“La Ultra – The High” Ultra-Marathon 2010 Race Report: The Prologue to the Race

The road to TangLangLa- worl’d 2nd highest road at 17,500 feet. It was dark, it was cold, it was windy and it was 40 hours and 180 km since the race was on…What an experience!

I stepped out of the car and immediately it felt like getting out into the hell. It was dark everywhere and strangely the high Himalayan peaks that surrounded from all directions, wore an inexplicable mesmerizing afterglow of the sunset. The wind was chilly and it was strong and the howl was unmistakable. I checked my watch and it confirmed the conditions. I was at 16,500 feet from sea level, 50 km from any human habitation and it was 2 degrees Celsius at 8:30 pm.

Just ahead of me was Mark Cockbain, the British Ultra-Marathoner- now in the final leg of the run. He had run 160 km by now and was on his feet for 38 hours at a stretch. We were 9 km from TangLangLa Pass, the 17,500 feet behemoth that stood as a blatant challenge to anyone trying to finish the 1^st edition of India’s 1^st and World’s Highest Ultra-Marathon!

We were a small contingent. Leading the way was Rajat Chauhan, a neat pack of the race director, an acclaimed sports medic and a veteran of many marathons and ultras. Close to his heels was Sonali Bhatia, a designer and a mountaineer who was more or less doing the piloting for Mark and there was Akhil Raina, an eclectic computer engineer.

Rajat Chauhan, the race director leading the way enroute TangLangLa pass

Sonali Bhatia accompanying Mark Cockbain. Mark had great help from his crew in the entire race.

We all had out headlamps and torches out and just one goal in mind- reach the TangLangLa Pass Top with Mark. Mark was in a bad shape (purely from my standpoint). Sleep deprivation, altitude, extreme exhaustion, cold and dryness taking a heavy toll on him. He was complaining of double vision. He had trouble perceiving the depths from the heights and was veering to his right all the time.

But whatever be the physical state, mentally he was as stoic as the mountains surrounding us. “I need to get off this mountain” that’s all he muttered and kept doing what he had been for last day and a half- just plant the next foot.

The nature fought back. One side of the mountain wall was now all packed snow; the road was a minefield of jagged boulders with ice and snow melt streams crisscrossing it like a board of snakes and ladders. The surface was all slushy and traction was tough to come by. But that was the last concern for us; the biggest enemy was the altitude. With only 40% as much air to breathe than at sea level, this was like a walk with your neck inside a plastic bag. And then it was cold.

It was scary.

Just a few hours back I had seen one of most amazing sunsets on our way to TangLangLa Pass. The scene was an ever-changing canvas with each minute being a new painter that would add another brush stroke of color.

Sunset time view of the sky near TangLangLa

More views from the same point

and the view gets better and better…

finally darkness sets in…..what a great sequence of views!

What was beautiful and enjoyable then was now a scary monster. Mark was exhausted but undaunted as he kept taking one more step after another. It was now a duel between the human will and the elements.

The road-ahead was illuminated by the headlights of the 3 cars following us. Finally after a 2 hours 45 minute marathon, Mark reached the TangLangLa Pass, 17500 feet from sea level- on the 2^nd highest road in the world!

TangLangLa pass – 17,500 feet – World’s 2nd Highest Road!

Just as we crossed TangLangLa Pass, I jumped back into the car and breathed easy. It was warm, cozy and you need not fight the terrain to plant another step while breathing almost nothing.

As Mark kept taking more steps downhill and kept advancing towards the end, which was 32 km from the pass, I relaxed and looked back how this amazing high altitude ultra marathon spanned out.

For me, it began last year in November when I received an email from Rajat asking me if I would be fine him sharing my cycling photographs of this same region.

I have cycled this whole region last year from Manali to Leh via the TangLangLa Pass and then on to the highest road in world- the KhardungLa pass. Read my cycling blog here.

All vehicles getting ready to move to Khardung Village from Leh

So, I had the advantage of knowing the place pretty well. But when I first heard of the concept of running through this route, my thought was – “wow, this is crazy- running 200+ km in Himalayas in insane enough!”

Later, all pieces fell into their right place and a gang of 25 odd organizers and volunteers descended into the arid cold wilderness of Ladakh, a Northern district of Sovereign India.

The race that would unfold was to be an epic.

