Tour du Mont Blanc Begins!

The Tour du Mont Blanc is a 158k circumambulation of the Mont Blanc Massif. The event moves through France, Italy, and Switzerland via a total elevation gain of 28,000 feet and various villages and mountain passes. Most folks hike/backpack the circuit over a period of 7+ days. Our aim in this race is to cover the distance in less than 45 hours.

The race organization will provide ~30 aid stations/checkpoints along the way including 2 drop bag locations where we can pick up personal food or other needed items. We can not have crew or pacers and we're required to carry a small list of mandatory gear including; rain gear, space blanket, whistle, Band-Aids, 2 headlamps, spare batteries, passport, food, money and more.

The race starts in a few hours, at 7:00 pm here in Chamonix and I'm starting to get that familiar/gut reality check prior to a long event - the check is that I have to be moving forward for a day and two nights constantly. Eeeeeek.

My goals are; to work off all the excellent rich French food and wine I've been eating, complete the course so I can experience the entire route visually, take lots of pictures to save those visuals, complete the route with body and mind as intact as possible (this can have many interpretations) and, to finish in time to hobble on wasted legs and feet to the bus station for the start of my trip back to the States.

Wish me a short day...

Back at you post race.
Terri