Valais, organised by the Swiss Military every two years. Teams of three depart Zermatt and race to Verbier, a distance of 53km (110km actual snow distance) and ascend a total of 4000m. The Swiss Army organised the first military patrol in 1943 to test the abilities of its soldiers. The modern race format is renowned for being one of the toughest team events in the world, and we were privileged to secure an entry as an International Military Team.
After a few weeks of race-specific training in the Ecrins mountain range in France and further training closer to the event location we found ourselves in the first start group at 2100 hrs in the main street in Zermatt with what seemed like the whole town out in support. With motivational music playing and loud cheers we set off for the first checkpoint which involved just over 2 ½ hrs of fast paced walking/jogging up a track to the snowline near the Schonbielhutte, where we donned ski boots and skinned towards the next checkpoint north of the Tête Blanche which was the highest point of the course at 3650m.
The technically challenging course is made more difficult at night when visibility at speed during the descents requires quick reactions and good teamwork in order to keep track of your fellow team members. Some of the descents on glaciers are done roped together; this is particularly challenging for the second and third team members as they are always trying to ‘regulate’ the lead skier and match their speed and direction.
After traversing the Glacier de Bertol we reached the Col de Bertol (3279m) and made good time on the fast descent into Arolla, arriving after 6hrs 30mins of racing. Arolla is approximately the half way point so we took an extended replen break before setting off for the 1000m ascent to the Col de Riedmatten (2919m). We departed Arolla just as one of the short races to Verbier began, but were fortunate to avoid the bottleneck at the Col, which affected later teams. We topped out at the Col at sunrise and reached the start of the long flat section around the Lac les Dix to La Barma. Many of the elite racers skate around the lake but this requires Herculean strength and perfect technique (which we didn’t have!) but does save a lot of time over shuffling along on skins. By this time fatigue was starting to kick in (we had been awake since the previous morning) so this long flat section gave us the opportunity to focus on re-hydration and nutrition. We were really getting sick of the gels by this stage!
The physical effort was starting to take its toll as we tackled a series of Cols and the Rosablanche (3160m) where a large crowd had gathered to cheer the teams on and give out snacks and drinks. We hadn’t managed to train on the latter part of the course so while this provided new and interesting terrain to look at, we never quite knew what was around the corner or how sapping the last few Cols were going to be! Finally we reached the Col de la Chaux and started the long and satisfying descent into Verbier. For most of this we couldn’t be bothered to put in breaking turns due to tired legs so just bombed it down using whatever control we had left. After a few hundred metres of muddy slush at the foot of the slopes we made a final last push down the main street for the finish line, completing the race in 14hrs 35mins.
After a short period of dazed stupor the enormity of what we had put ourselves through slowly began to sink in. After the post race food and a few drinks we were on parade with the other military teams for the prize giving and closing ceremony.
We are grateful to 16 Medical Regiment RAMC and 170 (Infra Sp) Engineer Group for supporting and allowing us to take part in this event, and to the Army Sports Lottery, Army Mountaineering Association, The Ulysses Trust, and the Berlin Infantry Brigade Memorial Trust Fund for generous financial assistance. Thanks are also extended to the Swiss Military for putting on a well managed competition in tough conditions. The Team is looking forward to the next event in 2016!