It would begin on July 24^th 2010 from 12 km North of Khardung Village at 13,500 feet altitude. The course would then run through a 42 km brutal climb up to the highest motor-able road of KhardungLa pass (at 17,700 feet) and then descend to 10,500 feet on the Indus valley floor via the district headquarters Leh. Then the course would take a final dramatic ascent to TangLangLa Pass (17,500 feet) and descend to 15,500 feet into the Morey Plains.

This way the total course would be a staggering 222 km! Here is the route profile:

The Route

I reached Leh on 22^nd July, as the last member of the volunteering crew and sensed a prevailing unease.

All were unsure.

This was the 1^st time anything of this magnitude was planned. The organizers and volunteers were unsure of the unknowns.

The runners were unsure, as this was their 1^st attempt at anything this high!

On July 23^rd 2010 all the paraphernalia along with all the volunteers and participants started from Leh for our campsite at Khardung Village.

The campsite at Khardung Village @ 14400 feet

The campsite at the Khardung Village was set up at the nature’s lap. The logistics was looked after by Kaushal from Above 14000 Feet who had the dual responsibility of taking care of all the nitty-gritties and his two beloved doggies!

Kaushal, the fellow responsible behind the event logistics

Our lifelines, read guys with the driving duties caught up with their sleep so as to prepare for the next grueling 72 hours of labor.

Folks with driving duties: Jitin, Susheel and Hitendra AKA Bunty

By that time, the runners were busy dishing out their instructions to their respective crewmembers. The crewmembers were seen with laptops, gps, cameras, medical equipments, pens, papers, scissors and pretty much all sorts of stationeries for keeping track of all the vitals.

Bill giving instructions to his crew member Nischal. All runners have their likes and dislikes, do-s and dont-s and a pre race instruction file is the best way for the crew to remain apprised

The support cars, one designated for each runner, were first loaded, and then overloaded and then super loaded till the time they just had enough space for the crew to wriggle in!

Thats what the cars looked like. These big SUVs were filled to the brim. It was a contortionist’s job to fit inside the cars and the crewmen did that with aplomb!

It would be a full moon night in a day’s time. Thus the moon was brilliant and it shined like a real 200-watt bulb at night.

Next day was big.

Next day was the start of the 1^st edition of the La Ultra – The High!

Lots of folks had said that this was an untenable plan, that it was impossible to run at these altitudes…And here we are 12 hours from testing the waters.

The first day would tell us if this was at all doable…

Read on to know about the Day 1 of the Ultra Marathon……

The full moon night at Khardung Village

Also read:

La Ultra – The High : An Introduction

La Ultra – The High : Race Report Day 1

La Ultra – The High : Race Report Day 2 and Finish

-Manasij Ganguli

manasij.ganguli@gmail.com

+917838237844

“La Ultra – The High” Ultra-Marathon 2010 Race Report: Day 1-July 24th 2010

View from the starting point of La Ultra - The High: The highest ultra-marathon of the World! The starting point is 12 km from Khardung Village on way to Nubra Valley

The 4 am alarm sounded like a war bugle. Wriggling out of the warm sleeping bag was such an effort….

However, as I stepped outside the tent, the scenery seemed like that of a busy morning at a train station. People running, dogs barking, cars revving…. Amidst all the madness was a huge bowl of porridge lying on the grass while a few volunteers and runners feasted on it.

The early morning breakfast: Runners and Volunteers prepare for the next 2-3 gruelling days

At 5:30 all was packed up in cars and we began a 12 km detour towards Khalsar, Nubra Valley. Finally, we reached the starting point of La Ultra – The High, world’s highest ultra-marathon. Where was it? Actually it was nowhere. One of the important aspects of the race is that it starts and finishes just anywhere, no landmarks required.

The Starting Point of La Ultra - The High

As this was the 1^st edition, the entry to the race was strictly by invitation. There was of course qualifying criterion. Click here to see the profile of the runners and here you will find the qualifying criterion.

In a nutshell, we had 3 highly respected international ultra-marathoners. The distinguished running participants were Bill Andrews, Mark Cockbain and Molly Sheridan. All of them have participated in the other grueling ultra runs across the world and now testing their mettle in this extreme high altitude ulra-marathon.

