{"id":3429,"date":"2017-09-21T18:46:13","date_gmt":"2017-09-22T01:46:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.christofteuscher.com\/aagaa\/?p=3429"},"modified":"2023-09-28T08:39:38","modified_gmt":"2023-09-28T15:39:38","slug":"double-utmb-tor-des-geants","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/christofteuscher.com\/aagaa\/double-utmb-tor-des-geants\/","title":{"rendered":"The Other Double: UTMB and Tor des Geants"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\r\n UPDATE: in 2023, I did another “double:” REPORT: The Ice and Glacier Double – Iceland Traverse FKT and Tor des Glaciers<\/a> \r\n <\/div>\r\n <\/div>\n

Lotteries (Mis)Fortunes?<\/h4>\n

After trying for 3 years to get into the Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc<\/a> (UTMB<\/a>,\u00a0100 miles, 30,000ft of elevation gain) and the\u00a0Tor des Geants<\/a>\u00a0(TdG<\/a>, 205 miles, 80,000ft of elevation gain), two epic bucket-list\u00a0races, Murphy’ Law struck: I got into both. Unable to decide which of the two races I should drop, I figured I’d simply attempt both. The only problem: UTMB is one week before Tor. Yet, every problem can be turned into a challenge.<\/p>\n

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They’ve got mountains.<\/p><\/div>\n

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The challenge by the numbers.<\/p><\/div>\n

To tackle the challenge, I came up with a modest “Madsterplan” that I was hoping would get me ready for the heavy back-to-back mileage and elevation gain without proper recovery in-between. Without a coach and any idea what I’m doing, I made this up based on my own experience. So don’t follow my example and don’t try this at home.<\/p>\n

The peak of my training consisted in completing three tough races all one week apart: Ochoco 100k<\/a>, Tushars 100k<\/del> John Cappis 50k<\/a>, and Ouray 100<\/a>. Before that final cycle, I went through similar cycles, but with less intensity. The goal was to gradually build up the strength I needed, especially for the elevation gain, and to get better at back-to-back efforts. My biggest worry were injuries because that would have crushed the entire plan, and probably have led to lots of race cancellations. Luckily, I was able to stay clear of any major issues.<\/p>\n

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The 2017 Madsterplan.<\/p><\/div>\n

The Countdown<\/h4>\n

The real countdown started with the\u00a0Ochoco 100k<\/a>. That was 50 days before the start of the Tor. The two video clips below document the\u00a0Ochoco 100k<\/a>, the\u00a0John Cappis 50k<\/a>, and Ouray 100<\/a>.<\/p>\n