- I know François likes
wine, and I like beer. (Courtney laughs) I think that's it. (bystander laughs) Otherwise we wear the same shorts, (laughs) and we like the same races. (laughs) (dramatic music) - I was a bit afraid of what's
gonna happen in my legs. So okay, I just take my
comfortable pace just to finish. (dramatic music) - I did a road marathon. And I signed up for it just
to see if I could survive it. And when I did, I wondered what else I could survive. So I found a 50K, tried a 50 mile, finished it, and fell
in love with the sport. (dramatic music) - [François] I don't want
to have the same season. I want to challenge myself. I want to try something else. - [Courtney] I think mentally
we can push our bodies farther than they physically want to go. - [François] You have to be there because you want to finish the race. You want to make the full loop and if your first motivation is that, maybe you can finish it. If your only motivation is to place, or it's a bet or something like that, I think you won't finish the race. (dramatic music) - [Courtney] I knew no matter
what was going to happen, no matter how long it took, I was going to finish it because I wanted to complete that a hundred mile adventure. (dramatic music) My name is Courtney Dauwalter,
and I run ultra marathons. - [Pau] Courtney's
arguably the hottest name in ultra running right now. Courtney came to the scene
almost out of nowhere. In 2017, she won the MOAB 240, finishing first in front of all the men. And 10 hours ahead of the second runner. In 2018, she won the American
Iconic Western States and was named the Ultra
Runner of the Year. In 2019, she came to race the
most prestigious ultra race in Europe, the Ultra Trail du Mont-Blanc. And guess what? She won it too. Courtney Dauwalter is a
genuinely superhuman athlete. - Thank you guys all for being out. (crowd cheers) You're amazing! I love the ultra running community. It's definitely one of
the things that hooked me. I don't know, I just felt so welcome. You know, anyone coming into
the sport would have someone to turn to, even like a hand pulling
you off the ground when you face plant in a mud puddle. I think the community is
everything for this sport. - My name is François D'Haene. I'm a trail runner for
Salomon Team since 10 years and I'm really fascinated by ultra trail. - [Pau] François D'Haene
has almost won it all. People see him as a legend of the sport. He's won the Grand Raid in
Reunion Island four times. He's won the first Ultra
Trail World Tour back in 2014, but he's mostly known for
being a three-times champion of the Ultra Trail du Mont-Blanc. François is by far one of the best ultra runners in the world, but besides that, he's also
the father of three kids. I discovered Francois in 2010 During his first long distance running experience And it was a relationship based on This permanent exchange throughout the year to develop products, to try to understand what will condition the success or the failure of a race tomorrow and in the future. - François and Courtney
are at the forefront of Ultra Trail community trends. They're famous for wearing baggy shirts and pants in the races. It looks like they're dressed
up for a basketball game and not a 100 mile race. Especially Courtney, she's nothing like
you've ever seen before. She's an ambassador of change. She tries to make a big
difference while she's running. She's managed to reach the
same level as the men lately, and also to revolutionize
the way she's dressing during her races. - [Courtney] I have
always worn long shorts. So even growing up, I preferred long soccer shorts, or basketball shorts for
everything I was doing. And then when I transitioned and started doing ultra running, it was just natural to
stay in the same clothes. Courtney is very different from Francois in her approach Francois's look will be based on a very technical product need Whereas Courtney will need a looser look that is - [Courtney] We don't
need to be aerodynamic for a hundred miles, and so choosing the clothing and the gear that makes you feel confident,
standing on the starting line and makes you feel comfortable
when you're running for 24 hours is the most important. (birds chirp) So I'm an American living in Colorado, which is the same state where Hardrock is, probably five hours away
from the start line. Hardrock has a ton of history, and a ton of community around it, that makes it a really special race. I don't know, they create
this like family reunion feel around the race, where they don't even call it a race, they call it an endurance run. And everyone's just out there trying to complete this hundred mile loop in the San Juan mountains, and enjoy the views along the way. - We live now in le Beaufortain
in Arêches-Beaufort. It's a small village in Alps, in France. I live very close from the UTMB trail and I know how the trail is, and it's very some famous trail in Europe because it's made a very nice loop around the highest point
of Europe, the Mont-Blanc, and it's passed by three
different countries, Italy, Switzerland, and France, so it's a very iconic loop. And now the race is more
