A competitor skips down a section of single-track in the morning twilight. Photo ©Matt Maynard
THIS WEEKEND 1,400 trail runners from 13 different countries arrived in southern Chile for the third version of Valdivia Torrencial Trail. 500miles south of the capital city Santiago, this annual race is run on single-track and 4×4 roads through coastal forests and mountains. Because it is held at the heart of southern hemisphere winter, rain, mud and wild weather are to be expected. But as any Torrencial Valdivia Trail veteran will tell you, that’s all part of the challenge.
This year there were two days of racing over the sold-out weekend. Saturday saw the 11km and 18km races, as well as the first 25km leg of the ‘traversia’ journey event. On the Sunday the longer 24km, 45km and 63km races were held, as well as the second and concluding 20km leg of the ‘traversia’.
Chile is 60 per cent mountains. Six years ago there was barely a trail running race anywhere in the 2,670mile long thin country. Today you can run a different trail race nearly every weekend of the year. Events are being held along the full length of the Pan American Highway; from the scorching Atacama Desert in the north to frigid Patagonia of the far south. Organisation – like at this aid station – is usually top class at the established races. Photo ©Matt Maynard
Chilean trail races take their competitors off-road. Well off-road. The national culture around trail running has been involving with the sport, and runners throughout the country are gaining confidence in tackling increasingly technical terrain. As the hype increases, race directors are opening ever more testing trails. Photo ©Matt Maynard
Eduardo Soto was competing in the 11km race. Eduardo is no stranger to trail races. But at Torrencial Valdivia Trail 2017 he was using a new prosthetic leg. This one is especially designed for running. On the final descent to Pilolcura beach he fell several times. But he was always ready to laugh at himself. And just over three hours after the challenging mountain trail race began, he raised his crutches in celebration at the finish line. Photo ©Matt Maynard
Santiaguino trail runners train in the semi-desert cactus populated mountains surrounding their Capital city. These Andean mountains in the centre of the country offer their own breathless high-altitude challenge, characterised by rocky scrambles, rugged ridges and steep canyon descents (if you know where to look for them.) At the southern Torrencial Validivia Trail race, however, the local runners from the south definitely have an advantage as they are use to the wet and muddy conditions. Chances are this unfortunate runner is from the drier north! Photo ©Matt Maynard
Mud wasn’t the only challenge. These grazing sheep bimbled out to fresh pastures and onto the trail when the morning rain shower had passed. In arable parts of southern Chile, roast lamb is a big part of the diet. Lucky for these wooly guys though, it was craft porter beer and doughnuts being served at the finish line this year. Photo ©Matt Maynard
This pink beauty from the copihue plant is the national flower of Chile. They covered the single track descent on the 45km route. The phone in the background would be useless at the best of times in this remote signal-free terrain. But it’s still probably best to keep your pockets safely zipped when stooping to photograph wild flowers! Photo ©Matt Maynard
Latin culture is known for being warm and family centred. Two women competitors were running together at 6am when they came through the km8 checkpoint. Three hours later they were still smiling, sharing jokes and working as a team at km35. The deciduous forest scenery in the coastal mountains also helps distract the mind away from increasingly tired legs. Photo ©Matt Maynard
The runners came down out of the hills just as the cloud was lifting on day two. Some were prepared with proper rain gear for the wet weather. Others, like this runner, tackled the wilds of the Valdivian Forest region with a shapeless and undoubtedly very sweaty plastic bag! He certainly was running well though as he came wheeling and whooping down the banked and boggy mountain side. Photo ©Matt Maynard
Running tight technical trails can sometime make for slow progress. But compared to road running, the constant concentration required on your feet and immediate surroundings is much more stimulating. Trail running makes you appreciate the present moment, rather than wishing for it to be over. As time zips by, runners can often be caught with a smile on their face. Photo ©Matt Maynard
Valdivia Torrencial Trail occurred just three days after the Winter Equinox. The challenge of the race is to get outdoors when nature is not at its nicest. It’s a winter rain dance of a running race, where you have to be prepared to enjoy the conditions you are presented with. If however you can handle yourself when your socks get soggy (and maybe the odd iPhone falls in the mud) – get yourself over to the long thin country and check it out for yourself. Photo ©Matt Maynard
Check out this mega video of the race route here.
For more info see: torrencial.cl/2017/en/
About the contributor: Matt Maynard is a freelance writer and photographer based in Santiago, Chile. He is an accomplished ultramarathon runner.
Find more at Facebook https://www.facebook.com/MattMaynardFreelance/ and Instagram https://www.instagram.com/mattmaynard.portfolio/?hl=en
