Yeah, I rang the bell!

In 2019 I saw the images of the 'Patagonman, an extreme triathlon at the end of the world' for the first time. On December 4, 2022, I was one of the lucky ones to ring the bell at the finish. In this blog I tell my story of this day.

Getting ready for the start

At 02:00 AM we got up and had breakfast in our hotel in Puerto Aysén. Then checked out, because our next accommodation was at the finish in Puerto Ibáñes, about 200 km further south. In our hotel there were still about 6 participating teams consisting of an athlete and support. We left right with the others to the start in Puerto Chacabuco. After parking the car we walked towards the harbor and soon we saw the ferry waiting. There was already a strong wind, and in the dark we recognized the waves in the Fiordo Aysén by their white heads. From 03:00 the bike could be checked in in transition zone 1 (T1), I had already put on the wetsuit in the hotel, nice and warm, and at 04:00 I boarded the ferry. Without intending to, I was the first athlete on board.

The ferry left around 04:00 with all participating athletes on board. Soon we gathered at the most sheltered area on the lower deck so as not to cool down too much. There was also dribbled to warm up. Through the social swim on Friday and the briefing on Saturday I got to know a number of athletes. We made some tough talks and saw the water getting more and more turbulent. During the briefing it was already indicated that it would probably be plan B, a route that would lie more in the lee of a bay, because of the wind and current. Around 05:00 founder and race director Ignacio Valdivieso announced that in consultation with the Navy it had been decided to switch to plan C. With wind force 8, 40 knots, and a current from the bay to the fjord, it was impossible to swim from the fjord into the harbor bay. Plan C meant that the route was shortened to 2 km so that we could swim in a straight line to the harbor in the sheltered bay. That way we didn't have to swim against the current. Too bad, but it was clear that this was a good decision. At least we did the jump!

The race starts

At 05:30 we were able to jump off the ferry in the dark in fives. Most were in no hurry to get ready to jump. So it happened that I was one of the first to be in the water again. The thoughts of this moment beforehand turned out to be more exciting than the moment itself. I was not nervous and thought it was very cool to jump from about 3 meters high. And luckily I kept my buoy, losing it during the jump was still my biggest concern. I swam to some kayaks marking the start line. I didn't feel like being compromised so I chose a bit of a position on the side and not on the front line. After the last athlete had jumped at 05:45 the horn sounded and the race was started. I was right in my rhythm and didn't get carried away in too fast a pace. Even if it was only 2km, my plan was to swim at a comfortable pace and conserve energy. The water was calm for the first few hundred meters, but as we got closer to the harbor it got rougher and rougher and I was bobbing more and more on the waves. On the last few hundred meters I swallowed quite a bit of water, both when breathing left and right. Water that wasn't that salty by the way. Arriving at the harbor I climbed onto the quay via a net and dribbled calmly to T1. My swim time was 22 minutes.

Transition 1

I dribbled calmly to T1. I found my bike, but no Boy yet. Also no bag with my cycling clothes. Boy had missed me at the water exit. Apart from a few swear words, I was pretty calm about it and I could also laugh about it. Meanwhile, the live broadcast on Instagram had also gotten wind of it. Another support we I got to know told me that Boy was still watching the swim, so I hurried back to the swim exit and ran into a startled Boy. Together we ran back to T1. My daughter Quin followed us on Instagram at home, and surprised to see us in the picture, she recorded the clip in question:

Boy helped me out of my wetsuit and I dressed warmly for cycling. Boy's support was great anyway and I am very grateful to him for that. Later in the day he would make another crucial contribution to the finish. However, this story is too good not to include in this blog. Excuse me Boy! After 15:20 minutes I left T1.

On the Bike

I started the bike course in light rain and with the wind at my back. I divided the course into three parts:

Part 1: Chacabuco - Coyhaique (T1+ approx 75km)

This largely flat part was covered in the rain and with wind (West Wind Drift) at the back.

