If you like your running more on the wild side than the road side, if you are looking for a challenge or if you just want to try something a bit different then the Trail de L'Odet is a must. Held around Ergue-Gaberic (Bude-Stratton's twin town) there are routes for all abilities ranging from 12km to 34km.
I entered the 34km course and Alex my eldest entered the 12km route (the youngest entrant in the race). So what was it like?
If you've never visited Ergue then be prepared for a warm welcome. After their visit to Bude last year the runners of Ergue were delighted to see a couple of Rats enter their event. We had a 'repas-sportif' with Didier and Monique a few hours before the race consisting of pasta, beef burgers (rare) and red wine. Not my usual pre-race fare but it's important to acclimatise to local conditions.
Didier was kind enough to give us few hints as to what was in store but he was a little economical with the truth, I'm sure he said it was only our feet that would get wet. Registration before the race would be familiar to any UK runner but the spot prizes of Petunia plants were unexpected, Alex's survived the journey home intact. As a newcomer to the French running scene I wasn't quite prepared for the outfits, the French do love their lycra and all manner of support hosiery was on display.
The course itself was a delight encompassing a wide range of terrain from trails to tracks, fields to farmyards, ravines to riversides.
The trial leaves Ergue with Azaleas and Magnolias in bloom in the gardens, and then heads off into the woods and orchards, crossing streams on fallen trees before the intrepid 22km and 34km competitors pit themselves against the perils of the Stangala. This national park is a series of wooded ravines following the course of the Odet river. The route clambers repeatedly up the side of the ravine with tree roots and boulders to negotiate before dropping back to the riverside, the trees providing a welcome means of slowing the descent.
The Odet river is crossed 3 times but only once on a bridge, elsewhere ropes strung across the water gives the runners something to hang on to as they wade across the current. Water levels were mercifully low after the dry weather but even so a lot more than 'just feet' got wet. Regular feed stations provide water, fruit and homemade cakes to restore flagging spirits and eventually the houses of Ergue come into view, a welcome sight since the course has no distance markers. It would have been prudent to learn the French for 'Are we nearly there yet?'
Arriving at the finish line the competitors are met with another feed station and a well stocked bar, the locals taking the risk of dehydration very seriously. The event is rounded off with a communal meal and chance to discuss the events of the day, in French of course.
Thanks must go to Neil and Wendy Hutson for all their organisation and help. They arranged accommodation with fellow athletes Gilbert and Chantal who were wonderful hosts. It would be great to see a big Rats contingent compete next year, it's well worth the trip.
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