit up - what a fantastic feeling!  I cannot explain the joy and sense of achievement I felt as I crossed the line!  The race was the culmination of a great journey that begun in January.    Finishing the race in a time of 10hrs 18mins was the icing on the cake of a great experience I shall never forget.  

To be honest, after hitting the hills early on in the race at such heat, my race plan went to ground.  I was just focusing on finishing my first 100km ultra and beating the hill!  My time however ended up pretty good as I finished 2nd in my category (F45) and 8th overall female.