It ran along the Rio Simpson in a narrow valley with steep slopes and a few waterfalls along the way. The mist-like clouds hung against the slopes so that the tops were hardly visible. It had something mystical about it. Despite the fact that I hadn't had a coffee before the race and I hadn't drunk much water just before the start, I had to stop no less than 4 times to pee. I didn't take in that much water while swimming, did I? Because of this I overtook some athletes several times. On the other hand, the lesser swimmers and faster cyclists overtook me again. So was William, a Chilean I had met in our hotel. We agreed that Boy would wait for me a few times and that before the climb at Coyhaique we would change the water bottles, stock up and I would possibly take off some clothes. This time it went perfectly (and the rest of the day too). With fresh drinks, new gels and banana, but without taking off any clothes, I started a moderately steep and cobbled climb just before Coyhaique. Again a little smaller here to be economical.

Patagonman is a so-called non-drafting event, so you may not use the lee of a predecessor. On a climb you can continue to cycle side by side. And each athlete wears a back number with the first name and flag of the country of origin. So, on the climb I had a chat with Becky (GB), who asked if her rear tire looked flat. With Eric (USA) who first overtook me, but soon fell back. And Cian (IRE).

Part 2: Coyhaique - Exit Cerro Castillo (T1+ ca 120)

From Coyhaique the route heads south. This section runs along the Carretera Austral and is slightly busier in terms of traffic. It is a steadily ascending and undulating course where the wind is still largely with it, but also often comes viciously from the right side. The rain has given way to the sun, but the wind is still chilly. Characteristic of this part are the beautiful views over the Valle Simpson with the white peaks of the Andes rising above everything to my right. At 90 km there was a measuring point with a cut-off of 6 hours. I got that one. In addition, there was care from the organization and because of the enthusiasm of the declarants I accidentally accepted a bottle of Gatorade. It was a clunky bottle and I had my own drink from 4Gold. In short, I skillfully pushed the Gatorade into the hands of the first support I encountered. At the closing ceremony a day later I recognized the man and we had a chat and had a good laugh about it. His name was Phil Ranly, he was from Indianapolis and he was the support of a good friend. He thanked me for the Gatorade that had tasted good to him.

The field of participants had already spread far apart, so that there was hardly any overtaking. I did see the same support vehicles passing by and standing along the side. They could be recognized by a large sticker on the front and rear windshield with the number of the caretaker athlete. Boy waited for me a few times to check if everything was okay. I didn't need anything and mostly cycled on without stopping.

Part 3: National Parc Cerro Castillo (T2)

The last 60 km of the bike course went west and led through the mountains of the National Parc Cerro Castillo. There were two climbs to about 1000 and 1100 m altitude with gradients of up to 10%. There was a short descent between the climbs. I had already explored this part of the route a week ago. So I knew that in addition to climbing, the wind would also be a strong opponent. And that was it! In addition, especially the first climb had a bad surface with many holes and cracks and it often looked more like a gravel road. A section of 500m was not paved at all and very rough. I had agreed with Boy that he would wait shortly after this section in case I had a puncture. On the climbs I encountered some cyclists again and I managed to overtake a few. I also met an Italian who had been cycling through South America since June and had a chat with him. You saw that many people started to get it hard. The descent was very chilly and occasionally there were strong gusts of wind. On the final climb I caught up with Jason who was also in the hotel with me and we cycled up together. After the last summit, a beautiful descent followed on a snake-like winding route. Because of the wind and a wet road surface here and there I didn't take any risks. And with every meter down I also warmed up nicely. I had drunk and eaten well and still felt pretty good. My cycling time: 7:25 am.

Transition 2

The transition in Villa Cerro Castillo went much smoother than T1. Boy had laid everything out neatly and it was nice and warm, we sat in the sun for a while. Because there was still a strong wind, I decided to put on my windbreaker under the trail vest, which was filled with drinks, food and dry socks. I dribbled calmly to the time registration, and the marathon had started. My time in T2 was 9:23 minutes.

The Marathon

In October and November I had been unable to do long runs due to a calf injury. So I started the run somewhat apprehensive. The plan was therefore to make a smooth transition from cycling to running and to walk the steep parts. It was told in the race briefing that the route would be marked and if you paid attention you would be fine. To be on the safe side, I had put the GPX on my Polar so I could navigate. I also cut the marathon into 3 parts, the first part contained the most long steep climbs, the second part was a kind of plateau with a wavy profile and the last part was descending and flat to the finish.