in my immediate area so for us, it's a very important race. - [Courtney] My main goals of the season, are to string together two big
hundred mile mountain races. - [François] For this year, 2021, I would like to try to
do running back to back Hardrock 100 and UTMB 100. - And specifically to focus
on the six weeks between Hardrock and UTMB and how to recover as efficiently as possible, and how to get in some training
and be as fresh as possible for each race. - [Pau] If you think of
racing two, 100 mile races, that's already a hell of a journey, but then if you think of
how much accumulated climb they have on both races, then it equals about 20,000 meters. And I've checked it, and that would be like
reaching the stratosphere. That's crazy. - You know, it's not about running UTMB, it's about training only for UTMB. Because winning UTMB is motivating me, but if all my season is focused on UTMB and just training like normal, like in 2014, like in 2012, like in 2017. Just training only for UTMB,
so I know I can do that and I don't want to have the same season. I want to challenge myself. I want to try something else. That's why I think winning back-to-back Hardrock and UTMB, may be a very good motivation. And since two years, I
went for the big challenge. This season I was not stressful about the lack of competition
of last year because of COVID. I was just like every year, a bit stressful about the transition between ski mountaineering
and cross-country ski to try winning. So we have a very nice training
camp this year in El Hierro. And then I try to program like a race test in Cabo Verde. (dramatic music) When I run in Cabo
Verde, it was a bit warm but I was feeling okay
and seventh competitor. So I lead the race like
two or three hours. So it was a very good race for me. After seven or eight hour, I start to feel a bit strange. Maybe it was because of the warm, but I was thinking it
was more about my body. So I tried to continue to drink and eat and to have a good protection, but my body didn't work very well. - The spirit of Ultra, it's all about crossing a finish line. It's not about performing. It's not about the time. We are not on a marathon. You know, when you are
training for a road marathon, you are thinking very quickly,
the time you want to reach. You know, like I want to run three hours. I will follow a training plan
to reach this three hours. This is not existing at
all in ultra running. You start and you don't
know if you will finish. - Yeah. I finished like fully grumpy. And so I said, okay, now you have to try to
understand what's happened. So I continued to drink
and eat and take time, and I try to rest, but it
was not working very well. So it's take me like, three
hour to make 100 meters. And then eight hour to
put my legs straight. Microme disappear after
like a two minute nap, so I was able to continue
and going slowly, I start walking and then running again. And then I finish the race
in this very, very nice loop. And so it was for me, 26 hour race instead
of maybe 14 hour race. So it was another test, as I expect. (light violin music) - After one year, without any international
racing, to see François dropping from his test race before the Hardrock. For sure, it puts a lot of question marks, whether he's ready or not before the big race of the season. - But François is really well
preparing his objectives. He knows exactly himself, and how he should prepare the race. Courtney is really more in the quantity than the quality as François. - Oops! (laughs) I think maybe Greg proposed it to me, 200 mile races in one
summer is perfect. (laughs) I do not have a training plan
and I do not have a coach. My goal during the whole
pre-season was to stay healthy, and get as much climbing as possible, but also just to have a blast doing it, so that I was still mentally
excited to be racing when July and August come
around with the big goals. - I was trying to reduce the
number of goals, by season. And then she told me,
"Ah yes, but I took part of the 24 hours with a
friend. It was nice!" And I was like, okay. It
was nice, but your body, it will be difficult to
recover, you know, from it. And then a few weeks after,
she was doing a 24 hours up and down, a climb,
just with a friend as well in the Colorado. You know, I'm always,
scary that she gets burned. (dramatic beats) - Yes! Let's go continue - [Videographer] You like skiing? - Wee! We're off - [Pau] Since 2019, Courtney
and François are announcing at the beginning of each season, that raising the Hardrock
100 and the UTMB, will be their major goal for the year. But in fact, it has never happened. During 2019, Hardrock got canceled because of the strong risk of avalanches after a snowy winter in Colorado. Then in 2020 COVID 19 came,
and paralyzed the whole world, including the most important races. Then finally, this 2021, even
if COVID is still present, there's high chances that
they will be able to try it for the first time, after two years. - I was in U.S., two years
ago in (indistinct) place. - [Cameraman] What's
the point of being here, when there's no race? - [François] It's such
