UVU North Pole Marathon 2012 Book

90° North

In April 2012 fifty competitors made their way to the North Pole, 90° North, to run the UVU North Pole Marathon.

Here we document what it takes to train to run 26 miles on the frozen arctic ocean, the experience of travelling to the worlds most northerly point, where all the worlds time zones converge and meet the people willing to put themselves through the agony and ecstasy of competing in one of the toughest races on earth.

Train, Travel, Race, Recover.

The North Pole Marathon is a unique race. The temperature, the environment, the time

frame and the conditions all combine to create a marathon like no other. The demands on the athlete are such that endurance, conditioning,

fitness and resolve are all required in equal measure.

A phased approach to endurance, conditioning, fitness and resolve should be

adopted over a six month period leading up to the North Pole Marathon in April.

Training

Phase 1.endurance: OcTObeR TO DeceMbeR

The marathon is 42 kilometres. The key to training for such a distance is to get the muscles used to the miles without compromising the joints.

From a standing start the athlete will need at least three months training to comfortably get to 42 kilometres.

Running three times per week over the thirteen weeks the runner should aim to cover the following distances:

Week 1. 2k (1k then 1k then last run 2k)













Just before the turn of the New Year the athlete will now have the endurance capacity to tackle 42 kilometers.

TRAININg

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Phase 2.condiTioning :JANUARY AND FebRUARY

January and February can now be used to help the runner condition themselves for the North Pole. To do this the mileage can be reduced per week to:

run 1. 21k run 2. 10k run 3. 30kThen on the final run of January and February step back up to 42k.

The unique conditions of the North Pole are:

— The cold— The Snow and Ice— The Sleep Deprivation

coldThe North Pole Marathon can be run in temperatures fluctuating between -25°c and -40°c. The effect on feet, toes, fingers, nose, genitals and ears cannot be under-estimated. The athlete should use every opportunity to run in the early hours of the cold winter, as this is when sub zero temperatures are more likely.

snoW and iceThe conditions under foot on a polar ice cap have been variously described as like running in mud, in sugar or in sand. The conclusive effect is that unlike road running where the strike path and stride pattern generally remain the same, on an ice cap there simply are not any identical stride patterns or foot strikes. The athlete should therefore take every opportunity to run off-road to get the ankle, knee and hip joints used to the strain of the snow and ice. In simple terms if it is frosty, snowing or icy the runner needs to be out there.

sleeP dePrivaTionIt is common for the athletes to have a 2-day stop over in Longyearbyen, followed by a day on the polar ice cap before the race is actually run. This is effectively 72 hours of daylight with very disturbed sleep patterns. The race can start at 10pm, or midnight, running through the early morning hours. To condition for this the athlete should attempt the 42k runs in January and February after midnight preceded by as little sleep as possible. It will be a gesture of defiance.

TRAININg

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Phase 3.FiTness:MARcH

Having completed the condition and endurance training, March is where the athlete can work on fitness and speed.

The following schedule for March will enhance the athlete’s performance and time during the race.

Fast = 12 kphSteady = 10.5 kpheasy = 9.5 kph

03 / 03 10k Steady07 / 03 Rest08 / 03 Rest09 / 03 16k Fast10 / 03 Rest1 1 / 03 50k easy12 / 03 Rest13 / 03 10k easy14 / 03 Rest15 / 03 16k Steady1 6 / 03 10k easy1 7 / 03 Rest1 8 / 03 35k easy1 9 / 03 Rest20 / 03 10k easy2 1 / 03 Rest22 / 03 15k Fast23 / 03 6k easy24 / 03 Rest25 / 03 25k easy26 / 03 Rest27 / 03 5k Fast28 / 03 Rest29 / 03 8k easy30 / 03 Rest3 1 / 03 8k easy01 / 03 10k Steady02 / 03 Rest / Travel03 / 03 Pre-Race briefings04 / 03 Travel to Pole05 / 03 NORTH POLe MARATHON

TRAININg

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Phase 4.resolve:

The North Pole like no other race is an internal battle. The athlete will be faced with total physical exhaustion and it will be their mental resolve that will carry them home. Having successfully completed the endurance, conditioning and fitness phases the athlete will have confidence to know that they are ready. In early March by running the 50k run, they will have entered the “Ultra Running” club and will have proven their resolve to tackle the coolest marathon on earth.