Part 1: T2+12km

The first steep climb was already at 1 km. Then I saw Jason going down the wrong road in front of me, but I couldn't reach him. At the next fork a young lady was giving directions. She didn't speak English and I tried to explain to her that Jason had gone wrong. She didn't understand me so I decided to move on. After a few km another young lady was pointing the direction. She didn't speak English either, but now she managed to get the message across. Later it would appear that Jason had walked an extra 5 km, although he had already turned around but had been picked up by the organization and put back on the right track.

Between 6 and 11 km came the first long steep climb. I climbed a steep wall over a sandy goat path, regularly checking my watch to make sure I was still on the right track. While walking in a dry and rocky landscape myself, I could see, mostly on my left, the mountain range of the Cerro Castillo.

I saw the beautiful vistas that captivated me in 2019 when I first heard about Patagonman. And now I walked there myself, bizarre! I took a few pictures and saw that my battery was empty. Unfortunately, these were the only pictures I could take during the marathon. Twice I came across a herd of goats rushing towards me, which stopped in terror when they saw me in their path. They looked at me with stretched necks. I decided to just keep running and see what happened. The first herd then decided to go around me through the bottom, the second through the top. I could pass most mountain streams dry, but not all. It was known that I would get wet feet, so I brought dry socks. In the end I didn't need them and just ran the shoes dry. At the 10 km point there was a small post with water that I gratefully used.

Part 2: T2+30km

Based on the profile in komoot I expected this part to be easier as there were less elevation gain to overcome. However, it was disappointing and very debilitating. It was uphill and downhill, there was no end to it. The goat path had meanwhile been replaced by a fairly wide gravel / gravel road with many coarse stones. The surroundings and nature were beautiful and provided the necessary distraction and motivation. Consciously I looked around from time to time and tried to take in the surroundings. Too bad my iPhone's battery was dead. At one point Cian caught up with me, who I had also been chatting with on the bike. He accompanied me for a while and we talked. He was able to keep a little more pace uphill though and I told him I'd see him at the finish. At the 20km point there was another water station, where I replenished my supplies. My focus was now on the 30km point, where Boy would be waiting for me and accompany me to the finish. By now I had a kind of rhythm with a piece of running and then a short walk, and I also walked on the steeper parts. I had also trained for it the last few weeks and knew that I could cover an average of 7 km per hour, which should be more than enough to finish within the cutoff. The walking actually went well, but it seemed as if I only had small amounts of energy and my muscles had recharged a bit after a short walk. From km 28 the descents started to get a bit longer and the landscape with views changed into a narrow gorge, worn out by a river. Also very impressive and spectacular. Unfortunately no photos on this piece.

Part 3: to the finish

After a steep descent I saw orange vests between the trees, which filled me with joy. The fact that I would soon meet Boy and that I had already come this far motivated me a lot. I still had enough margin for the cutoff. Yes, it was hard and I must confess that I sometimes thought that this was too ambitious for me. While on the other hand I kept faith that I could finish. When I arrived at Boy I drank some water. I accidentally stocked up with carbonated water before the race because it is exactly the other way around in Chile than with us: a blue cap is with carbonation, and a red one without. Not ideal, but otherwise it didn't bother me.

We made our way to Puerto Ibáñes, which would be another 13km. By now it was raining again and we had a strong and cold wind at our back. From here it would be mostly downhill and eventually flat. However, the surface remained quite coarse and I increasingly felt the stones sticking through my sole. I looked more and more at my polar counting down after the finish. It now went km by km. We passed a large waterfall 5 km from the finish and shot a few more pictures.

The landscape opened up more and more. And then we turned onto X-65, a long 2km straight to the finish.

The bell!

Along the way I had known a few moments of supreme happiness and euphoria. Towards the finish I was probably too tired for that. Now all I longed for was the bell. Boy took some distance so he could photograph me. And I rang the bell a few times. Yes, I did it!! The Marathon went in: 6:24 hours and the total Patagonman went in 14 hours and 37 minutes.