The Abbots Way: 125 km and 5,500 m of elevation gain from Bobbio to Pontremoli along the Abbots’ Trail

by Marta Poretti

I realized right before I left that I wasn’t quite myself; on my way out, I noticed that I’d lost my water “pouch” for the umpteenth time. My attempt to go back and hope to find it was in vain… so I opted for the small water bottle instead.

I’M LOSING MY WAY – Still, I’m determined to do well, and physically I’m in pretty good shape.

Then came the stroke of genius—I don’t know where on earth my head was, because I’m usually very careful to follow the trail markers and get back on the path as soon as I lose sight of them. This time, though, I was fooled by some wooden arrows and trees painted red: I followed them undeterred even though I noticed the open space ahead and behind me. Darn it!

Inside, I was thinking, “I’ve left everyone behind—I’m so good! I was even looking at the ground to see if I could spot any trail shoe prints, and sure enough, there were very few—I was really among the first!” Yeah, right… so few that they left hardly any tracks, so I kept going. I reached a paved road and looked into the distance… Too far away! And no one on the horizon. “Man, these guys up front are really moving,” I started thinking.

I keep walking down the street, look back, and finally a doubt crosses my mind… “Could it be that I took the wrong turn?”

It didn’t even seem like I was going in the right direction… and I see a hill, but on the opposite side! I can’t believe it… but I know exactly where I went wrong.

RECOVERY – I retraced my steps, and by the time I got back on the race course, I’d run about 5 km in the wrong direction—with a bit of elevation gain—and lost about an hour. I ran into some competitors. “It’s so nice to see you,” I told them, only to realize then that I was practically last!

I don’t think twice about it and take off—which is exactly what you shouldn’t do in such a long race… I try to push as hard as I can; my nerves spur me on, and one after another I pass a bunch of competitors, some of whom look at me a little bewildered. I also run into lots of friends who all ask the same question: “What are you doing here?”

I’m glad to see them. They cheer me up a bit—”Come on, you can turn this around,” they tell me!

I want to believe in it, even though it’s not easy at all, but I don’t want to drop out because that’s not my style, so I’m running—the course is very runnable, but… I’ve got to keep a close eye on the markers now!

Managing to make up ground lifts my spirits a bit, even though I get a little nervous because I feel like I’m in good shape—I’m able to run well even during those last few blessed kilometers leading to the finish line, where I realize I’ve caught up to and passed hundreds of athletes!

ANGRY OR HAPPY? I’m angry at myself for that stupid mistake, but at the same time I’m happy because, once again, I didn’t give up and I believed in it until the very end. Unexpected things happen; maybe things don’t always go the way we’d like them to. We all make mistakes, but I think that if you really want something, it’s worth giving it a shot. The result might not be what you expected, but since you worked so hard for it, it might even be worth more. And next time, you’ll definitely be more careful!

AND ANYWAY, IN THE END, SHE FINISHED NINTH OVERALL AND THIRD AMONG WOMEN IN 17 HOURS, 48 MINUTES.

USED OXYBURN CLOTHING

“FortyTwo” Blue Jersey!

The legendary “Oxybuff”

The awesome “Shout” compression shorts worn under the skirt—just the right touch of femininity that never hurts! Those shorts were amazing because, in the end, my quads were safe and sound!

MY “1480 Running Track” knee-high socks—they never let me down!! Great compression without getting too hot.

…And now, see you on May 16 for the 100km della Porte di Pietra—time for a rematch!