Bill and his team decided to do a small team huddle. Bill’s team had Jitin as the car driver; Abhijeet, Sabine and Nischal as crew members.

Bill Andrews' Crew: Nischal, Bill, Jitin, Abhijeet and Sabine

They were the noisiest among all the other groups.

Molly’s group had Robert Wier, Rajesh, Sindhu and Susheel was taking the driving duties.

Mark’s group had Hitendra at the wheels with Akhil, Manisha and Sonali splitting the crewing honors.

Rajat was with Kaushal, the owner of Above 14000 feet – the logistics partner in his rugged 4X4 Gypsy to keep tab on all runners.

At the stroke of half past 6, the 1^st edition of La Ultra – The High began!

All hands meet at the Starting point

The cameras and videos had a busy time rolling together as the runners started the 222 km odyssey at a more or less brisk walk pace. Ultra –Marathons are never super fast events, but are events of endurance and conservation of resources. Anyway, we all knew this was probably our only chance to capture all participants in one frame and so did we!

And the race begins....finish line? Oh it is just 222 km away!

The first steps of the La Ultra - The High

Off you go guys....

Bill Andrews, Molly Sheridan and Mark Cockbain: The 3 runners

The immediate goal was the campsite 12 km from start line. Mark quickly overtook Bill and Molly and reached Khardung Village as the race leader, a distinction that he would go on to hold on for the rest of the race.

Bill was not in his top form- suffering from mild chest congestion for the last few days. He started slow and steady. I was in Molly’s support crew car at the start and she was going well. Our vehicle would stop every 4-5 km or so and every time Molly went by, Sindhu or Rajesh would run up to her and find out if she needed anything.

Molly Sheridan running through the winding Himalayan roads

Bill Andrews caught up in a miny traffic jam at 15000 feet!

At the Khardung Village- 12 km from start at an altitude of 14,400 feet, Mark was leading the pack by some 5 minutes with Molly and Bill following him in the same order.

Molly reaching Khardung Village, 12 kms knocked off, 210 to go....

At the Khardung Village, the camp kitchen provided packed lunch for all the volunteers – you don’t want to keep the volunteers hungry, do you?

In races like these, the crew is as important as the runner. It is also an endurance activity for the crews who have to be on their toes full time to cater to the needs of the runners. 48 to 72 hours in cramped car space, braving altitude, cold and still keeping the runners on the go – crewing is not a job for the faint hearted. Add to that the group dynamics of staying put with setting sleep deprivation and add the fact that each runner has a different personality trait. The crew has to keep a lot in mind.

Mark was the silent type who did not like being talked to. Bill was the expressive kinds who would always have a few things to tell his crew.

Molly was just happy running and she would smile and wave past he crew on each pass.

However, for pure enthusiasm Sabine and Nischal had my vote hands down. Each time Bill would go past the support vehicle, these two lovely ladies would stand as cheer girls and chant:

“Bill will kill the hill….oh yeah….”

With an unmistakable Rajnikanth styled pelvic thrust!

Yes girls, thats the way to support your runner......

It was just the kind of start a great race required!

The race had one more surprise up it sleeves- something no one had guessed so far. Molly and Bill had planned to get engaged and had chosen Khardungla pass, the highest road in the world, as the ceremony ground!

So it was no wonder see them run the distance together from North Pullu, 14 kms from Khardungla pass.

Bill and Molly running together and having a great time

Meanwhile Mark was relentless in his progress. He was eating kilometers at a brisk pace. However now he had a new problem other than altitude to contend with.

The road conditioned worsened quickly as it neared the Khardungla pass These high passes are always a high altitude battle zone between man and the nature. It snows some 30 feet in a year and has numerous snow melt streams rudely flowing over the road surface. Thus the road surface sometimes completely gets obliterated.

Akhil Raina with Mark. Akhil was a great sport and a big reason behind the success of the event. He also crewed Mark and fittingly looked after Mark's needs at all times. Here Akhil walks up with Mark on way to KhardungLa pass

really bad road conditions nearing KhardungLa pass. But the you have to respect the nature when you are at 17,700 feet trying to carve out a road almost half way up the sky!

Just as Mark was reaching KhardungLa pass, a snow avalanche struck. He crossed over the fresh snow to reach the KhardungLa pass in 6 hours 45 mins for a 42 km climb!

