Sion's account of his successful UTMB adventure really is "what they don't tell you," and now I don't feel so bad that I may never get the chance to run UTMB. But, I am very impressed by Sion's accomplishment. Congratulations, and thank you for this video.
This is great! These are the stories we don't hear from Kilian or Jim as frontrunners. I so much appreciate you guys. Keep pushing, keep going! Excellent recap video 🥰
Love the pure honesty, I was about 30 mins behind you and walked with you for a little time just outside of Champex Lac. As such I can back up your claims, crazy race :) Congrats on the finish, you showed courage !
Huge congratulations!!!! I hiked/ran it in six days and at the end couldn’t imagine doing it nonstop! What an accomplishment! Thank you for the debrief ❤️👊
Great video mate, well done completing UTMB! Interesting to hear your experience with the French on the trail. My brother did CCC and suffered extreme dehydration, basically collapsed on the track. Dozens and dozens of people went past and not a single person stopped to ask if he was okay. Eventually the first person to stop was a fellow Aussie who sorted him out with some salt tablets - I think that says a lot. I'm glad you were able to persevere, that's a bucket list achievement 🙂
Mate that is horrible to hear about your brother, glad to hear he got sorted out though. The camaraderie on the trail was night and day different to the races I've done in Australia.
I'm sorry your brother experienced that. I feel bad and ashamed reading this as a French person, but I promise you we are not all like that, a lot of us would have stopped to help, even though it might seem like a lot of us are assholes. Hope you'll have some better interactions in the future !
I’ve known @sion for only 6 months and one thing I found immediately is he puts 100% into everything! What an amazing review. People spend 10k+, sacrifice time with family, significant leave from work every year to do this race, so it’s actually extremely helpful having an honest review. Tash, the edit and music was superb you should be just as proud as Sion for this series. Please do more insane things Sion, and Tash, please make videos about them! Haha
I really enjoyed this. You have an engaging style and it’s great to see the race being dissected like this. More please. I did the MdS 10 years ago so going back to watch your experience.
Thank you so much. I really appreciate the comment. Congratulations on finishing the MDS... What an absolutely WILD race that is 😳 my experience there was one I'll never forget.
Congratulation, incredible job!! The cutting through a private backyard to avoid a course slowdown, and using your poles to block other runners, made me absolutely cringe, but otherwise, an incredible adventure and top notch effort! Great info too!
Awesome insight into a wild 43 hours. Congrats Sion on getting through it considering your ankle and the hallucinations. You put in the hours, the kms, the climbs, the hikes - you deserved to get over the finish line. Loved the series. We need words however regarding your form at 5:39, 14:46 and 21:00. You can't cheat, push people out of the way, then fart in their face 😂 He's gone native.
Congratulations on finishing and your amazing account of the experience. I ran the OCC this year and that was hard enough. Never ran a 100 mile race but you have inspired me to go for it and I have signed up for the Arc of Attrition 100 in Jan 2025. Good luck with your future events and I look forward to hearing all about them on your Chanel 👍👍
Sion! I loved this mate - I ran UTMB Mont Blanc too this year and some of your stories made me laugh a lot as I had the same experience. I had the joy of my wife and three children running the finishing line with me - it was an epic experience all of it. Agree TMB is something for the future to see all of that beauty in the daylight. Well done - John Williamson, Brisbane, Australia.
Congratulations on the finish mate. I'm glad some of the stories resonated with someone else 😁🤣 did you experience the double pole? lol Could only imagine the feeling of seeing your kids at a checkpoint and/or finish line 🥹
Really amazing video brother. And massive congrats on the finish. I’ve done 50 miles on the flat, and remember crying like a baby as well. What an achievement.
11:43 Love your take on it boy after training so hard for it you were never going to DNF your mental strength is just so admirable and sets you apart from most……. you and everyone who finished it are in an elite group of humans I’m am so proud of you boy and can’t wait to see what the three of us are going to do ……..the expectation is intense 😃🏴🇦🇺
Having run 2 of the other UTMB races, I totally agree that it is wildly busy & overwhelming. It’s always an amazing experience, but not one I would want for 170km. Congrats on the amazing achievement!
WoW! What a great story, what an amazing adventure and doing it together is beautiful. It's very inspiring. I loved the honesty and authenticity of it and the way it's been put together by Tash is fantastic. I'm excited to see what you do next!
Huge huge huge CONGRATULATIONS Sion!!!!🎊💪🏃♂🏅💪🎉 PHENOMENAL, just PHENOMENAL!!!! And THANK YOU so much for sharing your incredible journey with us!! I'm an Aussie living in France (20years now) so you can imagine I laughed out loud at your "rude Frenchies" stories, especially them getting stroppy with you for walking around the queue!!🤣 I'm only just breaking into ultras myself with a few 50kms under my belt now, and the last 3 years I was absolutely glued to my computer for 2 days and nights following along the UTMB... It often reduces me to tears just watching!! It's extremely motivating, though not at ALL to do it myself, just to want to be able to run more and run further... 'cause as you say anyway, just way tooooo many people!!! I even used to live at Chamonix , but long before running! I spent a wonderful week at Courmeyeur last summer doing my first ever real training with poles, so I felt for you when you talked about that climb ... after almost 24hrs on the trail quand même!! We had one of our wettest summers ever, it rained almost every day of my 2 weeks training in the Alps, so you really WERE lucky with the weather!!! Colleen Browne (a mountain guide from George, South Africa) did her first UTMB also this year, she managed to finish just under the 44hour mark!🎊💪🏃♀She spent a few weeks before the race living in a tent at the campgrounds just outside Courmeyeur and she got totally flooded out!!! So happy to subscribe and follow along with yours and Tash's future achievements!!! Bloody BRAVO!!!!!!!👏👏👏👏
Thank you so much for your kind words! 😊 It’s amazing to hear that you’ve started breaking into ultras-50km is no small feat, so massive congrats on that! 🙌 I love that you're so connected to UTMB! It’s crazy how unpredictable the weather can be out there, so big respect for sticking with it through the wet summers in the Alps. Wow, Colleen Browne finishing just under 44 hours-what a legend! The dedication and resilience it takes to even finish a race like UTMB, especially after living in a tent and enduring flooding, is just phenomenal. Really appreciate you following along on our journey, and Tash and I are so grateful for your support.