TRAININg

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A photographic essay of a stop over on the arctic island of Spitzbergen, the largest and only permanently populated island of the

Svalbard archipelago in Norway.

Travel To The norTh Pole

A STOP OVeR IN SPITzbeRgeN

TRAVeL TO THe NORTH POLe — A STOP OVeR IN SPITzbeRgeN

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Via Oslo, Tromso, Longyearbyen, camp barneo then on to the North Pole.

Travel To The norTh Pole

The North Pole is 90° north. The ice is three metres thick. The sea is three miles deep. The nearest landmass is 600 kilometres away and the nearest human settlement 700 kilometres. It is one of the remotest places on earth, an unspoiled wilderness where nature can simply take you out. You are in a predator’s territory, as dangerous as it is overwhelmingly beautiful.

To get there will require and overnight stop in Oslo. A flight will then take you up the spine of Norway to its Northern tip at Tromso. Landing at Tromso you have the first impression of the fullness of the arctic white. It is then a quick transfer to another plane for Longyearbyen.

At Longyearbyen it is now that cold hits you. It is -20°c. This requires, base layers, mid layers, two pairs of socks, gloves, mittens, balaclava, hat, arctic down jackets and arctic pants. The constant checking begins, have I got this, have I got that. Lose a glove and you could lose a finger.

From Longyearbyen you are now in the hands of the Russian military. The Russians create a camp near to the North Pole called camp barneo. The whole camp will be in place for a matter of weeks. To build the camp, the Russians first parachute Special Forces onto the polar ice cap. They then set to work building a runway on the ice. This has to be strong enough to land a specially adapted Jet. It is this jet which takes you from Longyearbyen to barneo.

The Russian jet is a rhapsody of utilitarian design. No Windows, no In-flight movie or magazine, no hostess and no toilet. It is simply engineered to get humans

to one of the most inhospitable places on earth and it does this in muscular fashion.

On landing at barneo you will be struck by the cold, the clarity of the light, the beauty of the ice, the bark of the dogs, the noise of the skidoos and finally the size and hospitality of the Russians.

From camp barneo it is then a helicopter ride to the Pole. This takes place at an altitude of no more than 30ft and takes approximately 30 minutes. barneo floats on an ice cap and is subject to arctic currents. On some days it can float to or away from the pole by a much as 15 kilometres.

Finally at the Pole you will be awestruck first by the silence, then by the stillness and then by sense that from here everything points south and worlds compasses are all pointing at you.

TRAVeL TO THe NORTH POLe

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Photographic portraits of some of the 2012 UVU North Pole Marathon entrants.

BeFore The Pain – BeFore The elaTion

PORTRAITS PRe 26 MILeS

nasos kToridis (cYP)6:34:38

graham gillesPie (aus)6:37:54

beFORe THe PAIN – beFORe THe eLATION – PORTRAITS PRe 26 MILeS

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marianna melanie Zaikova (Fin)7:03:36


andreW murraY (sco)4:17:08

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vlado sTaresinic (cro)6:11:22

lars samo ToBiassen (grl)6:20:28


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PeTer Jensen (den)6:36:02

carl PhiliPs (usa)8:47:34


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This is it.

The uvu norTh Pole

maraThon 201226 MILeS / -30°c

The North Pole Marathon is run on the polar ice cap. It is 10 laps of 4.2k circuits of camp barneo. The lap will include the runway and the camp itself. The temperature will be between -25°c and -40°c. The terrain will degrade as the race progresses. Hard ice will become a sanctuary and deep snow will be the enemy.

The emotional state of the runner has many stages; fear, curiosity, concern, exhaustion, dis-orientation, agony and elation. The physical state of the runner is a slow and linear degradation.

laP one. TRePIDATION.Lap one is all about exploring the route and gaining an understanding of the environment, the conditions, the weather and potential physical toll.

laP TWo. TecHNIqUe.Lap two becomes an exploration to find the right range of techniques to tackle the hard ice and soft snow.

laP Three: TIMINg Lap three means that you have two splits meaning you can work out your pace. A thirty-minute lap for example means a 6-hour race.