Watch the avalanche crossing video here:

Mark Cockbain at KhardungLa pass. At 17,700 feet this is the highest road in the world and the highest point of the La Ultra race

At the Khardungla pass, Mark and his crew met up with a tribal woman from the far off Batalik who had walked all the way to this place for pilgrimage purposes. It was an interesting moment as one international ultra-marathoner met up with a local long distance walking pilgrim.

one runner meets another......Mark meets a long distance walker local Pilgrim

As Mark was making is way down to Leh, Molly and Bill’s support crew were stuck in the same avalanche created traffic snarl.

avalance created stoppage for support vehicles

Finally Bill and Molly reached the Khardungla pass at 4 pm, almost 3 hours behind Mark.

Bill at khardungla-17,700 feet!

Molly reaches khardungla too....

At Khardungla pass the race was put on the back burner for a while. Molly and Bill walked all the way up the ridge and stood perilously close to the sheer drop and took the plunge…. I mean exchanged the engagement rings while the crew applauded.

The place where they took the plunge.....

There are many worthy places to get engaged, but getting a slice of Himalayas, world’s highest pass and an impossible ultra-marathon is one crazy cocktail not available for made to order engagements!

The run continued again. By now it was getting to the evening hours. The golden glow of the sunrays was making the route look surreal and straight out of a picture postcard.

View while coming down from KhardungLa

Bill was looking strong and was setting a nice pace.

Bill going strong- in groove to kill the hill!

On the other hand Molly started to struggle a bit. She was unable to ingest anything and was throwing up. However, she refused to call it quits and kept running.

The crew came in to support her. Rajesh and Sindhu took turns staying with Molly in her run. She was surely one tough gal as she kept the kilometers ticking despite being in bad shape.

Molly being looked after by her support crew during her rest break

At 6 pm Molly was at South Pullu, 57 km from the starting point when Rajat, the race director and the sports medic examined her. Rajat deduced that Molly was far too dehydrated to continue. He beseeched Molly to pull out for the evening and receive medical attention at Leh Hospital. Reluctantly Molly agreed and she was whisked away in the support vehicle.

Meanwhile it became dark. The temperature dropped dramatically and to compensate for the harsh surroundings, the full moon came out.

Bill and Mark were still on course for more than 12 hours. Mark had a 3 hours’ lead over Bill reaching Leh town, 80 km from the starting point.

Mark reaching Leh

Glowing in the dark....Thats Bill Andrews by the way

However, Bill had his share of bad luck just 5 km from Leh town. He was complaining of chest congestion and he was also taken to Leh hospital. Both Bill and Molly would start from their last position the next day.

Mark had reached the Indus river basin and was now more or less on flat land at an altitude of 11,000 feet. He had almost 80 km to cover in the Indus basin passing though Leh, Choglamsar, Thiksey, Karu, Upshi to reach Rumptse, the base of TanglangLa pass.

17 hours into the race, mark is still on course and still creacking a few jokes during rest breaks.....

It looked like a long night. The question was, would Mark survive the long and cold night running through the crazy altitude? Would Molly get strong enough after a night at the hospital to get back to the point where she left of last night? Would Bill be able to tide over his chest congestion to challenge Mark the next day? The crew was tiring and the full day’s toil was now taking its toll. Will they be able to stitch together another day’s hard work?

While I battled these questions, Mark silently kept his game up. He was still running, it was near midnight- 17 hours on the course, braving the cold, the altitude and exhaustion there was one man still pursuing what he does always- put himself through a suffer fest and keep doing his best.

I wondered what was in store for the next day.

Read on to know about the grand finale of the La Ultra – The High ultra marathon.

Fabulous camera work by Akhil. Thats a speeding vehicle streaking pasr Mark

Also read:

La Ultra – The High : An Introduction

La Ultra – The High : Prologue

La Ultra – The High : Race Report Day 2 and Finish

-Manasij Ganguli

manasij.ganguli@gmail.com

+917838237844

“La Ultra – The High” Ultra-Marathon 2010 Race Report: Day 2 and 3-July 25th and 26th 2010

Molly Sheridan: Gazing at Stok Kangri Range from the road to KhardungLa Pass

It was 24 hours since the first step was taken. 24 hours since the cars and the crew were on the move. 24 hours since the 1^st edition of La Ultra-The High, India’s 1^st and world’s highest ultra-marathon was underway.

