The Fire and Ice - Beyond the limit
- Anthony
- Sep 4, 2019
- 6 min read
It’s Saturday 31st August 2019 at 11:30, a beautiful sunny day on the North coast of Iceland close to Husavik. I cross the finish line to Fire and Ice proudly holding a Union Jack in one hand and the Spanish flag in my other (in appreciation of the serious love and support I have received from Anna, my Spanish girlfriend). Just like that it was all over. Not only had I managed to drag my battered body and mind through the incredible wilderness of Iceland over 29hrs and 18mins of gruelling running/ walking/ limping/ scrambling, I also managed to do so in the second fastest time of the week. After a few hugs and photos, we went off to pick up our finishers Icelandic hot dog, which we had been dreaming about over the past few days. As I ate, finally back with reception, I started to receive and send messages back home. While texting and reading I started crying uncontrollably and openly in front of all my fellow competitors and new friends.
It is this sort of emotion that makes it so hard to summarise the last 11 days - 2.5 days of travel and logistics either side of the race and the 6 days of the race itself in this blog. It feels like only the other day I was on the plane out and here I am already back trying to reflect on the experience. I have been through pretty much every emotion and feeling possible and still feel completely overwhelmed by it all.
After arriving in Iceland on Friday 23rd August I was finally at race HQ in Husavik on Saturday evening queuing to get through kit check. After some reassuringly very robust checks, I was cleared to race, number 24 in my hands – and the adrenaline really started to build. However, Sunday was going to be a day of 7 hours of travel to get to the start line in the middle of Iceland in the incredible Vatnajokull national park. The quality of the roads and increasingly desolate landscape were the first indicators of what was to come.
Finally Monday came and the running could start – and it probably started with our harshest weather conditions with a serious wind blowing. What I didn’t expect was the fine ash black sand, this combined with the wind resulted in a semi constant sand storm all day (I was still removing sand from my ears/ ears/ clothing towards the end of the race!) but the legs felt good and finished in 3:44 within a minute of first place. The running in sand and a tricky technical up and down meant I felt like I might have gone a little too hard on the first day. However, the overriding emotion was one of trying to take in the pure beauty of the place, at times it felt like we were running on the moon.
On all but the long day the running would usually be finished by lunch time, the afternoons generally spent trying to keep warm in full gear, lying in our sleeping bag, while chatting to other tent mates as they filtered in.
This is probably a good time to mention my tent mates, a good tent can make or break a trip. I was seriously lucky to have an amazing tent “tent 3” consisting of Megan, Janie, Rosie, Tristam, Dan and Scott (and frequent visits from Jackie). They all made sure the week was filled with plenty of banter and laughter - the best coping mechanisms to the accompanying challenge and I have a huge amount of respect and love for them!
Come early evening we would then eat our dehydrated food, I found the evening meals almost tasty, although they still left me feeling hungry at only 800 calories. However, as the week went on I really struggled eating the breakfasts, which for future trips I will definitely trade out for something more savoury. The other key learning for me regarded sleep! I must have had the worst mat in the group and with the rocky lava ground it didn’t result in a good combination, especially as the back chafing and sours developed from the carrying of the heavy bag. I’ll definitely prioritise space/ weight for a better sleep next time!
The second day came and went, I managed to finish with the top 4 (a nice agreed shared finish at the end to conserve a little energy), which brought us to the third day. The day before the long day so we were all trying to make sure we feel as good as possible come the end of it!
I found myself having one of those days when everything felt great, the weather was lovely (as per the video above) and we were running up to and around “the Queen” the big majestic lump of rock you see in many of the pictures! This also suited me as it was more technical with a tough lava field finish. I suddenly found myself out front by myself and therefore pushed on, managing to win the stage and find myself in the outright lead!
As is often the case, in ultra-running, wonderful highs can be followed by some serious lows. After 20km of the long stage the next day (which had already included 2 river crossings!) an old injury flared up in my right knee causing a lot of pain. From thinking about placing in the event I was suddenly back thinking can I finish the thing!
I say to many people I believe these events to be 80% mental, I had to do a serious mental reset and spent the next 6/7 hours totally by myself running/ walking/ limping through this crazy beautiful terrain re-finding my motivation. On reaching the last checkpoint and with more pain killers hitting the system I actually managed to power through the final sections. Although I lost the overall lead (although quite frankly due to the exceptional run by Gareth, the eventual winner, I don’t think I had a chance even without the injury!) I somehow managed to hold onto second place taking me just over 9 hours to complete.
So after almost 23 hours of combined running over 4 days we entered day 5, just a marathon distance after the 70km the previous day! However knowing we only had 15km to complete on the final day this felt like the final push. I was feeling mentally and physically pretty beat up but took to the run with the sole aim of man marking Frederico, who was sitting in third place. Thankfully he also appeared to be suffering, that was until we got past the final checkpoint and had 10km to go, at which point he found an extra several gears and went bounding off, just when I felt at my physical worst.
But for the second time in two days I found something else, extra gears I didn’t think possible, and after a gel and a deep breathe I set off after him. Somehow I ending up coming second on the stage and only losing a few seconds worth of time. Apparently the marine’s say that when you think you are at 100% you probably have another 40-50% extra you can give – well I don’t know about that much but I have definitely realised I can go beyond limits that I previously thought possible.
The final day was incredible, an agreed neutralisation in the group resulted in a slower jog and the ability to really take in the final day’s scenery as we neared the north coast (and the arctic circle where we finished just inside!). With increasingly green and lush surroundings, a stark contrast to the start of the run, it was a beautiful way to finish sharing the experience. Lots of smiles and tears while sucking in as much of the clean crisp air as possible before heading back home.
I keep getting asked “why do you put yourself through something like this?”. Well all I can say is that the whole experience, as hard as it was, is something that I will cherish forever. I really have discovered so much more about myself than I would have done sat at home watching the TV!
I have heard stories that made me laugh and cry at the same time, met people with perseverance and courage greater than I have ever seen and I have pushed myself physically and mentally in one of the most beautiful places on this earth. I guess if that doesn’t wet your appetite, then maybe not for you, but if that gives you even a slight shiver down the spine, I couldn’t recommend it more highly.
As for me…well the next stop is the Sahara with the Marathon Des Sables next April…the same again but with heat not cold…I guess I have answered my own question.
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