This is the fourth article in a four part series documenting the 2008 Ski Mountaineering Season from the perspective of Lyndsay Meyer and Nina Silitch.
2008 Ski Mountaineering Season Recap – Part 1
2008 Ski Mountaineering Season Recap – Part 2: World Championships
2008 Ski Mountaineering Season Recap – Part 3: Pierra Menta
We decided last minute to throw another race into the schedule before our grand finale, the Patrouilles des Glaciers (PDG). Nina and I had planned to do a small local race in Chamonix, but it was canceled due to dangerous snow conditions. It was now April and the snow was wet and heavy, and the course was on a Southern exposure ripe for avalanche. Instead, we traveled to Italy to Valsavarenche to do the Tour du Gran Paradis! We love racing in Italy, the food is good, the crowds excited, and the prizes are awesome. This race was held bi-annually and the course would travel close to the summit of the Gran Paradiso, one of Europe's eighty-two four thousand meter peaks and the highest peak entirely within Italy.
It was a beautiful but cool morning as we prepared our gear. We would travel on glacier for part of the course and need to be roped and travel on a fixed line while crossing a huge crevasse that had opened near the summit route. The course would allow us to acclimatize to higher altitudes, and race with Tara, our third teammate for the PDG. Tara was racing with another woman, but it would still be beneficial to be able to see us all in action. Nina had been sick the past few weeks, so we decided to take it very easy while enjoying the beautiful day and tour while building confidence and stamina. The profile of first climb was roughly 7200 feet and comprised most of the vertical, with the second a short 500 feet — basically straight up, and straight down.
The first half hour of the race was on foot through forest, followed by some technical skinning through underbrush. Soon we came out onto the expanse of the glacier and roped up. Passing carefully over the crevasse with the help of a wooden bridge the guides had fixed into place, we clipped into a safety line and started up a steep bootpack. Skis on again, we could feel the elevation as we climbed the last few hundred meters. Taking a quick drink, we took in the stunning views of all the peaks surrounding us, marveling at how these races have allowed us to see and experience different parts of the Alps. The first descent was very steep, but covered with a few inches of new snow and it skied like a foot. To ski from almost the summit of 4000 meter peak on a cloudless day is something I will not soon forget. The second climb was quick and easy, but the last descent challenging with melted snow, gaps of dirt, and the last kilometer just flat skating to the finish, ouch! We finished satisfied with 5th place, our teammate Tara finished a strong 4th. We had achieved our goals and now felt confident for the final challenge of the season, The Patrouilles des Glaciers.
The time had finally come, Nina, Tara, and myself packed up our bags and traveled to Zermatt to race the PDG, the famous bi-annual ski mountaineering race steeped in history and tradition. The race is done in teams of three (three or more is considered safer for glacial travel) and run entirely by the Swiss Army. Zermatt was full of soldiers in fatigues directing clueless racers from different countries. We had begun the application process last October, a three part process ending in the final decision being sent via email December 22, in time for Christmas. The race consists of two courses following the Haute Route, the B course, a shorter course from Arolla to Zermatt (1881 meters and 25k) and the A course, the mac-daddy from Zermatt to Verbier (4000 meters and 53k). No expense is spared, the race is allowed a budget of about 3 million Swiss Francs.
The Patrouille was started in 1943 during World War II as an event held to boost moral and test skills among the men in the Swiss army. The first running had only 18 participants compared to close to four thousand this year. In 1949 three racers disappeared in a crevasse to be recovered dead eight days later. The race was halted until it was reinstated with great effort in 1984 with huge security measures in place. Fifteen hundred soldiers are employed during the event, many of which choose the three weeks of preparation as part of their obligatory yearly service. As the race has become extremely popular in years past, there are now two heats. The first heat had already left on Wednesday evening under less than pleasant conditions. Snow, fog, and -25 degree Celsius wind chill. Friday, today, was the faster heat, the World Cup event. Weather was not forecast to be much better.
We entered the hall, two Americans and a Dutch. The hall was set up into stations and we moved through each one like clockwork. First they confirmed identity, then we were handed a large plastic bag with a brand new Swisscom cell phone for emergencies, a map, a GPS, and three HUGE old school military shovels complete with metal base and wooden handle. All items were mandatory and must be carried from start to finish. The shovel looked heavy, but in homage to the first soldiers and to the Swiss Army, we would all carry these tools. We tried not to laugh, and I was relieved to see they broke down into two parts.