a different race here. It's really high, I'm not living at such high altitude, When we were in France, at
4,000 meters you are already on glacier. - Hardrock is a very specific race, because it was a very high altitude race. You have more than 12 paths, I think, above 4,000 meters, so
acclimatizing your body is very, very important. Altitude racing, or alpine climbing Once we gain altitude, we have to spend some time there And once we have spent a few weeks there the body will adapt and produce more red blood cells and, lastly, adapt to the altitude and, at this time, we will recover our full potential. On Hardrock where it rises to 4,000, we are in zones, where I would say that the body has the capacity to adapt, but it needs time, so it's good to go at least 3 weeks before - I know that's at stake,
at least eight or nine days to my body, to start to transfer
very well to the altitude. So, I really, I really want to, to put all the chance on my side. So that's why I decided to go two weeks before the race in U.S. - I live at 10,000 feet. So I didn't really have to do
anything special to get ready for the altitude of Hardrock. Because I didn't have to
worry about the altitude, I focus more on climbing and
getting my hiking legs ready for the huge ascents and
descents in the Hardrock course. - In 2019 I was like for 10 days in U.S., just discovering the place. And I spent a lot, a lot of
time with the American runner. - [Cameraman] Where are we right now? - We're on the top of Green Mountain, checking out the view and- - [Cameraman] It isn't
Green Mountain! (laughs) - What? - [Cameraman] It's not Green Mountain. - Aren't we? Oh, nevermind. We're lookin at Green Mountain, we're on top of Little Giant Peak. - I'm Jim Walmsley. I'm a
professional trail runner for Hoka One One. And I do ultra trails out there with a lot of the Solomon athletes. I first met François out at UTMB 2017. It was my first experience
running in the UTMB races, and I think François was
coming in as one of the heavy favorites being a two time, UTMB winner. And we ended up spending a lot of miles, especially through the night together. - We like, what's happened
during the UTMB 2017. And since yes, we were planning
to make something together. - He was supposed to do Hardrock
2019 and it got canceled, but he still went to Colorado and I tend to go to Silverton, Colorado every year. So we were able to get
in like 10 massive days, it was just this like huge
training block together, out there, and I got to
show him a lot of the course and talk to him about it. Over the years, we've
developed a nice friendship that I think we both appreciate. This is now 2021, the race
is for sure happening. So there were kind of some
plans and making sure like, "Hey, what do you need help with?" I didn't know if he really
needed help with crewing or pacing or just whatever,
I just kind wanted to be available to help out. - In 2021, when I go back to U.S., for me, it was just a normal and logic that Dakota Jones and Jim
Walmsley would be there. And four, five, six months
before the race we are, we are discussing together
and they helped me to prepare well for the race. So it's not just about,
you know competitions, they really helped me, and we made a team. Even if we are with different brand, we are just athletes, and we
just want to help each other. - Something really curious that
will happen at this edition of the Hardrock, is that Jim Walmsley
will be pacing François. These kinds of things really
make you see the true spirit of ultra trail running, where even if they are two of
the biggest rivals on races, like the UTMB be of 2017, they are now capable
of helping each other, during these other races. - This is my first time racing Hardrock, and I absolutely feel
like a rookie. (laughs) In every way. I think standing at the
start line of Hardrock, not knowing the whole course
and not knowing what it feels like to ask your body to move,
around that entire hundred mile loop just feels like,
I mean, full on excitement, but also a lot of curiosity
of what's going to happen or what will be the thing that goes wrong in this race that I have to try to fix. So a combination of excitement, and then also like, oh, what could happen out
there in those mountains? - [Pau] You need to be real experienced in ultra trail running races. If you want to come to race
on Hardrock and finish it. François and Courtney
will come as rookies, but they're not aiming
to cross the finish line. They come here to perform,
and why not? To win. (cow bells clang) - I'm so excited that Hardrock
gets to happen this year. I've been waiting for many years, and I can't wait to get on the course. - (indistinct) it's about 160 kilometers. So the first 60K, you have to run alone, and then a pacer can join you. So the plan was that I
run alone the 60 first K, then Jim join me for 50K, and
then Dakota finish with me the last 50K. When I blend the race, I
say, okay, maybe I have to give a timetable for my
assistants and for my pacer. So I take the time of
Kilian like, three years ago or even more, so I know at what time
Kilian was at this point, and this situation. I have to think about my pace
