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Page 1 of 4 Berghaus Yak Attack 2008 GETTING TO THE START 6 hours, 2 Dhal bhats and a whole lot of winding and rough roads later, all the competitors arrived in Besi Sahar for this years Yak Attack. For one night the Mongolian Hotel is home to a formidable array of local and international runners and mountain bikers, all vying to be the fastest around the famous Annapurna circuit. Amongst the local athletes are two Mt Everest summiters, an Everest Marathon winner, two that have had top placings in the 22 day 1000km Himal stage race and Nepals top female rider. Bizarely 3 of the 4 UK participants reside in Shropshire, whilst the remaing UK runner has lived in Nepal for the last 2 years working for the INF. The race briefing included a talk about the dangers of altitude sickness and getting on the wrong side of the many ponies that frequent the trail, "One kick from them and you could end up 300m down the mountain" were the reassuring words from race coordinator Mr Chhimi Gurung. Each participant was then given a race "goody bag" which included warm clothing from Berghaus, energy bars from Torq, lip balm and sunscreen from Fluidforce and, for the colder times, hand and feet warmers and emergency heat pads from Heatmax UK. Talk then turned to tactics, who would win this year and whether the bikers would be quicker than the runners, with less snow on the trail than last year and the fact that the trail has been improved from Jomsom downwards. With £1000 in prize money and no Hari Rokaya this year, it looks like it's going to be a very closely contested race, with the outcome possibly not being decided until the last day. The race starts tomorrow, 8th March at 9am and, with a rolling 20km stage into Bahundanda, the safe money has to be with the bikers. Matt Hart has vowed to give it his all as he believes the lower altitude stages will be his best chance of a top placing. Find out if he's right tomorrow... Day 1 Besi Sahar to Bahundanda / 20km / 798m to 1295m / Total Ascent 1050m
After a prolonged opening ceremony, conducted by Lamjung District Office and accompanied by a local band, the Berghaus Yak Attack 2008 got under way.
True to his word, Matt Hart, riding for Torq Fitness, went off hard from the start. By the halfway stage he had built up a formidable lead over the next athlete, but unfortunately he missed a turn onto a suspension bridge and went 2km off course. By the time he had retraced the trail he had lost his lead but still came in a very respectable 12th in just over 2 hours. Philip Morris, celebrating his 34th birthday, kept the British flag flying by finishing in joint first place with Phudorjee Lama Sherpa (Peregrine and First Ascent), in 1 hour and 38 mins which, in the hot conditions encountered today, was extremely impressive. Phil, a regular London marathoner, recently came 10th in the Pokhara marathon and seems to be on top form. The first mtb'er over the line was Dipendra Bajracharya in 1 hour 41 minutes, followed very closely by Kaji Sherpa. The only female rider Nirjala Tamrakar (Fluidforce) unfotunately had a collision with a pedestrian on the way out of Besi Sahar which scuppered her chances of a top placing. Luckily she avoided any major injuries and will be able to continue tomorrow. Its also looking like being a runners day tomorrow as, although the trail starts with a 500m descent, it's then a gruelling 6km 1000m climb. RESULTS FROM DAY 1
1st Philip Morris (runner) 1:38:40 1st Phudorjee Lama Sherpa (runner)1:38:40 3rd Dipendra Bajracharya (biker) 1:41:54 Day 2 Bahundanda to Taal / 17km / 1295m - 1677m / Total ascent 801m Although this was a relatively short day, it was a tough one for all the competitors, but especially the mountain bikers. With only 15% of the trail rideable, this meant the bikes had to be carried for approx 6 miles. Huge boulders, land slides and numerous pony trains didn't make the going any easier, so it was no surprise when the top 7 places were filled by runners. Phudorjee Lama Sherpa (Peregrine adventures + First Ascent UK) continued to show why he is becoming Nepals top long distace off road runner, proclaiming, after coming in in 1:58:52, that this event is really too short for him!! The birthday cake that was given to Philip Morris yesterday, must have worked wonders. The UK runner finished just 5 mins behind Phudorjee, with Sonam Gel Sherpa 3 seconds off his tail. Yangdi Lama Sherpa was the first female runner back to Taal in 2:35:00 which was 36 minutes in front of the first mountain bikers to arrive, Pasang and Kaji Sherpa. Matt Hart of Torqfitness put up a valiant effort to nail the very technical downhill start but spectacularily stacked it on a particularily steep