LIECHTENSTEIN ALPINE MARATHON (11.06.22)
Having been seduced by the YouTube videos and wanting to try something a bit different from the usual street race I signed up for what was being touted as the last ever Liechtenstein (Alpine) Marathon. With a chance to find and support ME patients there as well as tackling a course that was over 5 times steeper than my hilliest ever marathon, it felt like I was learning a new sport in my training. No more long flat runs, it was all about short hill sprints and trail running in the 2 months I had from the end of the EU challenge.
I flew to Zurich with my mate Mark (fellow EU marathon collector) and following a little bit of sight-seeing we took the train to Buchs in eastern Switzerland. The 1hr 10 min journey there was nothing short of spectacular as we skirted the turquoise Lake Zurich and the farmland that followed with its stunning alpine backdrop. Walking over the Rhine bridge/border to Liechtenstein was equally breathtaking. After unexpectedly bagging a free bus to Bendern in the north of the country we hid in the shade chatting to some Brits (Dan and Claire) who had run the race 7 times, we'd have a beer and a good chat with them at the end.
Start
It was already 16c when we left Bendern and headed south towards the Rheinpark Stadion (home of Liechtenstien National Football team). With around 700 runners on a tight road then public footpath, progress was a bit slow and we were restricted to a fairly pedestrian 8.30 minute mile for the first 3 or 4 miles. On the left were well-kept fields with barns, farm machinery and views of the mountains and on the right were trees separating us from the Rhine. The track eventually took us up onto the path next to the river, past the football stadium, the rather bizarre Liechtenstein Country & BBQ Festival and a flat, scenic jaunt under a couple of bridges before turning left towards the centre of Vaduz. Running down the main street (Stradtle) was fun with people sat outside cafe's cheering and the first taste of the 'Hopp Hopp Hopp' shouts that I'd heard before on the EU challenge. The course turned right towards the start of 6 miles of climbing and after a few hundred yards it was obvious to all around me that it wasn't possible to run up the first peak. After a few painful switch-backs it flattened a little past the stunning Vaduz Castle, home of Hans-Adam II, the Prince of Liechtenstein. Very quickly things got hilly again and more zig-zagging up the mountain through the trees with plenty of opportunities to take pictures looking down on the valley with snow-capped peaks in the distance, just stunning. A little bit of shade and flat as we passed a small waterfall but it was pretty short-lived. A cyclist came by trying to climb our route near Triessenberg but he really wasn't getting anywhere fast but to be honest, neither were we. The sapping heat, elevation and my snotty nose were making it a pretty uncomfortable event from a running perspective. It was really hard not to keep stopping to take pictures of the incredible landscape, we had a loose target to get half way by 2.5 hrs but that was extremely ambitious!
Middle
At the halfway point we got up to beautiful hamlet of Silum and it felt like nearly all of the residents were cutting their lawns. There were 4 alphorn players booming out tunes which was just brilliant, we stopped to take a quick video. Some nice marshalling here and a very gratefully received water trough to dunk my head in. Not much further on from here was a happy chap on a stool in the grass playing accordion which brought a smile from everyone around us. We were over the worst of the elevation we thought (not true) and there was even some of the first downhill coming up. There were some pretty quirky wood carvings of men with binoculars on top of the rocks just before the decent towards Steg, I'd seen a handful of them in Vaduz the day before painted red. Hurtling down the hill towards the end of the 25+ race (where more than half of the runners would finish), it was a lot of fun getting back down to 8 minute miles after a horrendous 22 minute mile earlier on. Along a tight path with a sheer cliff edge on the left it was hard leaping over cowpats and not slipping in the mud but a thoroughly enjoyable 200 metre drop. The bells on the cows were almost deafening now, which was very surreal but a fantastic soundtrack to the lush alpine views. I couldn't help but wonder what all of the little hamlets would look like in a wintry scene. We could hear the announcements of the half-marathon finishers and a bit of music as we passed the stunning lake (Gänglesee) and it's amazing shade of blue-green. The course turned right for the marathon runners climbing again steadily as we ran through small streams and chatted about our favourite 90's Premier League footballers. Time goals had pretty much gone out of the window now and just finishing was the main aim, neither of us were too bothered really. I popped some paracetamol as my hips had started locking up a bit on the earlier downhills and it seemed to help a lot though the heat was making me feel pretty light-headed/dizzy at times.