Molly was declared fit in the morning and she started from South Pullu, the place from where she was whisked away to the hospital last evening. It was cold and the air above 15,000 feet altitude was as thin as ever. Molly’s run began and she was looking strong and good. The race was on!

60 km down the course Mark was now fighting fatigue, sleep deprivation and the terrain. But he was still on course! He had just another 100 km between him and the finish line.

Bill began from his last stopped point after a night at the hospital. He was at the moment the last guy in the race circuit.

Bill Andrews with his crew Nischal and Sabine....Noisy supportive crew 🙂

Bill’s vocal crew was back to business, supporting and cheering Bill at each pass.

However, it looked Bill was not at his 100%.

Finally, 7 km from Leh, Bill stopped. He was visibly in pain. He was again taken to the hospital and this time the prognosis did not look encouraging. Bill had contacted some gall bladder infection. He had to pull out.

Bill Andrews' challenge in 1st edition of La Ultra- The High ends with a gallbladder infection 80 km into the race

Bill Andrews is taken to SNM Hospital, Leh

It was heartbreak for Bill and his crew, but then it was impossible for Bill to get back to the race.

By 7 am Mark was at Upshi, the place where the Indus basin ends and the gradual ups and downs begin that would continue for next 40 kms till Rumptse where the final ascent to TangLangLa pass begins through some 30 odd switchback climbs.

Mark Cockbain: Now 24 hours into the race running through Tokpo valley near Upshi, 100 km from starting point

Soon it was warm. The sun was beating down hard and the temperature soared. At one point I noted 36 degrees Celsius (97 F)! At higher altitudes the thin atmosphere creates no barrier for the sunrays that seem like invisible needles going through your body. The lack of oxygen quickens the breathing rate and that accentuates water loss. It was therefore important to keep hydrated.

Runners’ nutrition is also very important. All the crews were keeping a tight vigil at what and how much the runners were ingesting. Like I said, being a crew is a tough job for any ultra-marathon and this was no different.

Sonali an avid mountaineer and Mark's crew for this race, cooking instant noodles- one of the many crew duties to keep the runner fulled and on the go....Sonali was greatly instrumental in Mark's success as was his rest of the crew

Molly was progressing nicely along the Indus basin and the mood in her camp was upbeat. 60 kms ahead, Mark was still going strong and he was now out of Indus basin and scaling heights albeit through some very gentle gradients. He was passing through the picturesque Tokpo river valley.

Mark continues in searing midday heat that went upto 40 degrees C (104 F)

Beautiful Tokpo river valley on way to Lato from Upshi. See the pirple hued mountains, the picture perfect river and a cute wooden river crossing

The midday heat was on and it was very warm in the sun.

By late noon Molly was now running through a searing 40 degrees Celsius (104 F) heat. It was talking a toll on her but she was brave and strong and continued. Her crew- Robert, Rajesh and Molly along with Susheel was greatly supportive and she kept her game up.

Molly Sheridan continues, now 30 hours into the race, 90 km from start point and not giving up despite scorching heat and a night at the hospital

At 1 pm, Mark and his crew reached Lato- the final campsite some 35 km from TangLangLa pass . It was the final campsite before the finishing point- still some 67 km further.

Lato camping site: see the local Ladakhi herdsman weaving yak wool near the pitched tents

As the crew stopped for lunch and Mark took a power nap inside the car, I wandered around. Last year during my cycle trip from Manali to Leh and then to Khardungla, we had camped at the very location and had fond memories of the place.

By 2 pm Mark was on his feet again. He had 67 km to the finish line but up ahead was a real uphill task. He was to scale some 4500 feet in next 35 km to reach the 2^nd highest road in the world- TangLangLa pass at 17,500 feet. Then he was to negotiate a wreck of a road to scale down another 2500 feet to finish at the Morey Plains.

This was going to be one long-tough climb and Mark’s pace was conservative at the start. By now he was on the course for 32 hours with hardly 2 hours of sleep in between.

Mark Cockbain: Off from Lato campsite and on way to TanglangLa Pass at 17,500 feet

Molly was now on her way to Upshi and started to worry why Bill had not crossed her yet. She was unaware that a team of doctors in Leh hospital looked after Bill at that very moment.