As more of an obscure FKT runner, those mass starts are wild, it gives me anxiety just looking at them. It's nice to hear the struggle side that goes along with crowds of runners, as I hear so many stories that gloss over that part. Huge achievement, well done
Incredible achievement , your story brought back so many emotions/memories when I “ran” UTMB last year. I never heard of the double pole before and it never happened to me. Ha. I would have been shocked if someone did that to me. I only hallucinated once but never like you did, That would have made me run faster. Congrats to you and your crew. She was a rock star. And I think your finisher's vest is a better quality than mine. Dammit.
@@sondervail I think for me, I'd rather just experience the trail outside of the race, but i'm sure the adrenaline and going through the race experience with others, is what it's all about.
I would have loved to see the look on your face when the French guys put their poles across you lol 😂 Amazing series Tashi! Great to see the UTMB experience from so many different perspectives so people have an understanding of what they are about to embark on. The hallucinations sound WILD but so proud of you for getting to the finish line! It’s so hard to keep putting one foot in front of the other when you are so sleep deprived on a course as brutal and humbling as UTMB! INCREDIBLE achievement ❤
Thank you ♥️ UTMB is a wild race and a lot of WILD things happen lol I think each of the 2761 runners who started would have their own crazy experience.
Wow, I had no idea the traffic got that bad. I got to the start 2 hours before the race last year and didn't experience any of this. This year I got there an hour before and definitely noticed a lot more traffic up until Les Houches at least. Great video! Well done on your finish!
Appreciate it. Thank you 😁 Being at the start line 2 hours early would make a big difference, I was there an hour before and it was too late in my opinion.
I could listen to your stories for hours loved the honesty ❤ i couldn’t imagine running through the night let alone having illusinations I am so proud of every thing that you do 😍not sure if you should include your Dad and Deian in your adventures I will worry way to much 😂 Tash you are his back bone and you are doing one hell of a great job love you both ❤
I have absolutely and utterly loved watching this Sion. It’s 245am here in England and the third night since I finished my second ever 100k. I think I’m experiencing that downward turn you spoke of, as I’ve had to get out of bed and come downstairs to eat and also walk around - my legs are restless! What I loved most about this video is how real and normal you made it - there are hardly any RUclipsrs who tell you what these things are actually like. I kind of wish there were more. A huge congrats from a 48 year old Pom who has been running for 2 1/2 years. Don’t think I’d ever want to do UTMB even if I thought I could. But I’ve honestly loved this video. It was absolutely brilliant. ❤️
Congratulations on your second 100km mate. That's huge 🙌💪 Really appreciate you commenting and for such a nice comment. You are a legend and I hope you have some more events to look forward to 😁😁😁
I really enjoyed watching this! Thanks for your up close and personal take on UTMB! It seemed so different than the livestream! But I'm sure it felt incredible to finish! Congratulations! 🥳
@sondervail Yeah! The media coverage is a bit misleading to those who may aspire to running UTMB one day! Lol! But the support of the crowds must have felt amazing! Thanks for sharing your experience! 🤗
I also ran the UTMB this year. Totally recognize your description of the randoms in the starting area. I was baffled being surrounded by spectators in this immensly crowded area holding signs and what not. Brain was also fried at Les Contamines due to all the crowds continuesly raping my eardrums ;)
That was a great watch Sion (the whole series)- loved the honesty and has confirmed for me my running days are well and truly over 😂 Tops effort- look forward to what’s next 💪
So good to hear a UTMB account from a “normal” (if you can call anyone that finishes a 100mi 10000m of ascent ultra trail ‘normal’ 😂) runner. Despite the crowdedness, this one’s still on my bucket list, but like you, I think I’ll keep it to once. Fastpacked TMB last year and that was an amazing experience.
Thanks for the video - you ran more or less the same time as my son and many of your experiences were very similar, as indeed were your conclusions. Hope you come and run the MUT here in South Africa - I will be sure to come and cheer you on.
Amazing insight! I was also on the start line but didn’t make the finish. I’d watched all the RUclips content on UTMB beforehand but a lot of stuff about the start etc was not covered like you did so nice work…it was a circus ha!!
@@sondervail also wanted to say congratulations, amazing resilience making it to the finish line going through two nights with the challenges you faced! I hiked up the final section to La Flagere on Sunday and probably crossed paths. I was very inspired by everyone that pushed through the full lap.
I love watching UTMB weekend on YT, BUT its my idea of hell for the reasons you say EG too crowded. Ill find a empty 50k forest trail if you don't mind 😂
Thanks for documenting your experience. I can relate to most of what you said….i did it 2017, it was wet and yes, everything becomes slippy! But I’d take that over the heat you guys endured. Top effort finishing mate!
That start is fascinating. I just finished listening to a podcast where a girl described her experience running the CCC and they were actually divided into groups and released with 15 minute difference. Yet still, she had the same experience with being stuck in the crowd on the first climb. I've experienced a 24 minute bottleneck at the Prague Half Marathon and that was quite frustrating. So I felt your frustration when you talked about that experience, haha! Man, that must have been tough. Congratulations on finishing the race! Sounds like a hell of a journey! Respect!
