After the ‘marathon des sables’ I had what was probably too long a rest period.
Still, such experiences have to be properly digested, friends and relatives have to be briefed, the diary for the X-BIONIC blog needs to be finished and everyday life has to start again at some point. Whilst running through the middle of the desert someone persuaded me to enter the Chiemgauer 100… The start date is not that far away and the X-BIONIC Fennec Running Shirt, Running Pants and the Run Evolution X-SOCKS are still all lying (neatly folded) in the clothes drawer…
AMy first test of form was the ‘SportScheck Stadtlauf’ in Munich, where I started alongside 18,000 other runners. Compared to a 100km mountain ultra marathon, a half marathon is a bit of a picnic. But this one really hurt. In spite of the great atmosphere, I finished course that included Munich's ‘Englische Garten’ full of nagging doubts. However, I did spot a new product from X-BIONIC, which looked something like Bavarian half stockings. A trendy, new gimmick? Hardly what you would expect from X-BIONIC. I had a quick chat with the guy wearing them and he was full of praise. He'd had a €40 voucher in his starter bag at the BIKE Festival in Riva and went straight out and bought himself a pair from the new X-BIONIC shop, Villa Aranci SNC, Viale Rovereto 25. He seemed genuinely impressed to finally find something worthwhile in his race bag. His curiosity had obviously been aroused by "for hardcore bikers only” slogan as he said he put them on immediately for the race the next day. The Spyker are based on the latest generation of compression technology, X-BIONIC partial compression, and work in the same way a classic leg compress. They use sweat to cool the blood, ensuring that the athlete can perform effectively for longer. Sounds logical. And if it works for bikers, it can’t be bad for runners either...
I had to get myself a pair. After searching around and phone calls to numerous dealers, I still hadn't found any. Then, as if from heaven, I spied an X-BIONIC stand at the start of the Maratona dles Dolomites. I’d come for what was the ultimate test of form – cycling 138 km with a total ascent of 4,190m. At the stand, there was some highly professional demonstrating going on and I got my own Spyker to test out on the race the next day. Together with the X-BIONIC Fennec Bib Tight and Fennec Race Shirt, sweat was being turned into energy by the time I reached the Passo Giau – which was no bad thing seeing as I was nearly running on empty. But what could go wrong for a man who was just so well equipped? And there was good news at the finishing line: a personal best for the Maratona. Thank you X-BIONIC! Next up it was the event I'd been working towards – the 5th Chiemgauer 100km run with a height difference of over 4,400m. The race started at 05:00 in Ruhpolding. Among the crowd I spotted a familiar face – Denis from the Marathon des Sables. Aha… the old desert fox himself also had a pair of Spyker on.
The Chiemgauer 100’s initial section involves 26km of forest trails, rough paths and an alpine trial marked ‘Danger of falling’ around the Rauschberg in temperatures of 10 °C, the ‘warm up’ as it were. Then it was up over the ski slopes of the Unterberg. It wasn’t long before I ended up with my left leg sunk in a boggy pit. Let's see how the waterlogged Run Evolution X-SOCKS ‘sock-in-a-sock-system’ copes with that then. And would my feet now end up covered in blisters... To put it bluntly: these socks are worth every cent.On the steep ascent to the Hörndlwandgipfel I had the pleasure of meeting Dr Markus Fohr, owner and manager of the Lahnstein Brewery and a convinced X-SOCKS fan. He had bought a pair of X-SOCKS Speed One two years ago at the K78 in Davos and still wears them for ultras. If that's not proof of hard wearing then I’d like to know what is.
The muddy trials and difficult ascents meant that we had our work cut out for us. There was a pretty high risk of slipping and injury with every step. There was a pretty high risk of slipping and injury with every step. As the distance went on, tiredness also started to creep in. The route continued over the Jochbergalm to Hochsattel, down to Kohlstatt and up and over to the ‘Hochfelln Mittelstation’, down to Maria Eck and then over to Egg in a slightly more relaxed manner, followed by 6km of tough ascent up onto the Hochfelln. The 4km downhill section required utmost care and concentration and was then followed by the easier 15km back to Ruhpolding. The 4km downhill section required utmost care and concentration and was then followed by the easier 15km back to Ruhpolding. Then came the final lap on the springy running track of the town stadium and the final metres to the finishing line and it was over. 100km in the cold, hailstorm, icy winds on the top and scorching heat on the southern-facing slopes. You could use several changes of clothing. Or alternatively, you could take just the X-BIONIC Running Shirt with its 3D-BionicSphere® System. Amazing but true: it cools you down when you sweat and keeps you warm when you’re cold.I have to admit that X-BIONIC have really got it right. At the end of the day, nothing is more reliable than your own experience and there’s certainly plenty opportunity to collect it on a run like the Chiemgauer 100.