Mark’s progress was getting slower every hour on the climb to TangLangLa pass . He was suffering from exhaustion and now the altitude started to take swipes. However, he just kept moving.

Mark’s crew was joined by Rajat’s vehicle that was until now playing the role of the messenger car, keeping a tab on all 3 runners spaced out by almost 100 km now!

However, Rajat decided to join Mark for the stint uphill to TangLangLa pass .

on way to TanglangLa Pass

Rajat joins Mark on way to TangLangLa pass

The road from Rumptse to TangLangLa pass is amazingly beautiful. It is flanked by tall mystic mountains, each over 6000 meters and had great views. Amidst this amazing natural panorama was an odd group of cars and people, silently putting one-step after another with one goal- reach the top of the pass! Will Mark have enough left? The race was entering its most crucial phase.

Winding roads up the TangLangLa pass

It was 7:30 pm now and the sun had set. Molly was now at Upshi. She was getting slower too and now fighting some anxiety of not having seen Bill go past her for more than 15 hours now.

Up on the mountain, it was now getting colder every minute. The cold mountain wind was picking up and to make things worse the surface was all powdery and even gentle winds would smear the runners with choking dust.

I met up a few BRO workers who have the glamorous job of upkeep of these crazy altitude roads. They spend 5 months half up in the sky, breathing nothing with just 2 pairs of supplied warm clothes for a measly 4500 rupees ($90) a month. These guys are from poor and backward states of India. It was sad to see such disparity so nakedly.

Yours truly with the extremely poor laborers from Jharkhand. The get $90 for a month, less than what my shoes are worth! Pathetic disparity....

At dark, the roads became dangerous. The surface was all dust, boulders, water, slush, snow-melt stream wades…It was very cold, temperature well below 5 degrees Celsisus (41 F) mark with howling cold winds. The 3 cars lined up with their beams showing the way for Rajat and Mark.

The runners used Respra facemasks to keep away from dust. Its excellent dust filter and activated Carbon filter stood up brilliantly and provided great help all through.

It was a great addition to the race and a must have accessory in case you want to run/ cycle in these altitudes. Read about Respra here.

Mark Cockbain running through the 2nd straight night....

Then the crew had their first scare. Mark was very cold all of a sudden. A frenetic race ensued to get Mark some warm clothing.

Just at the moment when Mark was loaded with warm clothing, Molly had reached Lato campsite and was preparing for a few hours of break. She was focused and optimistic about the last 60 km or so. Little did she know then that she would be pulling out in next few hours…… Yes, it was an unpredictable race.

At 16,500 feet, 1000 feet shy of the TangLangLa pass top the condition were bad. Mark was suffering from extreme exhaustion for he was now on his feet for almost 40 hours. He had trouble perceiving heights from depths and was veering to right all the time.

Riding on pure will and determination, Mark reached TangLangLa pass at 11:15 pm. He was far too exhausted to even manage a smile at the pass’ legendary milestone.

TangLangLa pass - 17,500 feet - World's 2nd Highest Road! Mark Cockbain reached the place at 11:15 at night with frigid temperatures riding on sheer determination and will!

If the climbing up the pass was tough, the descent was equally a painful process. The road surface was shocking- ready to suck unsuspecting souls into 1000-meter drop offs!

It was extremely cold; at 2 am I measured -6 degrees Celsius (22 F)! Add to that the bone chilling winds that felt like some invisible enemy stabbing at you with a sharp dagger.

I headed down some 12 km in our car with Rajat and Susheel from the TangLangLa pass and waited for Mark to catch up. At 2 am a passing by vehicle stopped and they said something that we could not deconstruct, but it felt like something was wrong.

We turned back and headed up expecting the worst and a few switchbacks later saw the most amazing sight one can see instead.

In the crisscross of light and dark of the headlights of the cars and the boulders was a tall shadow of man running. The footsteps were sure and lofty enough to suggest that the runner was back in his elements. There was Mark.

“How much more?” he asked as he stopped for refilling some water.

“18.6 km more”. I told him.

“Lets finish this….” He was off again.

We saw him slowly disappear behind another turn and it felt amazing to see the man nearing the finish line.