Yup CCC did go every 15mins and I don't think there is a solution to stop the crowding with that many people. Just apart of the experience 😁 24min in a Marathon is an eternity 😲
Hi Lenka, too bad to hear about your bottleck experience at Prague Half Marathon. At what KM was this congestion? Any tips like "stay on the left or right-handed side there? Prague is certainly on my shortlist of to-do races. Děkuji!
@@dresden_slowjog It was at the corridor at the very start of the race. There was no way to go around anywhere as there are roadblocks on both sides. You were given a group based on your estimated time and if it’s your first time, you are going to be all the way back. I was in the second to last group. That’s why the 24 minute wait. 😅 Besides that it was an amazing race and Prague is definitely bucket list worthy! :)
Thanks for the video! Congratulations 🎉🎉🎉 i only did a race like CCC and it felt very hard. I am training to be able to do 100 miles utmb course. Big congratulations!🎉
@sondervail You earned it! I ran the TDS a few days before you and whereby I didn't have anything nasty happen hallucination-wise the tricks my eyes played on me particularly the 2nd night, were pretty funky 😃
Loved your video. I enjoy watching ultra runners talk about their heroics. How can you go so long without your body cramping up or your muscles giving out. Congratulations on your race.
Yeah, this race used to be "The one" I'd always wanted to do. Not taking anything away from how tough it is or those who have done it but seeing that apparently everyone who did it this year also blogged / vlogged / had an entire film crew with them, it's totally lost it's appeal. Personally, I run in the mountains to escape, to challenge myself. Not stand in a queue with 1000 other people, I could just hop on the Northern line for that kind of experience. I don't know, something feels very very wrong when I see over 2000 humans each wearing and carrying easily over £1000 worth of kit and gear. It's turned into a very effective marketing tool that all of us have fallen for. I was going to apply for the Lakeland 100 this year, then a friend was like, let's just go any other day of the year and run the same route, then give what would have been our entry fees to one of the local charities. I get that organised races are a thing, and they are great for getting someone into the sport, or for someone looking to challenge themselves in a "safer" environment. It's just starting to feel like in order to do that we end up making a lot of other people really rather rich.
Good to hear what’s it’s really like, I’ve ran OCC twice which is a fantastic event and because it starts in 3 waves it’s not to crowded. CCC is hopefully next for me, not sure UTMB would be for me sounds too crowded
Super funny to hear your recap of the UTMB 2024..😁I was unfortunately one of the 1001 who DNF...and think it was partly due to moving way to fast on the downhill sections..should have walked down like you and not worry about people pushing from behind..🙃 Actually woke up a runner from Sweden who was off course 'sleep walking' and he got super scared when I woke him up..🥳 Take care and sure you will find other great races out there..👍👍
Ah sorry to hear mate. I did say to my wife that dealing with my ankle may have saved me because I would have been tempted to attack those downhills. That would be scary. I scared myself a few times waking up 😳
Skipping the staircase through the garden was a really shit, unsportsmanlike, rude, disrespectful move imo. That’s how local people end up not wanting these events near them
@@Nnnmmamam not going to disagree with you. Here is a video of it so you can get a true feel of it. ruclips.net/user/clipUgkxnKAbeWpHth0o-aIkH0g2_J_nQfjf3apc?si=aVrDsfZVnuapJy0H
Thank you for the video! Started trail running this year, hoping to do a 100 miler soon enough, I hate crowded places though so I would probably not be even considering chamonix in the future, looks cool but not my thing.
I love that you crew for your partner in her ultras also! So many times on RUclips I see women crewing for their male partners during ultras and then the male partner never seems to give anything back. I love to see an equal partnership!
Great insight into an amazing race. Can’t wait to throw my hat in the lottery for 2025. More importantly, love that Tashi is giving the 100k a crack! What one are you going to do Tashi?
I also had a hallucination experience. Me and my friends went to a Slipknot convention and on our way back I swear we saw all these runners at night. Pretty creepy because they thought we were tree logs.
Thanks for the honest thoughts, but I guess the majority of runners, some even in the top 5%, don't have a crew, so I would not make a lot out of infrequent crew contact being much of a challenge.
I notice a lot of parallels between this and a lot of other UTMB races. I ran Mozart 100 this year and the race organization was a total poo show. Lots of congestion at the start, dangerous conditions on course, and aid stations where plain water was almost impossible to access sometimes.
Interesting. I've done two other races by Ironman UTA & UTK which are both in Australia and they were the most incredible events. I couldn't pick a single flaw in them.
How could you put your poles in front of the legs of the competitors? That bewliders me! THe farting runners is hilarious and well described, I had heard about this experience before but you describe it as if we were with you. I love your stoty telling. I was trying to see my son on your video you must have been close one another in the first half of the race! Congratulations on finishing your race and this very honest description. You are one of the 1700 heroes that finished it. THis is simply remarkable. Enjoy this victory.
Great story and congrats with the finish! I would rate crossing somebody with two poles like 10 times worse and more rude than farting in one’s face - strange no one spoke up to you about that.
😂 a positive way of looking at it 👍 I had a moment of doubt at those metal stairs but then thought that I have my flag on the back and changed my mind. Those 5 minutes here and there on 40+ hours are not worth it: competitiveness in the mountains usually takes a bit different form….
God I remember doing my first Ironman finishing in about 12 hours and having that good old finish line cry and thinking I had done something extreme. But to keep moving for 43 hours is just absolutely mindblowing to me, I guess I need to step up my game from these short little triathlons.
I was always afraid of most of the things that you mention, therefore I never applied for UTMB. Thank you for confirming this, I'll probably never run UTMB/TDS/CCC. There are enough races in Europe.
