Sidas World –
IN THE SHOES OF THE UTMB RUNNERS
It is essential to prepare your feet, because they are the ones that are in contact with the ground and that will carry you to the finish line. The key is anticipation…”.
Sitting at the supplies table in Courmayeur, at km 75, this amateur runner seems to have understood everything: yes, to complete this mythical loop of 170 km and 11,000 m of positive altitude difference around Mont Blanc, you have to take care of the fundamental tool of the ultra-trailer runner, his feet! The fact that 16% of participants give up because of blisters, black nails or other foot problems linked to poor preparation, confirms this.
Through this video report in immersion with the podiatry teams of the organization, amateur runners and our elite athletes, discover what happens in the shoes of the finishers of the UTMB and best prepare, with their advice and their testimonials, your next ultra-trail!
IN IMMERSION WITH THE ORGANIZATION’S PODIATRIST TEAMS, AMATEUR RUNNERS AND OUR ELITE ATHLETES!
For more than 50 years, we at Sidas have had a mission: to take care of the feet of athletes. Today, we are putting this historical know-how at the service of the UTMB runners, through our products, our advice and our partnership with the world’s leading trail runner. Why do we do this? Because the foot is the fundamental tool of the ultra-trailer runner and comfort is the key to pleasure and performance.
Thus, we took advantage of this edition 2021 to enter the backstage of this great sport’s mess, by going on the ground, closer to those who make this event what it is:
- – We followed our elite athletes, Thibaut Baronian (Team Salomon, 3rd) and Baptiste Chassagne (Team Matryx, 9th) on the CCC, in their discovery of the ultra-trail format, in order to know how they prepared their feet for such a baptism?
- – We exchanged with amateur runners who had made this UTMB a life project. Everywhere on the course, from Chamonix to Courmayeur via Champex, we interviewed them, to get their feedback, testimonies and advice.
- – And finally, we accompanied the podiatrist teams of the organization in the backstage of the queen race, the UTMB, inside these famous bases where the dream continues to be written for some and stops abruptly for others. Where blisters can often be healed, but sometimes prove to be prohibitive. Where black nails and other foot problems can be managed, most of the time, but unfortunately lead to abandonment in certain situations.
IN THIS REPORT, WE HAVE TALKED ABOUT…
Tips to prepare your feet for an ultra-trail race…
- – How to do a tanning with lemon juice and moisturizer during the week before the event?
- – How to choose the most suitable socks?
- – Why banish new equipment?
- – How to prepare your feet with anti-friction cream a few hours before the start?
- – And other tips that we will let you discover…
Testimonials from elite athletes and amateur runners…
who have sometimes made their dreams come true thanks to optimal foot care. And unfortunate stories of dreams dashed by a blister that gets infected, overheating that seizes the arch of the foot as soon as the first descent or a black nail that appears at km 40.
Solemn moments with the organization’s podiatrist teams…
who conceded to us that they were facing less and less abandonment situations due to a better education and anticipation of the runners.
Rare images, shocking images, immersed in the backstage of the queen race…
Backstage, where the cameras venture very rarely.