and my race and my feelings, but sometimes this race it
was a bit strange because, we were like one hour, 30
minutes, ahead of Kilian pace, so I was thinking, oh,
maybe you are too fast, but if I'm too fast, maybe
(indistinct) is too fast too. So maybe we are together too fast, or maybe we are together in
a good day, I don't know. - François' pace at
Hardrock was just insane. It was like 48 minutes
below Kilian's record, but he couldn't slow down, because Dylan wasn't too far back. Now, Kilian is the most
famous runner of all times. To run below his records is
already a great achievement, but 48 minutes? That's out of these world. (crowd cheers) - First aid station, she
looked fantastic, but that's, I think it's only like
seven or eight miles in, and it's very early on. - Mmmm! - How are those? - Wow, what a delight! - Like the second and third aid station, I could kind of see it,
like, you know, in her eyes, her face, that things weren't
totally a hundred percent. - I did not feel great almost
immediately in the race. And my stomach was just
rejecting everything that I was trying to put in it. I didn't lose very much. - So maybe, just take your time here? - Yeah. And then it was just like, I was trying to hold the
same pace and, you know, keep the same effort level. But the energy possible,
the calories possible, was just dwindling with every mile. And so eventually I was out of gas. - You know, sometimes if
you have issues in an ultra, and you keep going, things will turn around and
like, your body will kind of, you know, figure things out,
but that never happened. And she kept pushing her body really hard without taking in any calories. - Vodka? (everyone laughs) We go! (everyone cheers) - So when it feels like you
can't take another step, I think that's when being in
your head and being strong mentally can keep you
moving many more steps, than you thought was possible. - Drink and eat. - Yep. Part of my problem was that I
was not addressing the problem that was happening. I was hoping it would solve
itself as the miles passed, and that suddenly I would feel better. So I didn't even tell my crew that I was having this problem. I was in and out of aid
stations very quickly. They had no idea how much
I was dying on the inside. - [Kevin] It seemed like she
was having a really hard time. Like it seemed like she was
kind of scrambling to get some food in, and was maybe like very hurried. Someone told me, as soon as
she left the aid station, they had kind of followed her out. And they came back and said, "The food that she just
ate, she just threw up." And I was like, "Oh no, that's not good." I believe that it's a mixed problem, there may be something related to nutrition there's the cold, and maybe the altitude And a global competition issue. Hence, but often, I have seen many athletes in whom we thought it was nutrition but they were related problems, namely, types of cold stroke or stomach spasms and they could no longer move forward. - [Kevin] I got a phone
call from her pacer, which is a phone call
you never want to get. She told me that she's
having these stomach issues, that she was throwing up, that it was something
that wasn't calming down. She wasn't able to figure out
how to get it to slow down or stop. So we just kind of talked through options, talked through like, if it was something that you push through or
if it's something that, will cause harm to your
body and will, you know, cause problems, months
down the road, for example. So at that point we just kind
of discussed it and it seemed like it wasn't wise to
continue at that point. - I couldn't like take stuff
in, I haven't eaten since before Andy's. - Oh, shit. - I dunno what's going on. Yeah, it's weird. But it happens! You're cruising! Keep going! - Bye. Good luck! - I ended up dropping out at mile 62, and probably the gas tank was empty, at maybe, I don't know.. 50-ish? Because I wasn't able to take in anything, just gulps of air. (laughs) Yeah, it didn't work! (laughs) (crew and Courtney laughs) - After the first 60K, it's very nice to see people again, because it's a very wide
path at the beginning, so then you arrive and
you see a lot of people, and your assistants, and Jim
was there waiting for me. - I'm picking up François
and Grouse aid station, about 42 miles. I'm taking him over
Engineer, through Ouray, where he'll see his crew next. And then I'm taking him up Camper Road, over Virginius and down in
the Telluride for 30 miles at mile 72, where I'll
tag Dakota Jones in, and he'll take them home. He's on top of his pace. I'm not going to interject any. Dylan Bowman was right behind us. We could see him just
one switch back below us. And he was basically clipping
our heels and that rubber band probably didn't completely
break until much later in the race, probably KT or Chapman, somewhere in between there. So very late in the race. I think Dylan Bowman
was just on record pace, and having the day of his life. And he was just on
François' heels all day. - I was much more
stressful about, you know, Kilian's timestable
because I was thinking, "Oh, maybe we are too fast.