, we were directed to one of eight tables to check boots, beacon, first aid kit, repair kit (knife and duct tape), safety blanket, goggles or sunglasses, hat, water systems, and harness. Last stop involved getting our rope checked to make certain it was the proper length. We had stretched elastic along the rope, fastening it with quick ties. This would shorten the rope so it would not drag on the ground thus be easier to ski together, but still stretch to the required ten meters when necessary. We got the Swiss thumbs up and we returned to the hotel to have some lunch before attending the race briefing.</p>
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Weather conditions were dire. The chapel was packed with people but very quiet as the commander of the race forcasted heavy snow, fog, and -35 degree Celsius wind chill. Slides showed previous photos of frozen-looking racers at the highest point, the Tete Blanche 3650m (12,000 feet). Camelbacks were deemed useless as they froze, and large mitts were a must. I just kept thinking to myself, wow, this is a long friggin' way. Outside the chapel, Zermatt guides wandered around in their traditional tweed knickers, jackets, and old leather packs. The Swiss military band played in spurts. The weather was getting colder and clouds were moving in, a level of nervous anxiety was in the air. We returned to the hotel to have our final meal before start time.
 and the control card handed out. The card must be presented at each checkpoint, clipped, and then turned in at the finish by Nina, our patrol leader. At 11:45 we headed out into the street. Town was very busy, and we were greeted by the Commandant. “Bravo les filles, courage!†he said in a serious tone. He shook each of our hands and commended us on our commitment to race the Patrouille. “Deux minutes!†The gun sounded and suddenly we were a herd of ski freaks running down Zermatt's main street, the Bahnhofstrasse, people cheering from hotel windows and bar stools.</p>
<p>The run turned to a path at the end of town. Snow started falling a few hundred meters up making the going a little slick. An hour flew by and we saw the lights of the first transition. Skis on, we started up a gradual slope, first Nina, Tara, and then me. The course was marked by glow-sticks mounted to posts. I mindlessly wondered, as we traversed the glacier, whose job it was to break and illuminate all those sticks. At 2:10 we reached glacier country near the Schonbiel hut at 2600 meters or 8500 feet. Time to rope up and we moved on. It was eerily silent with the exception of repeated questions of “ca va, you okay?†with the bad conditions, communication was essential.</p>
<p>We arrived at the top at 4:30am. While very cold, the wind had died and it was stunningly beautiful. Half the valley was covered in broken cloud and the moonlit peaks could be seen. Time to ski roped through boot high powder down the back side. One last little skin up the Col du Bertol and at 5:12am we arrived at the Cabane du Bertol. Nina led the way and we began the long descnet into Arolla in the dense fog, being mindful of tired racers and rocks that looked like shadows.</p>
<p>Arolla seemed very bright with the artificial light. Dawn would arrive soon and we could leave our headlamps. Team ATAKA! had made the time cut easily by forty-five minutes arriving at 5:45 am. We sought out our support, Warren, Nina's father, and ate quickly. Some racers were not feeling well after the climb in the challenging weather and some were bothered by altitude. Nina felt a little queasy so we took an extra minute to recover and eat. Back on course the climb was steep out of Arolla and it took some effort to get back into a rhythm and get our heartrates elevated once again. We used elastic lines to keep us all together and functioning as team — using shared momentum to keep us on track. The terrain changed and we reached the transition for the bootpack up to the Col du Reidmatten. Once on top, we had to wait in line for a slippery and rocky abseil down the other side. </p>
<p>Relieved to be at the bottom, skis off packs and back on feet, we descended down to the Paz du Chat along the Lac Dix. An 8km side hill skate/skin, my ankles turned to hamburger meat. We hit the next aid station at La Barma at 9:43am. I grabbed some chicken broth and a few oranges. A soldier handed me a second glass of broth and remarked with a bit of surprise, “Oh wow, you came from Zermatt? I just came from Arolla this morning, Zermatt is way too far, that's crazy.†</p>
<p>The last long climb up the Rosablanche was extremely hot in contrast to the early parts of the race. The sun had finally broken through the high cloud layer. Our skins slushed through the sun-baked snow. So far so good, no one had had to change skins. The last two hundred meters or so of the climb was a long boot-pack. Nina led the way setting a solid pace, making up time as we passed competitors from the shorter B course which had begun in Arolla early that morning. Upon reaching the summit we still had a short ski and one final climb to come, it seemed endless.</p>
<p>More spectators appeared on the ridge, we could see heads lining the ridges. They recognized our bibs from the A course and started cheering while ringing the ever-present cowbells giving us a push as we passed, “Allez Zermatt! Allez!†12:02pm, top of the Col de la Chaux we ripped skins for the last time and dropped into a tuck for the long twenty-five minute descent to Verbier. Reaching the end of the ski piste, we threw skis on packs and ran the last two kilometers through town. 12:30pm, we crossed the line. “Bienvenue a Verbier equipe Chamoinx-Valtourneche!†announced the emcee and we fell exhausted into a group hug. After about thirty seconds, I knew I wanted to race it all over again in 2010. Who's with me?</p>
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Nina and I are planning on racing again in Europe this upcoming season. New races await and one of our goals involves being the first all-American female team to race the great Trophee Mezzalama in Cervinia, Italy. Each year we gain confidence in this sport and love sharing the enthusiasm with new racers. We urge you to get involved, ski touring is a great exercise and an amazing way to experience the outdoors. We can only hope with our participation over here that we assist in drumming up publicity for the sport. Stay tuned, we will continue to report our activities on FasterSkier.com and my own personal blog (under construction and coming soon) Bravabella.com. Enjoy the rest of your summer and get back to us when you start having those first ski dreams in September.
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