End
Mile 20 through the fields towards the steepest part of the race was pretty brutal and I could feel a bit of cramp coming on. Not much I could do between water stations so I just had to take it easy and stay upbeat which was pretty easy as Mark and I chatted about football and how much we hate 'career/influencer runners'. My lingering cold was forcing me to rather grossly clear my nostrils a fair bit and I could feel the salt crystalising on my face from the lack of water. We had been warned about mile 21 around the Valorsch area and the drop to a walk, almost having to crawl up the path, steps and overgrowth. Regularly passing and being passed by the same handful of runners was a bit weird but we helped each other a bit checking in when someone had bad cramp and seeing if we could help. We saw plenty of hikers around the Sassförkle area who looked at us as if we were insane and they stepped to the side as we jogged through on whatever flat or downhill parts we came across. Soon enough we had a couple of miles downhill to enjoy and we managed to keep the 6 hour pacer at bay for a little while longer. I must admit I felt a bit delirious whooping and bouncing down the 300 metres or so unable to stop. It was getting very hot out there as we hit our 5th hour on the course and the buzz of the finish in the ski resort at Malbun bounced around the hills at us.
We were expecting a flat loop around Malbun before a street finish but we got a very steep climb and I had a ghastly orange tea drink at the water station which I couldn't stomach. 3 miles to go and it was mentally tough to keep running as the end was so close but were going to be out at least another 30 minutes circling the village. Some enthusiastic marshalling at mile 24 was very welcome and I tried to chuck as much water down as I could. Mark cracked on with my full blessing and I was happy taking it a little easier over the last mile or so. I stopped to get a stone out of my shoe and immediately got quad cramp pinning me facing the wrong way in a bit of pain, but it was more embarrassing than anything and I got going fairly quickly. Last few hundred yards and I was buzzing as there were loads of people still cheering the runners on. The route got really narrow which added to the atmosphere and I got over the line delighted to finish my first alpine marathon and trail race. Mark was nearby and we posed with his Liechtenstein flag for the official photographer before grabbing our prize (a pink rubber duck and a Swarovski leather keyring with crystals). We both laughed about it but it did kind of suck that there was no crystal, medal or anything we could put on the mantelpiece. We grabbed some beers and sat on the benches chatting and baking in the heat before grabbing a shuttle bus back to Vaduz.
Weather
Warm start (17c) up to around 24/25c by finish.
Ratings
Course: 10/10 for views, 4/10 for pure maliciousness of the placement of hills!
Expo: 3/10 - A little hut and a handful of stands, nice buzz but not much beyond race bib pickup
Support: 8/10 - Excellent marshalling and a few residents out on the paths shaking bells and enthusiastically offering water.
Refreshments: 7/10 - Every 2.5km, water (cups), oranges, coke, gatorade, bananas, cereal bars, cake.
Goodie Bag: NA
Medal & Pics: 3/10 - No medal, we were expecting a crystal but ended up with a keyring with tiny crystals on it, a pink duck and a t-shirt.
Time Completed: 6hrs 00 mins to edit.
I flew to Zurich with my mate Mark (fellow EU marathon collector) and following a little bit of sight-seeing we took the train to Buchs in eastern Switzerland. The 1hr 10 min journey there was nothing short of spectacular as we skirted the turquoise Lake Zurich and the farmland that followed with its stunning alpine backdrop. Walking over the Rhine bridge/border to Liechtenstein was equally breathtaking. After unexpectedly bagging a free bus to Bendern in the north of the country we hid in the shade chatting to some Brits (Dan and Claire) who had run the race 7 times, we'd have a beer and a good chat with them at the end.
Start
It was already 16c when we left Bendern and headed south towards the Rheinpark Stadion (home of Liechtenstien National Football team). With around 700 runners on a tight road then public footpath, progress was a bit slow and we were restricted to a fairly pedestrian 8.30 minute mile for the first 3 or 4 miles. On the left were well-kept fields with barns, farm machinery and views of the mountains and on the right were trees separating us from the Rhine. The track eventually took us up onto the path next to the river, past the football stadium, the rather bizarre Liechtenstein Country & BBQ Festival and a flat, scenic jaunt under a couple of bridges before turning left towards the centre of Vaduz. Running down the main street (Stradtle) was fun with people sat outside cafe's cheering and the first taste of the 'Hopp Hopp Hopp' shouts that I'd heard before on the EU challenge. The course turned right towards the start of 6 miles of climbing and after a few hundred yards it was obvious to all around me that it wasn't possible to run up the first peak. After a few painful switch-backs it flattened a little past the stunning Vaduz Castle, home of Hans-Adam II, the Prince of Liechtenstein. Very quickly things got hilly again and more zig-zagging up the mountain through the trees with plenty of opportunities to take pictures looking down on the valley with snow-capped peaks in the distance, just stunning. A little bit of shade and flat as we passed a small waterfall but it was pretty short-lived. A cyclist came by trying to climb our route near Triessenberg but he really wasn't getting anywhere fast but to be honest, neither were we. The sapping heat, elevation and my snotty nose were making it a pretty uncomfortable event from a running perspective. It was really hard not to keep stopping to take pictures of the incredible landscape, we had a loose target to get half way by 2.5 hrs but that was extremely ambitious!