And if Dylan is not behind me, maybe I can slow down",
because the end of the race can be very difficult
because of the altitude because of the kilometers
and something like that, so with Dylan just riding behind me, I cannot rest, and I have
to push all along the way. So I know I was in advance of that time, but I don't care about the record, but I just know that maybe I'm too fast. - About to head down into Ouray, François has absolutely
smoked this descent from Engineer down. It's a good day. (light rock music) - On his way up Camp Bird road, his stomach started coming back, and he was finally eating a lot more. And then we took it pretty,
probably pumping the brakes quite a bit, going into Telluride because
it's a very steep descent. And just making sure you're
not going to blow the legs out on that trail. Are you pacing Deebo? - [Runner] Yeah. - Race. (light rock music) - Past Governor Basin, looking down the road for... I think Deebo's back there chugging along. Yo Deebo! But our boy François, is moving faster, so far. - So here we are in Telluride. It's something like eight
o'clock in the evening, maybe 8:30, and the sun's still up. It's absolutely unheard of for a runner to be coming into
Telluride in the daylight, in this direction of Hardrock. And so François is obviously
having a really good day. It's really exciting to
see him running so well. He's got Jim Walmsley pacing him, and for some reason I'm
pacing him after Jim Walmsley, which seems like in
retrospect, a bad idea, but I'm going to do the best I can, man! (motivational vocal music) (motivational vocal music) (crowd cheers) Francois is very much a professional, everything before and during has been conducted so as to know where we are going, we know what we must do, we implemented an entire organization with respect to equipment, assistance, of his monitoring, of his capacity to feed himself or drink. Everything is under control. That is to say, we comply perfectly with the plan. - [Dakota] He's crushing it. Yeah - From the last aid station,
you know, it's only downhill, but your legs don't like downhill at all, because it's the end of ultra trail, and your legs are really sore. (heavy breathing) - It's....hurry up! I know that Dylan is not right behind me, because with headlamps, you
can see where are the others. So I just want to appreciate this moment, and with Dakota we have many
jokes and we are very happy to be, "Okay, we made it! We will finish the race
in first position." It's just incredible and very nice. And we just enjoyed the
night and the last descents. (runners cheer) Even if it's a bit sore for the legs. (crowd cheers) (crowd cheers) (crowd cheers) (crowd cheers) (crowd cheers) - It sounds like the
most stupid thing ever. But there's people who go to this race, that spend the whole
day out there running, just to cross the finish line, and kiss a giant piece of rock. - I was pretty relieved. Cause I guess part of my stomach said, "I hope we didn't go too fast." But to see him just
get stronger from there is pretty incredible, and,
but a little bit of a relief of like my one job is to pace him and make sure like we're
doing good and not too fast. Like worst case scenario:
Do not run too fast. And I guess maybe my own relief to that, he finished strong, still. - I think, yeah, the victory is very nice and I was so happy about that victory, but I think what is
very nice in that sport is that I think we have the same feats with the first people to the last people. It just that we made it,
we made the full loop. We made this crazy, very odd race and you are
just happy to finish it and to accomplish it
and, this is what I like in that sport, is that I
think the feeling of victory is important, but the
feelings of finishing the race is the same for the first
runner to the last runner. And this is what is very
nice, I think in ultra trail. - Congrats man. - Oh my god (indistinct) (people laugh) - You're just too good man. - Oh no, you made a very nice one. Good job. - Unbelievable. 21 and change? - You too eh? - Great job man. Great job. (light piano music) (light piano music) - After Hardrock, I was just
happy to be back in France. My travel was not easy. Then finally I made it
and I was in France, like three days after Hardrock, with some big foot and
big legs, and painful, but so happy to see my
family again and my children, and they were happy to see me too. So it was just not thinking about my body and just thinking about,
daytime wisdom and be happy to meet each other. (light piano music) - Since 10 years, I try to,
not to preserve my body, but I know that I don't want
to push everything one year, because I want to continue
to practice trail running every year, so I don't want
to give lesson, but for me, I don't want to make that
more than two or three ultra trails by year, because
I know the impact on my body. So I know that since ten year, I tried to preserve my body to
keep motivation and freshness and everything for the
next year, I hope so. - After Hardrock, I physically came back very quickly, and my legs and body
weren't destroyed at all. I was able to get back into
training pretty quickly, and then just started looking
at different nutrition options for during races to
