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A triathlete through and through, Mathieu Clavier had never imagined that his first ultra trail would be such a grueling experience. "With my Ironman experience, I thought I knew what I was getting into in terms of effort and suffering, but what's different about trail running is that you're 'really' alone with yourself," he confides. It has to be said that covering 105 kilometers of terrain with a positive vertical drop of 3,500 meters, even in the majestic setting of Shenandoah National Park in Virginia (USA, south of Washington), is no easy feat. However, on September 20, Mathieu Clavier rose to the challenge and completed the Grindstone by UTMB in 18 hours and 14 minutes. "A race I thought I'd achieved in 13 or 14 hours", he confides.
It was 6 a.m. when the 263 participants set off. 20km later, I'm still feeling great, nutrition and hydration are working," says the athlete. The weather is magnificent, not a cloud in sight, running in 25 degrees... Incredible. "But as he approached the 35-kilometer mark, he sensed that his "walk" through the Appalachians was likely to prove much more difficult than expected. I quickly realized that I didn't have the legs to take on the rest of the race," he says. From that point on, the only thing to do is to keep eating and hydrating regularly. When you're in the thick of it, you tend to put it to one side. "Mathieu hangs on and continues to swallow up the kilometers and vertical drops. Every metre I cover is an ordeal for my legs," he explains. I'm discovering my best friend, my poles, for both uphill and downhill runs. "As misfortune never comes alone, eight kilometers before the last feed station, the weather intervened.
The deluge, the clown and the stopwatch
The thunder and rain came down on us," recalls the triathlete. Already in discomfort with my aching legs, a deluge of rain is added..." Then comes the night. "Where you see again the way you put your feet on the ground on roots and other slippery rocks", he breathes. And time passes "dangerously". For, to complete the event, competitors have 18 hours and not a minute more. Mathieu Clavier still has 19 kilometers to go to the finish. A distance he will cover in Dantean conditions. In the blood-curdling rain, accompanied by lightning and hallucinations," he recounts. A bear, a clown, an athlete right behind me... All by the light of my miserable headlamp. "
When the clock strikes midnight, Mathieu has just one kilometer to go. I crossed the finish line drained," he recalls. Even the photographer hesitated to take my picture. "Exhausted and exhausted as ever, Mathieu Clavier nonetheless had the satisfaction of "coming out of this new experience stronger than ever". He crossed the line in 148th place (out of 263 entries, including 156 finishers), just behind US competitor Camille Bowen who, competing in the 20-24 age category, was the last to complete the event in under 18 hours (17h57m). Mathieu Clavier (40-44) was the first finisher to finish in over 18 hours. It was a proud moment for his 8-year-old son Léopaul, his wife Virginie and his employer (and sponsor), the Eden Rock, where he works as head bartender.
