This is a long overdue post about my first participation at the Vietnam Mountain Marathon (VMM) (20 Sep 2014). [Facebook page] [Ahotu news report]
It was the second edition of VMM and the sign-up from mostly international runners was very encouraging. Approximately 400 runners from 40 nations came for distances ranging from 21km, 42km and 70km. There was also a charity 10km that saw international runners pitted against the locals from minority tribes living in the Sapa mountainous region.
My journey to VMM was a rather impromptu opportunistic undertaking. Browsing the internet for races in the months of Sep and Oct 2014, I chanced upon the VMM listed on UTMB's website. The race dates and its nearby location was a great draw, with the 2pts UTMB qualifying race an added bonus. Familiarity with Sapa, having just been there in Dec 2013, was another comforting factor, such that I mentally knew what to expect in terms of travel and logistics. So I wrote in to the organisers a day after the closing date and managed to secure a slot for the 70km race.
The race organisers, Topas Travel, were very professional and proficient throughout my entire trip planning. I took the travel package, which included the overnight trains to/ from Sapa, accomodation in Sapa, race registration, various ground transfers etc. That saved me a lot of hassle in sorting out the travel logistics, and all I had to do was purchase my air ticket from Singapore to Hanoi. I was also very eager to squeeze in a trek up Mt. Fansipan (3,143m) - the highest in Indo-China - having heard about it for some time. Staring at the race schedule and trip itinerary, and after much consideration, I finally decided that I could do the trek on Sunday, the day after the race, and get back in time for the overnight train out to Hanoi. [On hindsight, it was quite painful. Would not recommend this back-to-back attempt to someone less accustomed to ultra-trails and trekking. More on this later.] I was prepared to do this by myself, in case I delayed other people from their departure trains or be delayed by others. Topas Travel took in my request, made some arrangements, and even helped to keep a lookout for other runners who might be interested to join in the trek. I was extremely impressed when post-trip, Topas Travel refunded me the 'excess' payment because I ended up with two other guys on the trek! Great integrity and customer service there.
Back to VMM... so I flew in on a Thursday to Hanoi and did a short city tour with some newfound friends from the same flight - Ben, Alan and his mum. All the runners then took the overnight trains to Lao Cai, from where we were then transferred by vans to Sapa town. One can imagine the logistical nightmare of sorting out more than 400 people (runners and supporters) onto their correct trains and vans. Kudos to the organisers and volunteers! The overnight trains are fairly comfortable - 4pax to a cabin of bunk beds. I shared a cabin with 3 girls from Hongkong who were going to the race as part of their Vietnam holidays. We struck up a chatty conversation overnight. Upon arrival in Lao Cai, we drove for about an hour to Sapa town. Some runners opted to stay at the race start/ end resort - Topas Eco-lodge (another 1h drive away), and the rest stayed in tourist hotels in Sapa town. There are pros and cons for each place. Topas Eco-lodge is a very beautiful resort set in the mountains, a little self-sustaining place, power, water, food etc. (More info on accomodation and race schedule on the VMM website) For convenience, this is where the race registration and briefings are held, the start and end points. However, there are no shops or other 'town' amenities, everything is contained within the resort. For those of us staying in Sapa town, the rooms are nice and comfortable, one gets to wander around the town a little, take in some of the daily sights, get a massage etc, but suffer the pain of waking up early for the transport to race start point.
Race day morning, I woke up at around 2am to prepare and catch the shuttle bus at 3am. The buses were a tad delayed, but we still managed to be flagged off a few minutes after 4am. It was dark and drizzling as we started the race, but thankfully it was not cold. I was in a normal Nike running vest and 2XU compression tights, armed with my trusty Black Diamond poles and my new TNF running rainshell. The first km was on tarmac before we veered into the trails. VMM took us on "trails beaten by buffaloes" and it was quite literally because we ran through endless paddy fields and farms, and came up close to these strong animals themselves. The rain continued throughout the race, sometimes a sprinkling and sometimes a drizzle. Eventually I gave up putting on and taking off my shell, and just went without it, because the drizzle would start-stop within 5-10min. The result of the wet weather though was countless mud pools, clay ponds, flooded fields and some stream-crossings. The mud came in all assortment of colours - black, grey, reddish, orange. Some came all the way up our calves and knees, others soaked and re-soaked our shoes. Staying clean was never an option.
Then there was the challenge of finding the reflective ribbons and marking strips along the trail. It was fairly easy to miss a marking, given how obscure the route was and how easily the markings could fall off. The VMM trails were considered technical as they were often not run-able. Imagine those picturesque cascading paddy field-steps that we see in postcards. Now imagine 'running' on those steps. Most times we trodded along the banks of those step-fields, which were about one shoe wide, with the next level down on the one side, and a flooded pool of rice plants on the other. At some other parts, we were walking along cement drains that were not really meant as footways. One must remember that this is a part of the mountains and village life that is not typically open to foreigners, and only the local minorities live there. Yet along some paths, we were squeezing ourselves through narrow paths lined with high shrubs, that the locals use for daily commute as they went about picking firewood or bringing harvest and produce out for sale. Such conditions meant that the race markings often get torn or dropped because people and animals brushed through the narrow paths, or local children found them fascinating as head and waist bands and made games out of them. Along the way, I picked up several torn ribbons and tried to tie them back for the benefit of runners after me.
The aid stations served only plain water and bananas. I must have eaten my year's quota of bananas on this race! The stations were usually situated next to little provision shops owned by the locals, where one could purchase drinks and biscuits/ snacks and support the local community. The sign-in and clocking of times was done by runners ourselves, marking out on a laminated recording sheet based on integrity. I was starting to love the race, with an emphasis on involving and benefitting the local community, trusting runners to self-police, and generally getting an enriching race experience. Or perhaps that was just me and my mindset going into the race. Granted there might be a couple of runners who were going for speed and timing, but I think the majority was there to soak in the adventure.
The route was revised from the first VMM edition, and the organisers inserted a 'hill' climb at the last segment of race. All three categories had overlapping routes from the end, ie. the 21k runners did the same last 21km as the 42k and 70k runners; and the marathoners did the same last 42k as the ultra-runners. Even though there was the new climb, I did not find it as steep as those in HK ultras (for those of us who are familiar with HK trail terrains).
The DNF rate for the race was pretty high, where folks either gave up due to the unpleasant weather and running conditions, or got cut off at various checkpoints. The last bit was finally on tarmac, winding our way back to Topas Eco-lodge, and I finally made it back in 16h exactly. Happy with myself for persevering because it was quite daunting after endless trekking and stream crossings. After getting some dinner at the lodge and the shuttle van back to Sapa town, and washing up etc, I finally crawled into bed past midnight, mindful that I still had a Fansipan trek to attempt in a few hours. Good golly.... (to be continued)....