see what we could tweak and what we could change to be ready for the next hundred mile effort. - I think we've just been
using a lot of the same stuff for nutrition for a very long time, and maybe it's just not
palatable initially. And then when you're
not taking in calories, then like that causes
problems with your stomach. And once you have problems like that, then it just gets hard to eat anything. It doesn't matter what you try. - Maybe my stomach changed or
my body changed or something, where these things I had come
to rely on as my nutrition for every single ultra,
just didn't work anymore. - Since Hardrock, she's tried out some another
options for nutrition, and she's done some long runs, just trying out new
things and seeing like, what doesn't work so well. So she's tested it out
and like, not erased, but at least in like a hard
enough effort where she'll have a good idea that, it
will work for the race. Today we're making some mashed potatoes. - I feel confident about
my new nutrition plan. I'm very excited to test it out. I think the setup of this
season has been kind of special because oftentimes after
a hundred mile race, you have nothing on the calendar. And that was your whole
season is this one chance at a hundred miles. And so, to have a second
chance at a hundred miles in the same summer, feels pretty cool. I'm pumped that I get to test out all of these new ideas now. - [Cameraman] But do you think that these are mashed potatoes? Why not? (everyone laughs) So, actually I have ... when they arrived a week ago, they have a lot of training to do, big training loads before the UTMB. Hence, they have bodies that endure tension on some key muscles that are strongly solicited by the race, but after the three or four days of rest, massage and other things, their bodies are really relaxed and ready for the UTMB and I would say that we do not see a trace of the Hardrock race. But, it is often the case, in fact, that the decompensation, I would say physical rather than after training, the training loads that happen month after month and we cannot manage this rhythm over the year and what is interesting is that they have this ability to endure two major races one after the other, but knowing how to rest, being smart enough to rest. - With UTMB, becomes all of the things. So it's this huge excited
atmosphere, tons of people come, everyone is pumped on ultra running. And so with that comes
different obligations, and things like that. But then you relax when
you get the chance. (crowd cheers) - [Announcer] The UTMB 2019! (upbeat music) (upbeat music) - [Fans] Thank you! Thank you! (upbeat music) (upbeat music) - The UTMB is the biggest
ultra race in the calendar, because here is where you
have all the media attention. And here's where you have the
biggest density of athletes. It's a little bit the
ending point of the season for many ultra runners, and
the winners of the UTMB, most of the time become
the legends of the year. - We need more women! Get out here women! (everyone laughs) Hydrating...it's vodka! - UTMB is now a very, very mediated race. And for me as an athlete, I
have to make (indistinct), and I have to try to answer
and show how it is a community, and Kilian is not here this year, so I have to admit that
when Kilian is here, a lot of media is focused on Kilian, which is a good thing for me. - It's not vodka, it's water. (laughs) Do you think that Francois is [muffled voice]? I don't think so, I am certain of it [Laughing] I think they are totally ready Later, obviously, they will compete with others If we think about their races in the previous years, I believe they are better than they were before. However, there are others that may be better than they are. But, in relation to what they are, they must win. - So I was pacing, François at Hardrock, and now I find myself competing
against François at UTMB. (crowd cheers) I guess part of me hopes
that François and I end up finding a rhythm
together in the race. But at the same time, I think
if he's having a bad day, I'm probably not gonna wait for him. And likewise, I think if
I'm not having the day, there's no way he's waiting for me. It's still a competition. And I think we would both like
to win first and foremost, but then secondly, I guess if I don't win and
maybe I hope François wins, and vice versa. I think there's a little
mutual appreciation there, but yeah, he's fun to watch from afar, but I hope I can beat him at UTMB. - I think a hundred miles is really cool, because it's very hard to predict
how it will go for people. So I love coming to UTMB for
the level of competition, I love that all these really strong, tough women are lining
up for the same race, and we can just see how it pans out. (crowd cheers) - When you walk to the start
line, there's more and more and more and more people,
and then you just arrive in the last, you know, straight line. And then even if the race not
starts, it just share a new, like you finished a race and
it's 30 minutes to the start, but you accumulate a lot
of good vibes and energy, but pressure too. - Before the race, I was really excited. I love race weeks and all
the events that go with them, but getting to the start line
and just having it begin, where you get to just
run and enjoy nature, and do what you came to
