March 01

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TOR130 and TOR30: Registrations open for TOR 130 – Tot Dret (130k/D+12000) and TOR 30 – Passage au Malatrà (30k/D+2300)

Posted by on March 1, 2019 in tor des geants, tor des geants 2019, trail running, trail running spain, Ultra Trail | Leave a comment

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Pre-registrations for Tor des Géants® closed two weeks ago. Tor des Géants is a 330k/D+24.000m ultra trail which takes place all over the Aosta Valley, Italy, in September, with its start and the finish at Courmayeur. The  course must be completed in less than 150 hours, counting on over 43 refreshment points and among them 7 life bases, which allow full services to the runners, included a much needed place to sleep for the popular runner, while the elite get by on along three days hardly stoping for a nap at all.. The completion rate is about 60%.

Around 2000 volunteers are used to organize the race. Due to the alpine condition of the course with a race summit at Col Loson ovr 3.300m weather is an additional obstacle to be very much counted upon, with temperatures dropping at some points below -10ºC.  As they travel, the competitors can encounter sun, rain, wind, and even snow. Over the years, mountain conditions have greatly influenced the race.

For trail running enthusiasts the time has come to concentrate on the other two races which, together with the Tor des Glaciers, will compose the TOR’s 10th anniversary edition. On Friday 1st March at 12 o’clock, the registrations for the TOR 130 – Tot Dret and for the new TOR 30 – Passage au Malatrà will open.

 

Photo: Stefano Jeantet

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TOR’S 10th ANNIVERSARY EDITION: TOR 130 – Tot Dret and TOR 30 – Passage au Malatrà.

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The TOR 130 – Tot Dret, in its third edition, is set to become an ultra trail classic: 130 kilometers that trace the last part of the path of the Tor des Géants, with views of Monte Rosa, the Matterhorn and the Mont Blanc, and the impervious but magnificent passes that characterize the northern side of Aosta Valley. A challenging race, with 12 thousand meters of elevation gain, to be completed in the maximum time of 44 hours. The departure is scheduled for Tuesday 10th September from Gressoney-Saint-Jean at 9 p.m., with arrival in Courmayeur by 5 p.m. on Thursday 12th September. The record of the race belongs to Marco Mangaretto, who last year triumphed in 24h01’07 “.

Registrations will remain open until 31st May 2019 at 6 p.m.: the entry fee is set at 200€. There will be no draw: only the first 500 in chronological order of registration can participate. The finishers of the TOR130 – Tot Dret 2019 will earn the right to register for the Tor des Géants® 2020 without having to go through the draw for a maximum of 200 bibs. Moreover, from 20th March to 30th June 2019, there will be twenty solidarity bibs, with charitable purposes, at the cost of 1000 euros each.

 

 

The absolute novelty of this edition is the TOR 30 – Passage au Malatrà, 30 kilometers with 2,300 meters of elevation gain to be completed within 8 hours. A unique opportunity to live in first person and in full force one of the most fascinating segments of the TOR, the one that from the “door of Paradise” at 2925 meters with a view over the entire chain of Mont Blanc brings the “Giants” to the arrival in Courmayeur. The departure in on Saturday 14th September at 10 a.m. from Saint-Rhémy-en-Bosses, there will be only the first 500 subscribers. Registrations, at a cost of 40€, will close at 6 p.m. on 31st August 2019.

 

 

For both races, as well as for the Tor des Géants® and the Tor des Glaciers, the awards ceremony will be held on Sunday 16th September at the Courmayeur Mountain Sport Center.

History of Tor des Géants: The inaugural edition was in 2010. The 2012 edition was interrupted on the fourth night and stopped on the fifth day at En Bosses (303 km). About 70 runners completed the whole course. The 2013 edition was marked by the death of the Chinese runner, Yang Yuan. He fell and he hit his head on rocks during the first rainy night of the race. There is a monument at the site of the accident. The cairn has inscribed a poem written by Yang Yuan. The 2015 edition was interrupted on the third night due to severe weather and stopped on the fourth night, because Col Malatra got covered by ice. Only six runners completed the whole distance. In 2016 local authorities organized a competing race 4K VK alleging concerns for runner’s safety and the costs. That race started and ended in Cogne and went clockwise (unlike Tor) but had no continuity ever since. From Tor 2017 onwards, where the current record of 67h52m was set by spaniard Javier Dominguez Ledo, the organizers have introduced a geolocation service via GPS system which displays full data in real time for each athlete.

 

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MORE ON SKIMO, TRAIL RUNNING AND MOUNTAIN GEAR

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Info by Abel de Frutos for Trailrunningspain