Nov 3, 2024

Favorite Runs - Baikal Ice Marathon

Location:	Irkutsk, Russian Federation
Description:	Baikal Ice Marathon is a marathon run entirely on the frozen water surface of Lake Baikal - the world's deepest, largest and oldest freshwater.This extraordinary event takes place in one of the most beautiful places of Lake Baikal, and is based in the small town of Listvyanka,65 km south of Irkutsk ( a major stop-over on the Trans-Siberian route). The surface of the frozen lake Baikal is covered in fields of hummocks, small hills of ice rubble. Beneath the ice surface, geothermic springs and seismic activity cause localized melting that sometimes may weaken the ice to form holes ( though the average ice on Lake Baikal in this part is over 1 meter and a half which allows trucks and vehicles up to 10 ton in weight to drive on the ice). The race Ice Captain and his team of volunteers and the Baikal Ice Marathon support team have the task of plotting a safe course. To get well prepared for the laying of the ice course about a month and half before the Baikal Marathon the organizers of the Baikal Ice Marathon study satellite photos of the ice surface of Baikal to see how the lake freezes the current winter in order to locate possible stable ice cracks that sometimes can be up to 8 km long. A week before the Marathon we go on and lay preliminary Marathon course. The final course ( 42 km 195 m or 26 miles) is laid immediately preceding the race, otherwise movements in the ice can render the support teams effort redundant. The course for the race of Baikal Marathon is also checked by the Emergency and Rescue Committee staff before being approved as safe to drive the vans and run on the ice. On the Baikal Ice Marathon race day itself, competitors are ferried by vans from Listvyanka to Tankhoy train station, located on the opposite shore of Lake Baikal. Prior to the start of the race, competitors some years are required to partake in the precautionary ritual of vodka sprinkling, in order to pacify the spirits of the Great Baikal ( introducing the novel element of starting a marathon with a shot of vodkaThe course is predominantly flat, but the surface is hard at times and uneven. Although its mostly covered in a soft layer f snow, therere areas of highly polished ice that create conditions similar to an ice-rink. Wind can add to the already bitingly cold temperature and provide serious resitance to progress across Lake Baikal. Though, often the weather is sunny and with no chill factor one can even get some sun tan. The utterly featureless landscape gives little or no sense of perspective to competitors. The finish line at the port of Listvyanka can be seen almost from the start line. It is a long, and lonely ( if not to count the mobile 5 to 6feed and drink stands) 42,2 km trail across the baren white landscape, where progress is marked only by checkpoints positioned at 5 km intervals. Baikal Ice Marathon was included into 24 most impressive foot races of the world by Kym McConnell in his "Extreme Running". It's regarded as ussia's most exotic Marathon. The record of the course is 2 hours 58 minutes belongs to a Rssian runner Yury Slastennikov ( 2008). Next Baikal Ice Marathon ( the 7-th) will be held on March,06,2011. The record of the Baikal Ice Marathon
Alexei Nikiforov