In the meantime, Rajat and Susheel turned back from here to Lato to check upon Molly’s progress. Rajat met Molly at the campsite at Lato at daybreak. Molly was told about Bill’s hospitalization and she decided to rush to Leh to be at his side. Everyone knew, she had it to complete the race but respected her personal commitments. She would come back here next year to settle her score with TangLangLa pass for sure!

Morey Plains: the 1st edition of the race is about to finish

It was a cloudy early morning. It had been 48 hours since Mark was on the course. The crew and Mark had a last meeting. Akhil told him that only 4 km separates him from the finish.

“We will see you at the finish line” and we drove off.

The point of finish was in the middle of nowhere. It was almost halfway into the Morey Plains, an accident of geography that has carved out a 40 km flat land strip at 15,500 feet!

The car stopped at the final finish point, 222 km from the start. We came down and unrolled the finishing point poster.

“Here he comes…..” Akhil exclaimed and suddenly all our senses were heightened. And then it seemed all magical. Mark appeared in our vision range. First it was just a silhouette, then slowly you could see more detailing and finally there he was! The finish line buoyed his spirits for sure and he took some nice confident strides to hit the finish line.

The finishing line of the 1st edition of La Ultra-The High: Mark Cockbain's 48 hour 50 minutes' hurclulean effort ends in the middle of Morey Plains

Here is the video of the finish line. It was in a way funny as I realized that my camera mode was garbled and therefore could not get the video first time right. So we had Mark come back again and retake the finish line video.

Mark joked that he had to run 222 km and 50 meters 🙂 Sorry Mark, we made you run just a bit more!

The race was over.

No there was no chest thumping, no fist pumping, no overjoyed beaming smile….

Mark just sat in the chair and as the crew wrapped up everything, he spoke in a tone as if he was just back from a morning stroll!

Then as we loaded him in the car and made our way towards Pang, the makeshift camp for finishers. Mark just dozed off.

I was far too overwhelmed by the man’s achievement to let it sublimate over a REM cycle. It was an incredible experience seeing Mark do the almost impossible. Just look at the stats below to fathom the scale of his achievement:

Total Distance	222 km
Time Taken	48 hours 50 minutes
Average Altitude	13500 feet
Max Altitude	17700 feet
Min Altitude	10500 feet
Max Temp	40 degrees C
Min Temp	-6 degrees C
Min Oxygen Level	40% of Sea Level
Max Oxygen Level	65% of Sea Level
Total Ascent	11000 feet
Total Descent	8000 feet

I am no expert at running but my little experience of cycling in the same region tells me this is an incredible feat. It was greatly inspiring to see another human being push the limits, put himself through so much just to achieve the objective. You could brush past him, or for that matter Bill or Molly in a bus stop and you could never guess what these guys are capable of. It is physical fitness conjoined with extreme mental fitness that lets one complete such overwhelmingly difficult tasks.

Finally, that evening when all the team and the volunteers came together at the final camp at Whiskey Nullah, the award ceremony took place.

This time of course Mark and his team Akhil, Sonali, Hitendra and Manisha all had broad smiles. The cute trophy, designed by the Happily Unmarried group was a great result for the amazing journey.

Mark Cockbain: the undisputed victor

Mark with his crew (Sonali absent in the pic). There is Manisha, Hitendra and Akhil with Mark

And the 1^st edition of La Ultra – The High, world’s highest ultra-marathon came to an end.

It was am amazing event, an event that many thought was impossible to organize, let alone for someone to finish. Yes, there were a lot of unknowns, lot of challenges, lot of room for improvements, but then now Mark has shown that it is doable- though in his own admission it was one of the toughest races he has done.

So, what happens next?

I am sure next year La Ultra – The High would be back with more runners from different parts of the world, all with one goal- push the limit, reach the next km, complete the next switchback, go over the next pass, kiss the finish line…..

Get inspired now!

Every step counts

Also read:

La Ultra – The High : An Introduction

La Ultra – The High : Prologue

La Ultra – The High : Race Report Day 1

-Manasij Ganguli

manasij.ganguli@gmail.com

+917838237844

La Ultra – The High: The Highest Ultra-Marathon of the World

La Ultra - The High: The Highest Ultra-Marathon of the World!

5395 meters !

Not a soul…..

Not a sound….

just the runner and the road!