set of rocky steps (video footage to follow!!). However he recovered enough from this scare to finish 6th biker and still in with a chance of a top placing coming into Manang. Todays results - 1 Phudorjee Lama Sherpa(peregrine + First Adventure) (r) 1:58:52 2 Philip Morris (r) 2:03:42 3 Sonam Gel Sherpa (r) 2:03:45 Overall Standing - 1 Phudorjee Lama Sherpa(r) (Peregrine + First Ascent UK) 3:37:32 2 Philip Morris (r) 3:42:22 3 Sonam Gel Sherpa (r) 3:50:00 (first biker Kaji Sherpa - 4:54:06, Pasang Sherpa (Torqfitness) 5:04:11 Day 3 Taal to Chame / 22km / 1677m to 2691m A 1014m gain in overall altitude awaited the participants of Yak Attack on Day 3. The trail followed the banks of the Marshangdi river as it left Taal, a route that would be virtually impossible in the wet season, and then climbed rapidly up to and past Danaqu. Due to the rapid rise in altitude, the advantage was once again with the runners and, as on the previous days, the lead was fought out between Peregrines Phudorjee and Uk runner Philip Morris. The latter part of the course was much more suited to biking and Kaji Sherpa and Chandra Chhetri worked hard to try and catch the elite front runners but all to no avail as Phudorjee arrived in Chame some 31 mins ahead of the closest rider. Again Philip Morris put in a great effort and stuck with Phudorjee for most of the race, but stopping to to up his water cost him valuable time and he finished exactly 1 minute later. Yangdi Sherpa (Darrin Crosby Builders) was once again the fastest female runner finishing in 3:10:48. Nirjala Tamrakar (Fluidforce) the only female rider found the going tough during the carry sections but did well to finish in 5 hours and 1 minute. UK rider Matt Hart (Torq) finished midway down the order. “Carrying my bike on my shoulder, past trains of donkeys loaded with bags, is not something Im used to, and needs working on!! But at least I got to ride my bike today, which is always a bonus” said the former elite rider. Results for Day 3 1. Phudorjee Lama Sherpa( Peregrine +First Ascent) 2:22:14 2 Philip Morris 2:23:14 3 Dipak Raj Rai (HeatmaxUK) 2:30:00 Day 4 Chame to Manang / 28km / 3540m It had to happen sometime and today was the day. Young Kathmandu rider Ajay Pandit, riding for Creative Mapping, stormed to an emphatic victory and secured a first stage win for the bikers. The 42kg, 19 year old bike mechanic excelled over the severe climbs and finished 12 minutes ahead of the ever consistent Kaji Sherpa, with Diprendra Bajracharya making it 1,2,3 for the cyclists. With todays stage being 75% rideable, Matt Hart was able to give his cycling legs an airing and rode a strong stage to come in in 4th place. "When riding on the middle ring, I was able to hold my own or even gain on the front riders, but once the granny ring was engaged the lighter, less areobically challenged Nepalese riders left me in a cloud of dust" mused the 35 year old fitness coach from Westbury, Shropshire. Phudorjee Lama Sherpa (Peregrine Adventures and First Ascent UK) arrived in Manang looking fresh after the 28km stage. This was the first stage that the 19yr old runner had not finished first but he still has a commanding lead over any of the riders, with 1 more uphill stage to come. Dipak Raj Rai(HeatmaxUK) and Sonam Gel Sherpa were the next 2 runners to arrive in the remote mountain village, with the altitude slowing UK runner Philip Morris a little but who never the less fin ished only 16 mins behind his rival Phudorjee. Yangdi Sherpa (Darrin Crosby Builders) continued her great form to be the first female runner back for the 4th consecutive day. "Today I found this quite easy", said Yangdi after completing the stage in 4hrs 5 mins and having climbed over 1000m!! Results for Day 4 1 Ajay Pandit (Biker) (Creative Mapping) 2:07:30 2 Kaji Sherpa (Biker) 2:19:06 3 Diprendra Bajracharya 2:22:14 At the halfway stage Phudorjee Lama Sherpa is over 2 hours quicker than the record time set by Hari Rokaya last year and it appears inevitable that the 24hour limit for the entire circuit will be shattered in 2008 Day 5 - Manang to Thorong Phedi / 18km / 4450m After a rest day in Manang the destination for day 5 was Thorong Phedi situated at 4450m. The majority of the Yak Attack contingent spent the morning of the rest day climbing upto a glacial view point to aid acclimatization, and then attending a talk on altitude sickness in the afternoon by the HRA. Alarmingly during the talk a helicopter arrived in Manang to evacuate a trekker who had gained the unenviable title of first AMS victim of the season. The evening was spent watching "Into Thin Air" which did nothing to quell anybodies fears about the ensuing altitude. Day 5 was down as 75% rideable but with a steep climb out of Manang