It's looks like something I'd hate which is weird because I loved hiking the TMB this summer, I would thoroughly recommend anyone hikes the same route, I don't want to be surrounded by that many people though, Madeira was bad enough for me
Sion's account of his successful UTMB adventure really is "what they don't tell you," and now I don't feel so bad that I may never get the chance to run UTMB. But, I am very impressed by Sion's accomplishment. Congratulations, and thank you for this video.
Thank you for such a nice comment. I hope you do get the opportunity to run it one day if that is what you want 😁
This is great! These are the stories we don't hear from Kilian or Jim as frontrunners. I so much appreciate you guys. Keep pushing, keep going! Excellent recap video 🥰
Thank you so much!
Appreciate you watching and commenting 😁
Love the pure honesty, I was about 30 mins behind you and walked with you for a little time just outside of Champex Lac. As such I can back up your claims, crazy race :) Congrats on the finish, you showed courage !
Thank you mate, congratulations to you also.
Crazy race for sure 😲 haha
Big thanks! This is one of the best and most candid review of the UTMB experience. Its so real as though we were in it ourselves. Congratulations!
Really appreciate the comment mate. Thank you.
What an adventure you had! Thanks for giving us an idea of what UTMB is really like.
I'm glad you enjoyed it 😁😁😁 thank you so much.
Huge congratulations!!!! I hiked/ran it in six days and at the end couldn’t imagine doing it nonstop! What an accomplishment! Thank you for the debrief ❤️👊
That must have been beautiful!!! What was your favourite part ?
And thank you 😁
Great video mate, well done completing UTMB! Interesting to hear your experience with the French on the trail. My brother did CCC and suffered extreme dehydration, basically collapsed on the track. Dozens and dozens of people went past and not a single person stopped to ask if he was okay. Eventually the first person to stop was a fellow Aussie who sorted him out with some salt tablets - I think that says a lot. I'm glad you were able to persevere, that's a bucket list achievement 🙂
Mate that is horrible to hear about your brother, glad to hear he got sorted out though.
The camaraderie on the trail was night and day different to the races I've done in Australia.
I'm sorry your brother experienced that. I feel bad and ashamed reading this as a French person, but I promise you we are not all like that, a lot of us would have stopped to help, even though it might seem like a lot of us are assholes. Hope you'll have some better interactions in the future !
Haha this is great.
Some great insights into the race that I’ve not heard before. That double pole overtake manoeuvre is classic 😂
Yes it is wild and NOT a thing people do lol
I will be retiring that move from my arsounel 🤣
Incredibly honest and detailed review! Thanks for all the insights!
Ah thank you for the comment mate. Means a lot 🙌
I’ve known @sion for only 6 months and one thing I found immediately is he puts 100% into everything! What an amazing review. People spend 10k+, sacrifice time with family, significant leave from work every year to do this race, so it’s actually extremely helpful having an honest review. Tash, the edit and music was superb you should be just as proud as Sion for this series. Please do more insane things Sion, and Tash, please make videos about them! Haha
Thank you mate. We appreciate such a nice comment ♥️
Trust me. We have some adventures coming up 😳🙌
The bench nap / phone on the face story is so rad
Great job and great video
Appreciate it. Thank you so much.
I really enjoyed this. You have an engaging style and it’s great to see the race being dissected like this. More please. I did the MdS 10 years ago so going back to watch your experience.
Thank you so much. I really appreciate the comment.
Congratulations on finishing the MDS... What an absolutely WILD race that is 😳 my experience there was one I'll never forget.
Congratulation, incredible job!! The cutting through a private backyard to avoid a course slowdown, and using your poles to block other runners, made me absolutely cringe, but otherwise, an incredible adventure and top notch effort! Great info too!
You're not the first to mention that.
Here is a video of it for you;
ruclips.net/user/clipUgkxnKAbeWpHth0o-aIkH0g2_J_nQfjf3apc?si=cQtwjurzezAqxwxC
Awesome insight into a wild 43 hours. Congrats Sion on getting through it considering your ankle and the hallucinations. You put in the hours, the kms, the climbs, the hikes - you deserved to get over the finish line. Loved the series. We need words however regarding your form at 5:39, 14:46 and 21:00. You can't cheat, push people out of the way, then fart in their face 😂 He's gone native.
Hahahaha this made me laugh
Fighting for positions on the trail as a medium
/ slow runner is so grinch.Amazing story telling
Thank you. Appreciate the comment 🤙
You’re a one of a kind human that’s for sure! Candid and inspirational, amazing work.
Appreciate that mate. I look forward to hearing about your Back Yard Ultra 😁
Congratulations on finishing and your amazing account of the experience. I ran the OCC this year and that was hard enough. Never ran a 100 mile race but you have inspired me to go for it and I have signed up for the Arc of Attrition 100 in Jan 2025. Good luck with your future events and I look forward to hearing all about them on your Chanel 👍👍
Thank you so much.
I am absolutely pumped for you that you have signed up for the 100 💪
Goodluck and I hope you enjoy the entire process.
Sion! I loved this mate - I ran UTMB Mont Blanc too this year and some of your stories made me laugh a lot as I had the same experience. I had the joy of my wife and three children running the finishing line with me - it was an epic experience all of it. Agree TMB is something for the future to see all of that beauty in the daylight. Well done - John Williamson, Brisbane, Australia.
Congratulations on the finish mate. I'm glad some of the stories resonated with someone else 😁🤣 did you experience the double pole? lol
Could only imagine the feeling of seeing your kids at a checkpoint and/or finish line 🥹
Love the honesty. The support sounds almost as good as IM Wales 😀 Incredibly friendly race and the crowd are amazing
Heading to Wales in 6 weeks. Looking forward to it 🙌
Great storytelling and super genuine 😊
Thanks so much!
Really amazing video brother. And massive congrats on the finish. I’ve done 50 miles on the flat, and remember crying like a baby as well. What an achievement.