Oxygen Content: 40% as compared to Sea Level

Terrain: Cold Desert

Surface: Rocks, Gravel, Ice, Tarmac

Total Ascent: 3107 meters

Total Descent: 2704 meters

Distance: 222 km

Average Elevation: 4115 meters

Where: Ladakh, Himalayas, India

When: From July 24^th 2010

Cut-off Time: 72 hours

Mind boggling?????   Shocking????    Challenging?????    Inspiring?????

Well, it depends from where you are viewing it.

Presenting, the highest ultra-marathon of the World- “La Ultra – The High” !

A unique extreme high altitude foot race that runs through the two highest roads in the planet transecting the high Himalayan cold desert of Ladakh, India.

The Route

The Route

The route starts from a moderate altitude of 14,400 feet at Khardung Village of Ladakh. It crosses through the highest road in the world, the legendary KhardungLa pass (5395 meters).

The Khardungla Pass- The highest road in the world

It then goes downhill to join the beautiful Indus valley basin. Then it passes through a string of magnificent Buddhist monasteries to begin the ascent to the 2^nd highest road in the world, the TanglangLa pass (5359 meters).

Thiksey Monastery: One of the most beautiful monasteries in Ladakh

Down to Indus Basin

TangLangLa Pass: The second highest road in the world

From the TanglangLa Pass the route again descends to an amazing accident of geography- the Morey Plains, a 15,000 feet high table top of 40 kms length! Yes, the race finishes in the middle of nowhere- somewhere in those plains!

Race Finish Line: In the middle of nowhere on the Morey Plains

Why Run This?

If you are an ultra-marathoner you already know the answer!

It is not about getting from place A to place B, neither it is about the bragging rights for accomplishing what looks a real tall order but it is about pushing yourself to the next limit. Yes, the terrain is hostile (remember it is a cold desert), yes the altitude is sickening (oxygen content never more than 60% at sea level) and the weather would be unpredictable (things change before you can ever imagine at that altitude), but then there is the spirit of the runner partaken into a ever lasting duel till the finish line.

If you are an ultra-marathoner, this is one of the “must do-s”, for there is no event in the world that is organized at this altitude.

Also Ladakh is a charming land. It is barren and scarce in resource, inhospitable and harsh but at the same time has one of the most spectacular views of the Himalayan landforms.

While you run through the 222 km, you will be kept company by the tallest mountains in the world, by the mighty Indus River and of course the highest roads in the planet!

Who Are Organizing It?

Back2Fitness group of New Delhi, India are the primary torch bearers of this maiden event.

Rajat Chauhan, an acclaimed sports medicine expert and the primary catalyst of Back2Fitness is the race director is pretty much the nerdy professor behind the invention. A veteran marathoner/ultra-marathoner his vision is more of a by-product of a runners aspiration than anything!

Naturally an event of this magnitude needs supportive hands from all quarters and there are enough crazy people out there to support the cause. The people who are supporting the cause are:

Back2Fitness, Himalayan Heli Adventure, Above 1400 ft, Adventure 18, Happily Unmarried, Desert Sky Adventures, Chlorosoul and MapMyIndia.com.

For detailed information on who are supporting La Ultra- The High please click here .

Who are Running?

This year, being the 1^st event- La Ultra-The High is organized on an invitation basis. There are certain qualifying criterion of course but the most important criterion is probably the will to complete something of this scale!

This year La Ultra-The High has a few very distinguished participants. Check out who is running this year here.

Sign Off

Well that much for the introduction to a race which will surely earn its name among the legends in near future.

In less than 7 days from now the introductory version of La Ultra-The High would begin from the most virgin landscapes of Indian Himalayan region of Ladakh. The runners would have 72 hours to beat the altitude, hypoxia, cold, snow, high winds and most importantly- the clock!

How would it be to run in the cold nights in a cold desert on a full moon lit night sky with billions of starts from all far flung galaxies gazing at the runners and the snow capped peaks of Himalayas giving them company?

I have no clue.

But I know it would be a hell of a ride for sure.

Watch out this space for live blogs from 24^th July onwards to know what is happening in Ladakh, the deserts in the sky, while the 1^st edition of the highest ultra-marathon of the planet unfolds.

I shall be cycling along with the runners in this event to bring the up close and personal stories of the runners. I have no idea about how one can run such a long distance in such unforgiving terrains but then that is what La Ultra-The High is all about!

Get set…Go!

La Ultra - The High