An excuse for a short family vacation can be signing up for a run. That gave me an excuse for a short trip to neighboring Croatia. I signed up for the 24 km long Life on Mars trail (Metajna, island of Pag). Vasko had the kids on the day of the race, so I was able to run the race I set out for myself.
The race was at the end of March (2024), on a Saturday, before Easter, at 11 am. The start time was... I don't know what to say . Late. I'm usually back from running by 11 am. :) After a hearty breakfast, I had nowhere to go. There were a lot of men and only 50 girls registered for the Challenger (24 km course). Now I understand why.
The distance of 24 kilometers is nothing special, nor are the 600 altitudes. But add to that a strong wind in your chest across the entire course, difficult rocky terrain and in some places even no paved path, crossing the sea (where I also drowned my phone), the sun, self-sufficiency in drinks and food (there are no refreshment stations at the race, there are no fans yet). You are really left to yourself and your own will. Yes, reaching the finish line is really a challenge. Of course, the triumph after completing the course is great.
The race starts in the village of Metajna. The first three kilometers are run by the sea, and then the climb begins over rocky karst terrain. A little up, a little down. Somewhere along a well-trodden path, elsewhere along really challenging terrain. The views were wonderful for me: of a barren landscape, white gray rocks, a few sheep and green grass in between, and the sea in the background. Up until the 12th kilometer (halfway point) it went without any problems, but I was really thirsty. I had a liter and a half of fluid with me, but I was afraid to drink too much so that I wouldn't run out of drinks (by the finish line, I had completely emptied my bladder). Then two walkers informed me that I was fifth among women, which surprised me quite a bit. It's true that I met mostly men. Even when I checked the results, I realized that they were in the majority.
At the fifteenth kilometer, we reached the sea and the spring. The fresh, clean water refreshed me and gave me new strength. Next came a run along the beaches, where there was no path, so in some places we had to climb rocks. Then came the sea crossing. This part looked quite adventurous in the photos of last year's race, and it was. First, I put one shoe and a T-shirt in my backpack. I put everything over my head. But what if the water was deep? I also got my backpack wet. The water, which was supposed to reach my hips, was so deep that I even had to swim in some parts, but since I'm not the best swimmer, it's not unusual for everything to get wet. My supposedly waterproof iPhone didn't survive the swim (I've had problems with it before, so now it's really time for a new one) . From here, I put on one pair of completely soaked sneakers and another pair of partially dry ones. There were a few more climbs and descents. The cooling down of my body was more than welcome. I enjoyed the cooling down.
I ran another 7 kilometers soaked, with one dry and one wet sneaker, to the finish line. There were a lot of people on this part, on the famous Life on Mars trail (short-distance runners + random walkers). They started to bother me, because it was difficult to overtake (the trail is very narrow, only for one person), and they really threw me off my rhythm. Then my friends met me at Ručica beach. I just quickly greeted them and called out "I'm all wet, I'll go right ahead" . The sun had already hidden here, I felt the cold, soaked clothes and rushed to the finish line. From Ručica beach, I run on a concrete road, I did great.
I finished sixth. Who would have thought... At the finish line we got a medal and beans. I quickly ate and then rushed into a warm shower. I finished the course in three hours and fifteen minutes.
There were over 1000 runners in the race, most of them on shorter distances: 7 and 15 kilometers. I liked the route, but the organization disappointed me. Why? What bothered me the most was that they cleaned everything up at 3 pm, while the time limit for reaching the finish line was 5 pm, so the last ones to arrive experienced an empty and cleaned finish line. Then there was also the teasing and quite a bit of nervousness when collecting the start numbers.
Participation in the run costs 30 euros and includes a marked route (it was really well marked), a medal, a hot meal at the finish line and a cotton t-shirt. No gift bags, drinks/snacks and lifeguards on the route, as we are used to from our trails. The latter makes the price even more affordable.
My only regret is that I lost all the photos I took before and during the run. Luckily, at least Vasja took some of them. However, we walked part of the route the next day with the mules, so I was able to relive part of the route at a slower pace. :)
1 comment
Cena je recimo res primerna malo “okrnjeni” organizaciji. Amapak ne zavajt ljudi, da ni resevalcev, saj pise da so dogovorjeni z gorsko resevalno sluzbo, ki je v pripravljenosti. Mislim, da je zdravstveno osebje tudi pogoj, da se tak dogodek lahko izpelje. In tudi pri nas ponavadi na trasi ni zdravstvenga osebja so vedno na startu oz cilju. Na trasi imamo pa res ljudi, ki usmerjajo in skrbijo za red. Ampak v primeru take tekme kot je Life in Mars mislm da je poanta ravni v tem, da se znajdes sam s svojo voljo. Lp, A