do, is my favorite part. (crowd cheers) (dramatic music) (dramatic music) (crowd cheers) The very beginning of the race was chaos. Everyone was sprinting through
the streets of Chamonix, and I was just trying to stay on my feet and not get trampled. Quickly though, the miles flew by, it's pretty flat right at the beginning. And I had no idea where
anyone was just because it was so crazy at the beginning. So I didn't know if there
were women in front of me, or who was behind, or
anywhere that people were. And then the first climb was smooth. And I found out at the top
that there were no women in front of me. - Normally that race
starts really, really fast, but I don't know why, but this
year I was ahead of the race, so it was not so fast. It was
perfect for me, just my pace. So it was very, very nice and very cool, and to the top of the
ascent, on (indistinct), we were all together, which
was very, not slow but, a comfortable pace. (slow inspirational music) We manage our descent to
Saint Gervais, not so fast. And then, Jim and Tim Curry
made a bit acceleration until les Contamines. So between Saint Gervais
and les Contamines, it was a bit more dynamic. And then we knew that
the race starts here. (crowd cheers) - Contamines is where I got to see Kevin. We took our time there to do the crewing, the aid station very
carefully, because after that, you don't see your crew for
the whole night basically. So we made sure to go through and check that I had all the nutrition that I needed for the whole night, and make
sure that all my batteries were ready for those dark hours. (crowd cheers) - After crossing the
Contamines at kilometer 40, the runners are very
close to the mountains, and the doors are opening to adventure. We can say that here is
where the race starts. They have a marathon under their legs. The night is approaching,
and it's going to be cold. It's going to be dark,
so they have to layer up, they have to get the headlamps out, and with all this darkness, the mental game, for sure, it will start. - I think François and I
have different strengths. His experience is probably
something that I just can't completely make up for. I can try to learn quicker, but he lives, and born and
bred in the Alps out here, so he's just really savvy. I think he does things like
just switching into dry clothes without thinking about it,
where I have to more like, "Oh, I'm a little wet. I should
switch into dry clothes?" He's just like, "Oh yes. Why wouldn't you switch your shirt?" So he's really savvy with his experience, and just automatically
does stuff that sets him up for success and, and
surviving in the mountains. I think when the pace gets to more hiking, I think sometimes he, it feels like he's pulling
more when it's hiking, but I also feel like if I can
make it a little more uptempo and a little more running, I
put some pressure on François. Hopefully I can use my strengths
and maybe push the pace a little more, and maybe
make him more uncomfortable and get away from François. But I think no one's done
that to him in a long time. So we'll see. But fingers crossed. - So the night section through
Italy has tons of really big climbs, and it was pretty
cold out and really foggy. So my whole plan during that
section was just to stay as calm as possible and warm
as possible through the night and not try and push the climbs very hard or push the descent. So, when I got to Courmayeur, I hadn't pushed myself too hard
and I was feeling physically and mentally still really good. (fast tempo piano music) - To descent after
(indistinct), we start to feel that our legs it's a bit sore, and the last descent to come, I think, "Wow. It would be a very long
night and a very long day." Because our things are not liking 2017, I think Anderson, that he
have some stomach problem. So he say, "Okay, I will really
take my time in Courmayeur, because I have to make
something with my stomach,. and start again fresh." When you are in Courmayeur, you say, "Okay, our day is done,
it's just passing midnight, so I'm here to finish the race. I'm here to finish my challenge." You make, "Alfred, it's
just midnight, so man, you can do it." Oh, maybe I can take a picture. (voices muffled) After Courmayeur, I was a bit afraid of what's gonna happen in my legs, and what's gonna happen with
Jim, because I know that he not feels very good, but he catch me very
quick after Courmayeur, and we start the ascent
together, then he stopped again. And then he was not arriving, so, shit. - You know how far ahead UF? (voice muffled by wind) - After Courmayeur which is
a halfway mark of the race, we could see that Jim
wasn't feeling too good. I think it was at the next aid station that he decided to stop. Now, I'm sure that François
would have loved to run with him for a little bit longer. There was still a long, long night ahead, and running alone, it's not easy. (running steps) - [Courtney] Thank you. At Courmayeur, we went
about the aid station kind of the same as Contamines,
where we took our time because it's another really long section before I would see him again. So I think I spent like maybe
six minutes in the aid station at Courmayeur, which normally
I feel like I try and rush out of aid stations much quicker. And this time we are just
staying really calm and being really like diligent about going
