After trying for a few years, I finally got lucky and won a starting spot for the 2023 Tor des Geants 330K in Italy. The Tor des Geants is a 200+ mile mountain race in the Italian Alps where runners climb 86,000 feet and descend an equal amount while circumnavigating the entire Aosta Valley. Runners have a total of 150 hours to complete the course. Due to the difficult nature of this race, only about 60% of the approximately 1,200 runners are actually able to finish the race. Runners face challenges beyond just the difficulty of the technical terrain, the 86,000 feet of gain and descent, and the 200mile distance. Sleep deprivation is severe for all but a few and I was no exception to this rule. In fact, my inability to sleep when given the opportunity resulted in sleeping a total of just 3 hours over the course of the entire race. As a result, it ended up taking me 143 hours or nearly 6 days. Hallucinations were one of the effects of this severe sleep deprivation along with a gradual decline in my overall pace. In addition, I had to manage foot issues from day one, spending a significant amount of time at each life base to get my feet retaped to address hotspots and developing blisters. But none of this could take away from the amazing adventure. The Tor des Geants was exactly what I had hoped for and more.

Please check out my blog for accompanying photos at http://www.ultrakrautrunning.com/2023... and feel free to comment below with any questions you may have.

For anyone wondering what type of gear it takes to take on an event like the Tor des Geants 330, I am sharing my gear list for that event here: http://www.ultrakrautrunning.com/2023...