Thank you so much. It's an emotional roller coaster this ultra stuff 😢
11:43
Love your take on it boy after training so hard for it you were never going to DNF your mental strength is just so admirable and sets you apart from most……. you and everyone who finished it are in an elite group of humans I’m am so proud of you boy and can’t wait to see what the three of us are going to do ……..the expectation is intense 😃🏴🇦🇺
Thank you Dad ♥️
I can't wait to see what you and Deian come up with for us to do together 😁
Having run 2 of the other UTMB races, I totally agree that it is wildly busy & overwhelming. It’s always an amazing experience, but not one I would want for 170km. Congrats on the amazing achievement!
Thank you 🙌 appreciate the comment and congrats on your two races 💪
Congratulations Sion- amazing achievement. And Tashie your talents are endless!
Thanks Jules and you are 100% right about Tashi 😁
WoW! What a great story, what an amazing adventure and doing it together is beautiful. It's very inspiring. I loved the honesty and authenticity of it and the way it's been put together by Tash is fantastic. I'm excited to see what you do next!
Thank you 😁😁🙌
The latest video just came out, you can see exactly what we did next lol
Huge huge huge CONGRATULATIONS Sion!!!!🎊💪🏃♂🏅💪🎉 PHENOMENAL, just PHENOMENAL!!!! And THANK YOU so much for sharing your incredible journey with us!! I'm an Aussie living in France (20years now) so you can imagine I laughed out loud at your "rude Frenchies" stories, especially them getting stroppy with you for walking around the queue!!🤣 I'm only just breaking into ultras myself with a few 50kms under my belt now, and the last 3 years I was absolutely glued to my computer for 2 days and nights following along the UTMB... It often reduces me to tears just watching!! It's extremely motivating, though not at ALL to do it myself, just to want to be able to run more and run further... 'cause as you say anyway, just way tooooo many people!!! I even used to live at Chamonix , but long before running! I spent a wonderful week at Courmeyeur last summer doing my first ever real training with poles, so I felt for you when you talked about that climb ... after almost 24hrs on the trail quand même!! We had one of our wettest summers ever, it rained almost every day of my 2 weeks training in the Alps, so you really WERE lucky with the weather!!! Colleen Browne (a mountain guide from George, South Africa) did her first UTMB also this year, she managed to finish just under the 44hour mark!🎊💪🏃♀She spent a few weeks before the race living in a tent at the campgrounds just outside Courmeyeur and she got totally flooded out!!! So happy to subscribe and follow along with yours and Tash's future achievements!!! Bloody BRAVO!!!!!!!👏👏👏👏
Thank you so much for your kind words! 😊 It’s amazing to hear that you’ve started breaking into ultras-50km is no small feat, so massive congrats on that! 🙌 I love that you're so connected to UTMB!
It’s crazy how unpredictable the weather can be out there, so big respect for sticking with it through the wet summers in the Alps.
Wow, Colleen Browne finishing just under 44 hours-what a legend! The dedication and resilience it takes to even finish a race like UTMB, especially after living in a tent and enduring flooding, is just phenomenal.
Really appreciate you following along on our journey, and Tash and I are so grateful for your support.
@@sondervail THANKS so much!!!🙋♀
No. Thank you 😁😁♥️
Good on ya, Mate! Thank you for sharing and may the wind be at your back in your adventures ahead
Appreciate the nice words mate. Thank you 🙌💪
What an amazing perspective of the race and summary! Thanks for sharing! And congrats from Germany!
Thank you so much for watching and also commenting, I really appreciate it.
Marvellous work Tash, really good watch.
What an incredible achievement Sion! All the emotions. ❤
Thank you from both of us ♥️♥️😁
As more of an obscure FKT runner, those mass starts are wild, it gives me anxiety just looking at them. It's nice to hear the struggle side that goes along with crowds of runners, as I hear so many stories that gloss over that part. Huge achievement, well done
Thank you. Appreciate the comment.
Goodluck with any future FKT's 💪
That was wild! Congrats on the race. And I agree. It’s way to crowded but it’s good to live it at least once.
I am VERY grateful for the opportunity and I hope that comes across in the video also 😁
It's A LOT of people! A lot 😳
Incredible achievement , your story brought back so many emotions/memories when I “ran” UTMB last year. I never heard of the double pole before and it never happened to me. Ha. I would have been shocked if someone did that to me. I only hallucinated once but never like you did, That would have made me run faster. Congrats to you and your crew. She was a rock star. And I think your finisher's vest is a better quality than mine. Dammit.
Congratulations on your finish and sorry to hear about your vest 🤣🤣🤣
Really enjoyed this genuine take, I feel like this would be my exact experience of UTMB, but who knows! Still sounds like an amazing experience.
You are correct. It still was an amazing experience. Absolutely amazing.
If it's something you want I hope you get in one day 🤞
@@sondervail I think for me, I'd rather just experience the trail outside of the race, but i'm sure the adrenaline and going through the race experience with others, is what it's all about.
@@ellleigh1216 im with you. That trail without the race would be incredible. My wife and I will 100% do TMB together.
This video is the best! Loved every minute of it. Well done.
Thank you mate 💪
Just WOW! To go through all that and allowing us on the unseen journey with you. Amazing 🎉🎉 well done
Thank you Nina ♥️♥️♥️ I wish filmed more now
I would have loved to see the look on your face when the French guys put their poles across you lol 😂
Amazing series Tashi! Great to see the UTMB experience from so many different perspectives so people have an understanding of what they are about to embark on.
The hallucinations sound WILD but so proud of you for getting to the finish line!
It’s so hard to keep putting one foot in front of the other when you are so sleep deprived on a course as brutal and humbling as UTMB! INCREDIBLE achievement ❤
Thank you ♥️
UTMB is a wild race and a lot of WILD things happen lol I think each of the 2761 runners who started would have their own crazy experience.
