Coloured “bib” stages during Azores trail championship a potential game-changer: organiser

A novel ‘races-within-a-race’ format for the four-day Golden Trail Championship (GTC) which commences with a prologue on the island of Faial in The Azores on Wednesday (October 28) is likely to have far-reaching consequences, according to Golden Trail founder Greg Vollet.

“I think athletes will give the first day a full go,” reflected Vollet. “But then they will look at where they stand and if they see there is no chance for a top finish in the overall classification, they will likely opt to target one of the sub-categories.”

The idea of having specific category features within a race is not new, but the formal designation of sub-categories within a multi-day stage race, complete with “Tour de France-style” coloured bibs, is innovative.

“So the athletes going for the blue bib for the fastest ‘downhiller’, for example, might take an easy jog to the start of the measured downhill section, pause at the start and even do some stretches and warm-up strides before starting the measured section at speed!”

As in the Tour de France, athletes in contention for category bibs will have to complete each stage within the cut-off time, but unlike the famous cycle tour where only elite cyclists participate, the Azores Trail Run includes ‘enthusiastic amateurs’ who will run much slower than their elite companions.  The generous cut-off time allowed for these runners, arguably provides too much latitude for the elite aiming for sub-category honours.

And while Vollet believes that most runners will at least give the first day an honest effort, he is aware that some have come to the Azores with success in one of the sub-categories as their primary target. “There are a few elite 3000m steeplechase athletes from Spain who I know will be focused on the sprint category and who will certainly not challenge for overall honours.”

Thirty-three year old Norwegian, Anders Kjaerevik, who earned a golden ticket after winning Norway’s golden segment in Bergen, believes that the sub-category introduction will allow him to focus on his strength as a downhill racer. “I know that I can never compete with the top athletes on the climbs, but always seem to gain time on them on descents,” Kjaerevik admitted.

The one category which is likely to equate most closely with the overall classification is that of the ‘best climber’. In the Tour de France the best climber is often the overall winner, and this could be the case at the Golden Trail Championship, although the overall winner is prevented from winning any of the sub-category prizes.

South African athlete, Meg Mackenzie, will be focused on the overall position and will not likely be concerned about sub-categories.  Top ten positions in successive years in the Golden Trail Series – including fifth last year – has marked Mackenzie as one of the world’s leading trail athletes and the tough sections high in the mountains will be perfect for her to combine her mountaineering skills and passion with those of an elite athlete. 

Day Three presents the most challenging climb, a steep ascent, followed by a high risk descent, to the volcanic crater at 2300m on the nearby island of Pico, an imposing sight across the harbour from race HQ at Horta. But the ascent will be curtailed in the event of rain, due to the dangerous conditions. “I’m holding thumbs for a dry day for that climb,” said Mackenzie, whose early arrival in Horta enabled her to combine a course recce with rest and recuperation to bring her to peak condition come race day.

Cape Town athlete, Robbie Rorich, who arrives tomorrow just in time to run the prologue, might consider a different approach, given his strengths in technical descents and his ability to challenge for the blue bib.

Meanwhile, the news that Italian Davide Manini has withdrawn, due to a recent injury sustained, is undoubtedly a blow to the championship, given Manini’s outstanding success in Golden Trail races last year.  But the confirmation that American Jim Walmsey, winner of the Arizona Golden Segment in his home-town of Flagstaff, will contest the event comes as a welcome palliative.

The thirty-year old athlete has re-written many trail and road ultra-distance records, including the world 50 mile road record when he bettered Bruce Fordyce’s long-standing mark in clocking 4:50:07 during the Hoka One Project Carbon X 100 km Challenge in May last year.

Some might suggest that the GTC will be too short and fast for Walmsey, an ultra-distance specialist. “Not so,” surmised Vollet. “Jim has shown significant speed in the last year, running a 64 min half marathon and a 2 hr 15 min marathon at the US Olympic Trials, so he will be one of the fastest athletes in the field.”

Walmsey’s strength appears to lie on the more runnable trails, such as the Western States 100 miler, which record he obliterated the year after Ryan Sandes overtook him to win the race in 2017. The American might find the technical nature of some of the mountain sections of the GTC tough to handle and only time will tell whether he can find a way to beat the potentially slower but more technically capable athletes, such as Stian Angermund-Vik in the Azores.