through our list of things. But I did at that point, basically switch over to
fully liquid nutrition. So solids weren't going in anymore. (crowd cheers) So it's a big climb out of Courmayeur. And I reached the top of it, which is where they have aid station, I went through that aid station
and drank a ton of water. And just overzealous. After I left the aid station, I ended up throwing up
everything that I had just drank, which had me a little bit
nervous that my stomach was going to turn again
like it did at Hardrock. I wasn't sure what it meant. - For me, from Bertone to
la Fouly, was a nightmare in Grand Col Ferret, I still care. I just take my comfortable
pace just to finish. I am here to finish the
race, no matter the result, I said, okay, now you are here, already run more than 100K,
so now it will be a long day, but you have to finish
or take care of yourself, think just about you. At that time, it was more
stressful about my possibility to finish than just as a position. (slow violin music) (birds chirp) - When the sun finally
comes up during an ultra, it gives you this huge boost of energy. So being able to turn off your headlamp, escape this little bubble
of light that you lived in for 12 hours. And then I dunno, just feel the rejuvenation
of like, sunlight, and being able to see your surroundings, is a huge mental boost for sure. - After la Fouly, the sun is rising, so it change a bit, your mind, and I start to feel a bit better. And I start to think about the race, just about you to finish. If you want to try to win
or do something, it's now. - From la Fouly, to Champex-le-Lac, I was thinking a lot about the 2019 race. When I got to Champex-le-Lac in 2019, I was throwing up and I didn't
think it would be possible to finish the race. And so I was just kind of
like comparing the two, and feeling way better. And
like I had paced it pretty well. And so I felt like I had a
lot of energy left to give on those last three climbs to
get you to the finish line. So the climb out of
Champex-le-Lac to Trient, and then the climb out
of Trient to Vallorcine, both went very smooth. I was feeling pretty solid and
like I could move really well on the uphills and then navigate
the downhills just fine. And then I was hoping that
when I got to Vallorcine, I would just have like an
adrenaline rush that would help me push over the very last climb. (Courtney sings karaoke) (crowd cheers) (inspiring music) The climb out of Vallorcine
is horrendous. (laughs) It was so mean, it's very, very steep. It's the very last climb
and it's super technical. And my feet and legs were just done. I had nothing left in them. My legs felt like they were
rubber, and they were just like bending and shaking how
they weren't supposed to. So I feel like that climb
did not go super well. And the adrenaline rush that I was hoping I would get hit with, that could power me to the
finish line, didn't really come. It was just like managing
the uphill as best I could with what I had left. (birds chirp) - When you see so many at
the (indistinct), it's okay. It's very, I really want to be there, because I want to finish this descent. But on those always, okay,
now it's done, it's finished. My challenge is finish. My summer's finished. My race is finished. (crowd cheers) (crowd cheers) (crowd cheers) (crowd cheers) - It's so crazy. The finish line here is like nothing else. It was really fun to get back to it. Once I crossed the scaffolding
over the road, then you know, you're in town and the
people were lined up already giving high fives and cheering. And I was just trying to soak
it in as much as possible, and like take in all of these
faces and all of these noises and just enjoy it for everything it was. - And then when you arrive
and you see the finish line, I just, it's incredible, and then I know my family
will be there on the right, I know everybody would be
there, and just, it's wow. I made it. (uptempo inspiring music) (uptempo inspiring music) (uptempo inspiring music) - When I crossed the finish
line, I was totally spent. I think, yeah. I think I left everything
on the course that I could, on that day. And that feels pretty cool. - [Announcer] Courtney Dauwalter! - I'm just reminded that a
hundred miles is very far, and that there's always things
we can do to get better. So I'm actually fine with
how it all turned out with dropping out of Hardrock and
having UTMB go like it did, because it forced me to
learn some great lessons from the Hardrock DNF, that
I could then apply right away to this UTMB race and try
again at a hundred miles. And it also got me just really
fired up to finish the race. So when I was standing on
the start line of UTMB, I knew no matter what was going to happen, no matter how long it took, I was going to finish it because
I wanted to complete that hundred mile adventure. - As a (indistinct) on
ultra trail, you always say, "Okay, it's done. I'm done." But we'll see what happens
at the end of the season. But normally, I would like to stop here, just to be able to continue
for the next few years. - No! The season's not done. (laughs) Not if I get a say in it. (upbeat groove music) (upbeat groove music) (upbeat groove music) (upbeat groove music) (upbeat groove music) (upbeat groove music) (upbeat groove music)
