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The 10 Toughest Endurance Challenges in the World??
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24-09-2009 2:46pm#1
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Enduro - Yep it was a typo - which we changed immediately!! (it was a long article, so apologies about that
Glad to hear it was only a typo!!
As mentioned at the top of the article, the list is live and for fun and we're completely open to everyones suggestions!
Its stimulated some good debate anyway. I was actually thinking about this in the intervening time since my last post.
One thing it struck me as a good guideline for accepting something onto the list is that it shouldn't be something that too many people have managed. So Channel swims, self powered, trans oceanic crossings, PQ, etc all good, as the numbers who have managed these things are probably in the hundreds. It would rule out things like climbing a lot of the 7 peaks (I still think 8000s are a far far far more challenging group, to say the least, and if you want to include Everest then throw in without oxygen), and completing an IM.
Richard Donovan himself will tell you that the 7 marathons in 7 continents in 7 days is mainly an exercise in logistics and planning, rather than a pure endurance challenge. After all, 24 hour races usually involve the equivalent of running 5 marathons sequentially to be competitive internationally, and 48 hour running races get closer to 10 back to back marathons. Much more challenging from an edurance point of view (But easier logistically). The ultimate in endurance running is running around the world, which only a few athletes have done / are doing.
As for replacing the Ironman. Maybe the Deca-Ironman, if you want to keep it in the triathalon world. Plenty of other candidates otherwise.0 -
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Glad to hear it was only a typo!!
As for replacing the Ironman. Maybe the Deca-Ironman, if you want to keep it in the triathalon world. Plenty of other candidates otherwise.
Interesting thread.
Yes Deca Ironman seems the pinnacle of sporting endurance and maybe should be in there.
But the following ultramarathons need mentions:
The Badwater Ultramarathon in July of each year
Known as "the world's toughest foot race,"
Covers 135 miles starting from Death Valley to Mt Whitney with temp well into the mid 50C's.
Any of you that read Ultramarathon man will know Dean Karnazes mentions in his book that he had to run on the road continuous white line as otherwise his runners melted:eek:
The Western States 100miler ultra marathon ,
Runners climb something like 18000 feet and descend 23000 feet on mountain trails in this 100 miler. Extreme heat and coldness are experienced during the course of the race.0 -
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Like Enduro, I've done Primal Quest and Kilimanjaro.
Climbing Kilimanjaro is not an endurance challenge - it's a tourist attraction. They should change #6 to all peaks and move it up the charts
PQ is tough, no doubt and probably in the right place, although can't imagine it being harder than sailing around the world solo.
TdF would certainly be up there, but as was mentioned it's not someone anyone can enter so I can understand why it's not mentioned. #3 attempts to make up for it I guess ...0 -
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Rightio, Working from the many good suggestions on this thread - two changes have been made to the Big 10 list!
1)Ironman is now out and replaced by the much, much tougher Deca -Ironman (great suggestion)
2)Also the 7 summits are being replaced with "summiting one or more 8,000m+ peak" - a challenge which definitely qualifies over the general 7 summit entry (another great suggestion).(The bottled or not bottled oxygen debate will be mentioned)
There is no doubt that the TDF is one of the Toughest endurance challenges out there, but the spirit of the list is that the events listed should be aspirational events which an individual would not necessarily have to be a member of a commercial team to take part in. (even in a team event like Primal Quest, most people front their own entry fee to be part of a team and it's a life goal to compete.)
As there are several ultra running races which might fall into the same category as the Mds, we think it might be more appropriate to group several of the toughest together which are on a par. Any suggestions as to the front runners? (excuse the pun) Siuggestions include: Mds - The Gobi March - Badwater Ultra - The 663 Extreme Ultra Marathon 0 -
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EnduranceSource wrote: »(even in a team event like Primal Quest, most people front their own entry fee to be part of a team and it's a life goal to compete.)
Bazman and myself can confirm that one for you!EnduranceSource wrote: »As there are several ultra running races which might fall into the same category as the Mds, we think it might be more appropriate to group several of the toughest together which are on a par. Any suggestions as to the front runners? (excuse the pun) Siuggestions include: Mds - The Gobi March - Badwater Ultra - The 663 Extreme Ultra Marathon
Personally speaking, I think that staged races are a lot easier than non-stop races, so I'd never put MdS on the list for that reason. As I said earlier, something like the Ultra Tour de Mont Blanc would be a candidate for me. A historical classic would be the Bob Graham round, even though its less of a pure ultra and more of a long distance fell run. Toss in the Antartic 100km you want an ultra distance in extreme conditions. The Jungle marathon is another one I'd think carefully about before undertaking due to the extreme toughness of the conditions.