Wow, I had no idea the traffic got that bad. I got to the start 2 hours before the race last year and didn't experience any of this. This year I got there an hour before and definitely noticed a lot more traffic up until Les Houches at least. Great video! Well done on your finish!
Appreciate it. Thank you 😁
Being at the start line 2 hours early would make a big difference, I was there an hour before and it was too late in my opinion.
@@sondervail I think I probably squeezed my way a little bit more forward than you. But yeah, getting there early makes a big difference.
If I was to go again I would get there two hours early with some food and a chair 🤣😁
I could listen to your stories for hours loved the honesty ❤ i couldn’t imagine running through the night let alone having illusinations I am so proud of every thing that you do 😍not sure if you should include your Dad and Deian in your adventures I will worry way to much 😂 Tash you are his back bone and you are doing one hell of a great job love you both ❤
♥️♥️♥️ I did say I'll leave it up to Dad & Deian 😁😁😁
really enjoyed hearing about your experience. And massive respect for finishing
Appreciate the nice words mate. Thanks for the comment.
Wow, this is RAW and REAL. Feel this one should be mandatory viewing for everyone thinking about doing this race.
Oh wow. Thanks for such a nice comment 😁♥️
I have absolutely and utterly loved watching this Sion. It’s 245am here in England and the third night since I finished my second ever 100k. I think I’m experiencing that downward turn you spoke of, as I’ve had to get out of bed and come downstairs to eat and also walk around - my legs are restless!
What I loved most about this video is how real and normal you made it - there are hardly any RUclipsrs who tell you what these things are actually like. I kind of wish there were more.
A huge congrats from a 48 year old Pom who has been running for 2 1/2 years. Don’t think I’d ever want to do UTMB even if I thought I could.
But I’ve honestly loved this video. It was absolutely brilliant.
❤️
Congratulations on your second 100km mate. That's huge 🙌💪
Really appreciate you commenting and for such a nice comment.
You are a legend and I hope you have some more events to look forward to 😁😁😁
@@sondervail thanks so much for the reply. Yup, I’ve got loads more coming up. Running has changed my life for the better
Love hearing that 💪 goodluck with the events mate 🙌
@@sondervail you too
Cheers 😁
Great video, it changed a lot of how I see UTMB now. Thanks for sharing what they don't tell you !
My pleasure mate. Thank you for the comment.
Damn I got emotional watching this . I signed up for my first marathon . So so far from what you are doing , but this is beautiful 😍
🥺😍 thank you
That's amazing you are doing your first Marathon! I'm super excited for you. Which one?
Love your perspective and ability to reflect. Really powerful actually. Thanks! 💯🙌
Appreciate the kind words. Thank you mate.
I really enjoyed watching this! Thanks for your up close and personal take on UTMB!
It seemed so different than the livestream! But I'm sure it felt incredible to finish! Congratulations! 🥳
Yes, I was many many hours behind any Livestream lol
Thanks for the nice words 😁
@sondervail Yeah! The media coverage is a bit misleading to those who may aspire to running UTMB one day! Lol! But the support of the crowds must have felt amazing! Thanks for sharing your experience! 🤗
My pleasure.
I will never forget the way the crowds made me feel 😁
I also ran the UTMB this year. Totally recognize your description of the randoms in the starting area. I was baffled being surrounded by spectators in this immensly crowded area holding signs and what not. Brain was also fried at Les Contamines due to all the crowds continuesly raping my eardrums ;)
Randoms at the start line was weird, I kept thinking I was in the wrong spot.
Hope you enjoyed your race mate.
That was a great watch Sion (the whole series)- loved the honesty and has confirmed for me my running days are well and truly over 😂
Tops effort- look forward to what’s next 💪
Hahaha thanks mate. Are you sure? Maybe one more?
Thanks for posting , loved your comments ,especially the start
Ah thank you 😁
Appreciate the comment.
So good to hear a UTMB account from a “normal” (if you can call anyone that finishes a 100mi 10000m of ascent ultra trail ‘normal’ 😂) runner. Despite the crowdedness, this one’s still on my bucket list, but like you, I think I’ll keep it to once. Fastpacked TMB last year and that was an amazing experience.
Having already fast packed TMB you will have so much course knowledge. Will make the experience incredible.
What an honest and interesting account! Well done on your very impressive achievement 👏
Thank you, appreciate you watching and also commenting.
Man, maybe I value personal space and sleep too much for UTMB! Great and honest recount, thanks for sharing your stories.
Absolute pleasure. Thanks for the comment.
I enjoyed watching your account UTMB. Congratulations brilliant efforts. 💪
Thank you ❤️ appreciate you watching and even more so leaving a comment 😁
@@sondervail we have just completed our first Ultra.
Really do not know how you did that mate !
Congratulations that's awesome 💪
Good video recap. Well done. I will link this video to anyone who asks me again why I don't do ultra trail running.
🤣🤣
Wow, that's actually really great. Jeez, the hallucinations ... anyways, great details. Lots of value.
Thank you mate. Appreciate the message
Thanks for the video - you ran more or less the same time as my son and many of your experiences were very similar, as indeed were your conclusions. Hope you come and run the MUT here in South Africa - I will be sure to come and cheer you on.
Have heard lots about MUT. Would love to run it. Might be a part of our travels.
Amazing insight! I was also on the start line but didn’t make the finish. I’d watched all the RUclips content on UTMB beforehand but a lot of stuff about the start etc was not covered like you did so nice work…it was a circus ha!!
Sorry to hear mate but congratulations getting in to begin with 💪
I had watched EVERY video out there as well and still things surprised me.