Middle
At the halfway point we got up to beautiful hamlet of Silum and it felt like nearly all of the residents were cutting their lawns. There were 4 alphorn players booming out tunes which was just brilliant, we stopped to take a quick video. Some nice marshalling here and a very gratefully received water trough to dunk my head in. Not much further on from here was a happy chap on a stool in the grass playing accordion which brought a smile from everyone around us. We were over the worst of the elevation we thought (not true) and there was even some of the first downhill coming up. There were some pretty quirky wood carvings of men with binoculars on top of the rocks just before the decent towards Steg, I'd seen a handful of them in Vaduz the day before painted red. Hurtling down the hill towards the end of the 25+ race (where more than half of the runners would finish), it was a lot of fun getting back down to 8 minute miles after a horrendous 22 minute mile earlier on. Along a tight path with a sheer cliff edge on the left it was hard leaping over cowpats and not slipping in the mud but a thoroughly enjoyable 200 metre drop. The bells on the cows were almost deafening now, which was very surreal but a fantastic soundtrack to the lush alpine views. I couldn't help but wonder what all of the little hamlets would look like in a wintry scene. We could hear the announcements of the half-marathon finishers and a bit of music as we passed the stunning lake (Gänglesee) and it's amazing shade of blue-green. The course turned right for the marathon runners climbing again steadily as we ran through small streams and chatted about our favourite 90's Premier League footballers. Time goals had pretty much gone out of the window now and just finishing was the main aim, neither of us were too bothered really. I popped some paracetamol as my hips had started locking up a bit on the earlier downhills and it seemed to help a lot though the heat was making me feel pretty light-headed/dizzy at times.
End
Mile 20 through the fields towards the steepest part of the race was pretty brutal and I could feel a bit of cramp coming on. Not much I could do between water stations so I just had to take it easy and stay upbeat which was pretty easy as Mark and I chatted about football and how much we hate 'career/influencer runners'. My lingering cold was forcing me to rather grossly clear my nostrils a fair bit and I could feel the salt crystalising on my face from the lack of water. We had been warned about mile 21 around the Valorsch area and the drop to a walk, almost having to crawl up the path, steps and overgrowth. Regularly passing and being passed by the same handful of runners was a bit weird but we helped each other a bit checking in when someone had bad cramp and seeing if we could help. We saw plenty of hikers around the Sassförkle area who looked at us as if we were insane and they stepped to the side as we jogged through on whatever flat or downhill parts we came across. Soon enough we had a couple of miles downhill to enjoy and we managed to keep the 6 hour pacer at bay for a little while longer. I must admit I felt a bit delirious whooping and bouncing down the 300 metres or so unable to stop. It was getting very hot out there as we hit our 5th hour on the course and the buzz of the finish in the ski resort at Malbun bounced around the hills at us.
We were expecting a flat loop around Malbun before a street finish but we got a very steep climb and I had a ghastly orange tea drink at the water station which I couldn't stomach. 3 miles to go and it was mentally tough to keep running as the end was so close but were going to be out at least another 30 minutes circling the village. Some enthusiastic marshalling at mile 24 was very welcome and I tried to chuck as much water down as I could. Mark cracked on with my full blessing and I was happy taking it a little easier over the last mile or so. I stopped to get a stone out of my shoe and immediately got quad cramp pinning me facing the wrong way in a bit of pain, but it was more embarrassing than anything and I got going fairly quickly. Last few hundred yards and I was buzzing as there were loads of people still cheering the runners on. The route got really narrow which added to the atmosphere and I got over the line delighted to finish my first alpine marathon and trail race. Mark was nearby and we posed with his Liechtenstein flag for the official photographer before grabbing our prize (a pink rubber duck and a Swarovski leather keyring with crystals). We both laughed about it but it did kind of suck that there was no crystal, medal or anything we could put on the mantelpiece. We grabbed some beers and sat on the benches chatting and baking in the heat before grabbing a shuttle bus back to Vaduz.
Weather
Warm start (17c) up to around 24/25c by finish.
Ratings
Course: 10/10 for views, 4/10 for pure maliciousness of the placement of hills!
Expo: 3/10 - A little hut and a handful of stands, nice buzz but not much beyond race bib pickup
Support: 8/10 - Excellent marshalling and a few residents out on the paths shaking bells and enthusiastically offering water.
Refreshments: 7/10 - Every 2.5km, water (cups), oranges, coke, gatorade, bananas, cereal bars, cake.
Goodie Bag: NA
Medal & Pics: 3/10 - No medal, we were expecting a crystal but ended up with a keyring with tiny crystals on it, a pink duck and a t-shirt.
Time Completed: 6hrs 00 mins to edit.