The Self-Trancendence 3100 mile race is the longest regularly organised race, AFAIK. A race with a record winning time of over 42 days surely should be on the list!0 -
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Actually PQ isn't a stage race. Its not stop start to finish. Don't know where you got that idea! Where, when, and how much to sleep is entirely up to the teams themselves, and is a crucial part of race strategy.
I am not debating its toughness, but you choose when and where you sleep, you constantly change disciplines some requiring a high degree of skill but afford the body and mind a break from the tedium of a monotonous single activity. And you do it as part of a team which means you have support both mentally and physically which is the aspect that I like (abstractly) about AR. While the AR team have to decide which Cp's to hunt for and which to forget and navigate a true course, there are usually four heads to work it out. Try and decide which snack to have when your tired and on your own and mentally low is a huge issue which would be made easier by someone telling me to just shut up and eat in a team event. (maybe you just run to fast to understand how us slow coaches suffer)
This is just apples and oranges to me. Week long stage races like the Gobi, jungle, desert, snow compared with PQ and the old Eco. Both round fruit and roughly the same size. Both belong in the same category to me. (or same part of the supermarket of endurance sport.
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Race Around Ireland done solo.
When I put the Race around Ireland on my Irish list I meant solo in my head, it just never reached the keyboard! Sounds like its right up there with the toughest cycle challenges, if the opinions of the international racers are true.I am not debating its toughness, but you choose when and where you sleep, you constantly change disciplines some requiring a high degree of skill but afford the body and mind a break from the tedium of a monotonous single activity. And you do it as part of a team which means you have support both mentally and physically which is the aspect that I like (abstractly) about AR. While the AR team have to decide which Cp's to hunt for and which to forget and navigate a true course, there are usually four heads to work it out. Try and decide which snack to have when your tired and on your own and mentally low is a huge issue which would be made easier by someone telling me to just shut up and eat in a team event. (maybe you just run to fast to understand how us slow coaches suffer )
Agree that changing disciplines is easier than doing the same thing non stop, but in a nine day race like PQ you can still be undertaking a single discipline for days at a time. Its one of the things that makes PQ particularly tough.
Different disciplines have different levels of monotony and stresspoints to them too. For instance, my mental and physical state after doing a 24hour MTB race was completely different to my post 24hour run states. In PQ you get to experience all of them (probably)
The team aspect can go both ways! I've seen plenty of teams blow apart. Sleeping and eating timing becomes a compromise between all team members. Going solo, you get complete controll of all those things for yourself. A team will never function optimally if everyone isn't working on moving the team, as opposed to themselves, at optimal speed. Also, the poor navigator never gets any mental downtime, unless there is a second navigator on the team. 4 heads working on the same thing in an exhausted state is as likely to lead to stress and arguments (and occasional terminal splits) as harmonious perfection!
In PQ you don't really have to decide which CPs to get, if you want to be competitive. You quite simply have to get everything. This year only the orienteering sections had optional controls (with time penalties). Everything else was mandatory. Miss one, and you were out of the main race.
You are absolutely correct about one of the benifits of team events being that teammates should look after each other, when it comes to things like nutrition , hydration etc.This is just apples and oranges to me. Week long stage races like the Gobi, jungle, desert, snow compared with PQ and the old Eco. Both round fruit and roughly the same size. Both belong in the same category to me. (or same part of the supermarket of endurance sport. )
Definitely disagree with that, from my own experience. Having done multi-day staged ARs and multi-day non-stop ARs there is a world of difference between the two (even though the disciplines are the same). The staged races are much easier to take on, as there is plenty of built in sleep/food/recovery time. Relatively luxurious compared to the non-stop races. There is a much bigger mental challenge to the non-stop races. Speedier athletes tend to prefer the staged races, as they are basically a sequence of (relative) sprints, whereas the sloggers prefer the non-stop races. Plenty of people are good a both.0
But all in I wouldnt rank it as that tough either. 
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