@@sondervail also wanted to say congratulations, amazing resilience making it to the finish line going through two nights with the challenges you faced!
I hiked up the final section to La Flagere on Sunday and probably crossed paths. I was very inspired by everyone that pushed through the full lap.
Appreciate that a lot mate.
Coming down from Le Flegre you would have seen some carnage 😳
It was definitely clear those that were out for their Sunday run and those that were finishing UTMB!
Hahaha
I love watching UTMB weekend on YT, BUT its my idea of hell for the reasons you say EG too crowded. Ill find a empty 50k forest trail if you don't mind 😂
Check put Lovin the Hills 50k
Thanks for sharing, so much to learn from your experience running UTMB 💪👏
My pleasure. Appreciate you watching and even more so leaving a comment 😁
congrats !! amazing effort and hope i would finish UTMB miler one day !!
Goodluck with the lottery and I hope you get the feeling of running down the UTMB finish line one day as well ♥️
What a great Story thanks for sharing congratulations on your epic achievement!
Appreciate it. Thannk you for watching and commenting 😁
Thanks for documenting your experience. I can relate to most of what you said….i did it 2017, it was wet and yes, everything becomes slippy! But I’d take that over the heat you guys endured. Top effort finishing mate!
Appreciate it mate. The heat for us Aussies wasn't too bad 😁
Congratulations on your finish as well.
Was really not expecting the fart part 😂 Great review, congrats on finishing the thing!
Neither was I !!! Hahaha thanks for the comment 😁
That start is fascinating. I just finished listening to a podcast where a girl described her experience running the CCC and they were actually divided into groups and released with 15 minute difference. Yet still, she had the same experience with being stuck in the crowd on the first climb. I've experienced a 24 minute bottleneck at the Prague Half Marathon and that was quite frustrating. So I felt your frustration when you talked about that experience, haha! Man, that must have been tough.
Congratulations on finishing the race! Sounds like a hell of a journey! Respect!
Yup CCC did go every 15mins and I don't think there is a solution to stop the crowding with that many people. Just apart of the experience 😁
24min in a Marathon is an eternity 😲
Hi Lenka, too bad to hear about your bottleck experience at Prague Half Marathon. At what KM was this congestion? Any tips like "stay on the left or right-handed side there? Prague is certainly on my shortlist of to-do races. Děkuji!
Stay at the front 🤷
(I'm just kidding, hopefully Lenka gets back to you 😁)
@@dresden_slowjog It was at the corridor at the very start of the race. There was no way to go around anywhere as there are roadblocks on both sides. You were given a group based on your estimated time and if it’s your first time, you are going to be all the way back. I was in the second to last group. That’s why the 24 minute wait. 😅
Besides that it was an amazing race and Prague is definitely bucket list worthy! :)
Ok. I'll add it to 😁
Thanks for the video! Congratulations 🎉🎉🎉 i only did a race like CCC and it felt very hard. I am training to be able to do 100 miles utmb course. Big congratulations!🎉
Goodluck with your training, I hope you get in and get to experience everything UTMB offers 😁
Absolutely epic mate! That's a superb account, congratulations
Appreciate it. Thank you for the comment 😁
@sondervail You earned it! I ran the TDS a few days before you and whereby I didn't have anything nasty happen hallucination-wise the tricks my eyes played on me particularly the 2nd night, were pretty funky 😃
I have had that in previous races but for whatever reason, this time was bad!
Congratulations on TDS, that's huge 💪
Awesome video mate. Congrats
Thank you mate, really appreciate the comment 😁
Congrats! Great to hear your point of view
Appreciate it. Thank you 😁
Love the rawness thank you!!
Thanks for watching and even more so commenting
Loved your video. I enjoy watching ultra runners talk about their heroics. How can you go so long without your body cramping up or your muscles giving out. Congratulations on your race.
Thank you so much ♥️
I'm definitely not the best person to answer those questions haha
Great video mate...fantastic effort on finishing!
Thanks Paul. Appreciate the comment mate.
Yeah, this race used to be "The one" I'd always wanted to do. Not taking anything away from how tough it is or those who have done it but seeing that apparently everyone who did it this year also blogged / vlogged / had an entire film crew with them, it's totally lost it's appeal. Personally, I run in the mountains to escape, to challenge myself. Not stand in a queue with 1000 other people, I could just hop on the Northern line for that kind of experience.
I don't know, something feels very very wrong when I see over 2000 humans each wearing and carrying easily over £1000 worth of kit and gear. It's turned into a very effective marketing tool that all of us have fallen for. I was going to apply for the Lakeland 100 this year, then a friend was like, let's just go any other day of the year and run the same route, then give what would have been our entry fees to one of the local charities.
I get that organised races are a thing, and they are great for getting someone into the sport, or for someone looking to challenge themselves in a "safer" environment. It's just starting to feel like in order to do that we end up making a lot of other people really rather rich.
Yeah, but the vibes were VERY high at times 😁 and I really like good vibes.
Great to hear a downunder accent. Thanks for this, it was so interesting.
Thank you for watching and the comment. We appreciate it more than you know 😁♥️
Good to hear what’s it’s really like, I’ve ran OCC twice which is a fantastic event and because it starts in 3 waves it’s not to crowded. CCC is hopefully next for me, not sure UTMB would be for me sounds too crowded
That's awesome. I would love to run OCC 😁
Super funny to hear your recap of the UTMB 2024..😁I was unfortunately one of the 1001 who DNF...and think it was partly due to moving way to fast on the downhill sections..should have walked down like you and not worry about people pushing from behind..🙃 Actually woke up a runner from Sweden who was off course 'sleep walking' and he got super scared when I woke him up..🥳 Take care and sure you will find other great races out there..👍👍
Ah sorry to hear mate. I did say to my wife that dealing with my ankle may have saved me because I would have been tempted to attack those downhills.
