Tjørnuvík

Half Marathon Trail Race Day!

We were up at the usual time to check and repack our required running kit before heading off to catch our bus. The half marathon "trail" started in village of Saksun. We arrived just after 10 on the shuttle bus, but the race wasn't until 11. It was cool, overcast, and a light mist rain.

Considering this was the third year of the running festival, its seemed pretty disorganized and chaotic. They had to individually scan our timing chip numbers with a mobile phone, one at a time... In any case, we were 6 minutes late passing the start. But the minutes don't matter too much for an event such as this.

The first 3km or so was on the road, before turning off onto a somewhat packed trail. Eventually that trail stopped, and we were slogging through streams, patches of boggy terrain, and rough grassy fields. Another short section of road running, then the climb began. It wasn't terriblely steep, but a continuous angling upwards of varying degrees. We did get a few moments of sun while manoeuvring around rocks and such. But eventually this gave way to strong winds, light driving rain, and fog!

At about the 19 km mark our "trail" joined the established trail for a typically hike between Saksun and Tjørnuvik. However, with all the rain, and the number of people running on the trail, it was pretty treacherous footing due to the slick mud. 😭

The sun finally came out again once we crested the last ridge. We slowed down somewhat to ensure good footing and avoid falling or rolling an ankle. The final 2km was much steeper, and the trail more of a mud slip and slide... After three and a half hours of running/bouncing/trekking we arrived at the finish line & unscathed!

The hot salmon soup was a welcoming end, along with a thoughtfully packed beer in our drop bag. We caught the 4pm bus back to Torshavn and enjoyed a hot shower, and a few hours of rest.

Later that evening there was the After Party. We made an appearance, but didn't stay long. We enjoyed a live performance by a local artist, Jazzy Gold, that had a similar vibe to India Arie, loungie RnB.

With energy levels rock bottom, we enjoyed a restful sleep!Read more