laP Four. DOUbT.by lap four runners will have started to make pit stops, you will have lost a sense of your competitive position in the race. With over a third of the race gone you will now be acutely aware of the physical toll. Doubt about completion and race position will now set in and begin to sap your energy.

laP Five. gRIND.completing lap five is a boost; you are half way there and you know that the rest of the race will be a mental exercise in grinding out a result.

laP six. RecOVeRY.energy will now be low. You will experience pain in your knees, ankles and lower back. cramps may start, usually in the quads. It will be time to consider a pit stop to take on fuel and maybe a quick massage.

laP seven. ReSOLVe.Not quite at the beginning of the end yet, lap seven will test your resolve. get through it unscathed and you know you will be on the home straight.

laP eighT. eNeRgY.Now in the last third of the race, energy levels will need to be constantly topped up. encouragement from the other competitors is vital. This is now you versus you and any inspiration or encouragement should be devoured, should it be a cheer or something as simple or beautiful as an ice crystal or sunbeam.

laP nine. PAIN.It will feel like your tendons and ligaments have been stripped of useable muscle. every stride is agony. When you fall, and you will fall, the strength that you summon to rise again is plundered from a deep as yet undiscovered recess. every sinew says, “Stop” every thought, says “go.”

laP Ten. eLATION.The pain is deeper and more acute than ever, but it now has the bedfellow of certainty. You know you will make it. 6 months of training, conditioning and sacrifice come down to this last torturous lap.

The elation you feel comes from sense of reaching out for your potential and with the lightest, briefest of moments you touch it. It is palpable and real and then it is gone. For one brief moment you and your potential are the same.

THe UVU NORTH POLe MARATHON 2012

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To complete the North Pole Marathon the mind has to be “captain” over the body. The body will want to shut down. The mind will need to keep it going.

The mind during the race will be in perpetual state of recovery and renewal.

This is one of the few times in life when seeing the big picture is a hindrance. The mind must set the body small achievable goals, the next lap, the next ice form, and the next pit stop. When the body achieves these small steps this in turn nourishes the mind and continues the cycle.

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The body during the race is in a perpetual state degradation. In-race recovery it can slow down the rate of decay by taking on board fuel and deep penetration massages. every athlete has their own favoured form of fuel and their own strategy for in-race pit stops and massages.

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Weather at the North Pole can change in minutes. This years race saw periods of oppressive snow and cloud cover, but also the heavenly calm of the arctic sunlight, challenging and inspiring to the will power of all competitors.


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“When running in extreme environments attention to detail can be the difference between finishing and not finishing, between 1st and 4th. UVU’s range is

exceptional in it’s attention to detail. An example is during the North Pole Marathon 2012, other competitors stopped several times to change garments, look at watches etc, whilst features such as multiple venting seams, and external watch housing meant i didn’t have to, and allowed me to win by the tightest of margins.

These are crafted by athletes, for athletes.“

Dr. Andrew MurrayWinner 2012 UVU North Pole Marathon

4:17:08 - bib No. 25

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Having just completed the most extreme exercise in self-fulfillment. You will be

physically exhausted and emotionally wrought.

The urge for home comforts and warmth will be profound. The desire to share your

experiences will be overpowering. The need for kith and kin will be overwhelming.

A huge dose of all of the above will enable a speedy recovery, ready for the next challenge.

recovering From...

Recovering from 4.19.38 Luis Alonso Marcos (eSP) Recovering from 6.55.10 Jamie Harris (cAN)

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Demelza Farr (AUS)Recovering from 6.06.36 James Alderson (AUS)Recovering from 6.06.38

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Recovering from 6.46.06 enrique gomez Pamies (eSP) Frank Rohde (geR)Recovering from 6.36.22

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UVU have spent two and a half years developing the cold Weather Race collection that helped Andrew Murray to succeed at the North Pole. This collection is now available at

UVUperformance.com.

The cold WeaTher race

collecTion

cold race Trousers 01

cold race soFT shell 01

cold race merino BaselaYer 01

cold race merino leggings 01

The cold WeaTher race collecTion

cold race JackeT 01

Train

Travel

From September 2012 a comprehensive collection of performance apparel will be available from UVU to enable the North Pole marathon runner to;

Train, Travel, Race and Recover.

recover

race

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UVU North Pole Marathon 2012 Book

Documents

Transcript of UVU North Pole Marathon 2012 Book