That would be scary. I scared myself a few times waking up 😳
Good job with the video mate! (And the run of course)
Appreciate it mate 😁 proud of both 🙌
Definitely an honest perspective!
As honest as I possibly could be 🙌
Skipping the staircase through the garden was a really shit, unsportsmanlike, rude, disrespectful move imo. That’s how local people end up not wanting these events near them
@@Nnnmmamam not going to disagree with you. Here is a video of it so you can get a true feel of it.
ruclips.net/user/clipUgkxnKAbeWpHth0o-aIkH0g2_J_nQfjf3apc?si=aVrDsfZVnuapJy0H
Thank you for the video! Started trail running this year, hoping to do a 100 miler soon enough, I hate crowded places though so I would probably not be even considering chamonix in the future, looks cool but not my thing.
Welcome to trail running and that's amazing you are looking at a Miler! Goodluck and I hope you find the perfect race 💪
I love that you crew for your partner in her ultras also! So many times on RUclips I see women crewing for their male partners during ultras and then the male partner never seems to give anything back. I love to see an equal partnership!
Thanks for the really nice comment 😁♥️ but let me be very clear, it is still not equal lol she does WAY more for me 🤣 but I try.
Congrats!! Bonus points for random Slipknot reference!
Hahaha I was not loving Slipknot during the race, that's for sure lol
Thank you. Great account. Well done.
Appreciate the comment. Thank you 🙌
Great video. Subscribed!
We appreciate that more than you know.
Thank you mate.
Great recount mate. Thanks for sharing.
Glad you enjoyed. Thank you for watching and commenting 😁
Great insight into an amazing race. Can’t wait to throw my hat in the lottery for 2025.
More importantly, love that Tashi is giving the 100k a crack! What one are you going to do Tashi?
We will be there to watch you in 2025 FOR SURE!
There is a 100km in Poland that I have my eye on 🧐
awesome watch mate and congrats
Thank you mate. Really appreciate it 😁
It's like reliving it all over again
That a good thing 🤷
I also had a hallucination experience. Me and my friends went to a Slipknot convention and on our way back I swear we saw all these runners at night.
Pretty creepy because they thought we were tree logs.
Haha very good 🤣
Thanks for sharing the experience.
My pleasure. Thank you for watching and the comment 🙌
Thanks for the honest thoughts, but I guess the majority of runners, some even in the top 5%, don't have a crew, so I would not make a lot out of infrequent crew contact being much of a challenge.
I just really really like seeing my wife during a race 😁
What an incredible achievement! How are you feeling now weeks after the race?
Feeling incredible 😁
Went immediately to Slovenia and summited Mount Triglav ⛰️
We have a video coming out next week about it 😁
@@sondervail now that is serious recovery 🎉
It prob wasn't the best idea lol
@@sondervail 😱
Yup 🤣
+1 bro ❤
Thanks bro
@sondervail welcome
I notice a lot of parallels between this and a lot of other UTMB races. I ran Mozart 100 this year and the race organization was a total poo show. Lots of congestion at the start, dangerous conditions on course, and aid stations where plain water was almost impossible to access sometimes.
Interesting.
I've done two other races by Ironman UTA & UTK which are both in Australia and they were the most incredible events.
I couldn't pick a single flaw in them.
How could you put your poles in front of the legs of the competitors? That bewliders me! THe farting runners is hilarious and well described, I had heard about this experience before but you describe it as if we were with you. I love your stoty telling. I was trying to see my son on your video you must have been close one another in the first half of the race! Congratulations on finishing your race and this very honest description. You are one of the 1700 heroes that finished it. THis is simply remarkable. Enjoy this victory.
Yeah. I thought the same and unfortunately followed suit 🤦
Thanks for the comment. Appreciate it 😁
I enjoyed your journey, thanks for sharing
My pleasure mate 🤙
Great story and congrats with the finish!
I would rate crossing somebody with two poles like 10 times worse and more rude than farting in one’s face - strange no one spoke up to you about that.
Thankfully I didn't get punched (or punch anyone who did it to me lol)
😂 a positive way of looking at it 👍
I had a moment of doubt at those metal stairs but then thought that I have my flag on the back and changed my mind. Those 5 minutes here and there on 40+ hours are not worth it: competitiveness in the mountains usually takes a bit different form….
Yup. Majority of the time is a struggle.
God I remember doing my first Ironman finishing in about 12 hours and having that good old finish line cry and thinking I had done something extreme. But to keep moving for 43 hours is just absolutely mindblowing to me, I guess I need to step up my game from these short little triathlons.
I would not speak so little of an Ironman. That's a huge achievement, congratulations 🙌
That double-pole sounds like a pretty rude way to pass somebody. Don't do what the French do is usually a good way to go.
In hind sight it was a terrible idea to adopt that manoeuver 🤦 I have retired it now but let me know if you ever give it a go 🤣
Any rude behaviour on course I found was always a French runner.
You said it, not me 😁😉
@@jimmcgourty3780even in motocross. French riders are usually a bit dirty
🤣🤣
I was always afraid of most of the things that you mention, therefore I never applied for UTMB. Thank you for confirming this, I'll probably never run UTMB/TDS/CCC. There are enough races in Europe.
Although it had flaws, there are still many upsides.
Maybe just park the idea for a bit rather than committing to never running it 😁🤷
It's looks like something I'd hate which is weird because I loved hiking the TMB this summer, I would thoroughly recommend anyone hikes the same route, I don't want to be surrounded by that many people though, Madeira was bad enough for me
Yup. TMB would be absolutely stunning.
Definitely on Tash and I bucket list now.
BTW Congrats on your run and well done on a beaut clip. A fellow Aussie
Appreciate it. Thank you 💪💪💪