the runners were bound to get an early lead. Although the going may have been tough, with diminishing oxygen levels as the competitors climbed, the scenery was breath taking and the trails were the best riding so far, with miles of singletrack along the mountain side. By the halfway point Phudorjee (Peregrine Adventures+ First Ascent) had built up a lead but was tailed closely by Dipak Raj Rai (HeatmaxUK). Stage 4 winner Ajay Pandit (Creative Mapping) was not far behind the leaders and he was being shadowed by top biker Kaji Sherpa. Matt Hart(Torq Fitness) seemingly unaffected by the altitude came storming through, riding all the climbs to eventually finish 6th overall and 3rd biker on the day. Philip Morris didn’t fare as well as previous days, finishing 10th overall but managed to hold onto his 2nd overall placing. Lakpa Diki Sherpa(HeatmaxUK) upset the ladies form to beat YAngdi Sherpa(Darrin Crosby Builders) to the finish line by 2 secs.. A tough day follows tomorrow, with a 1000m climb over 3km followed by a 2700m descent Results for Day 5 - Phudorjee Lama Sherpa (Peregrine Adventures+ First Ascent) 1:47:52(runner)
- Dipak Raj Rai (HeatmaxUK) 1:49:49 (runner)
- Kaji Sherpa 2:03:12 (biker)
- Ajay Pandit (Creative Mapping) 2:03:12 (biker)
The tough gets tougher Day 6 – Thorong Phedi to Jomsom / 32km / 4450m-5416m-2700m When the Yak Attack posse arrived in Phedi, the skies were blue, the trail up to the pass was clear and everyone was looking forward to the ensuing 1000m climb. 5 pm and it started snowing, and it snowed, and it snowed all night. When the competitors awoke at 3.30am for a 5am start, it was still snowing and there were 8 inches of snow covering the trail. With the route no longer visible it was up to the front runners to forge a way through the soft snow. A team of runners, comprising of Phudorjee (Peregrine+First Ascent), Philip Morris, Dipak Raj Rai (HeatmaxUK) and Sonam Gel Sherpa took it in turns to break trail to the top of the pass but still summitted in an incredible time of 2.5hours. Kaji and Pasang Sherpa also put in a hurculean effort to arrive on the pass shortly after the runners. For the rest of the athletes it was a story of toil as they climbed 1000m in 3km into an ever thinning atmosphere. As an indication of the severity of the climb, it took Nirjala Tamrakar (Fluidforce) and Rubeen Shakya 7.5 hours to summit, eventually arriving in Jomsom some 14.5 hours after leaving Phedi. The descent that should have favoured the mtb'ers was again not to be as the weather had dumped more snow on the other side of the pass, making for a treacherous, slippery 1700m descent into Muktinath. The the trails were clear from then down, for the 1000m descent into Jomsom but runner Phudorjee Lama Sherpa(Peregrine +First Ascent) managed to hold keep his time loss down to 20mins as Kaji Sherpa arrived first into Jomsom, setting up an exciting final 2 days. UK rider Matt Hart (Torq), more used to riding than carrying his bike, suffered in the snow on the pass - "The 4 hours up to the top of the pass were physically the hardest thing I have ever done. I lost lots of time today but I don’t care, Im just happy to be alive!". Matt evenyually finished in just over 4 hours. The conditions today certainly sorted the the contenders from the rest of the field with approx 9 hours between first and last place, never the less this does not detract from the monumental achievement each and every athlete attained in completing this tough stage. A special thanks must go to the event sponsors. The jackets and warm clothing supplied by Berghaus ensured that both competitors and porters were kept warm and dry during the blizzard conditions. The Tosti Toes and hand warmers supplid by HeatmaxUK eliminated any possibility of frostbite that was occurrent during the 2007 event, and competitors set out with the peace of mind that each carried an emergency HeatmaxUK heat blanket, although thankfully nobody needed to activate theirs. The sunscreen and lip protection donated by Fluidforce protected all the competitors from the glaring sun once the clouds had cleared, warding off sunburn even with the suns strength being 72% greater than at sea level. RESULTS - Kaji Sherpa 5:16:31 (biker)
- Phudorjee Lama Sherpa(Peregrine+first Ascent) 5:35:05 (runner)
- Pasang Sherpa(Torq) 5:42:43 (biker)
Hip Hip Hooray for the UK!! Day 7 Jomsom to Tatopani / 54km / 2700m to 1190m An air of expectancy and trepidation hung over the start line in Jomsom. With 54km of rideable downhill, dropping 1600m, the top bikers were hoping to take a big chunk of time out of the runners. On the other hand the runners were not relishing running a marathon and a quarter, off road in ever increasing temperatures. Leaving Jomsom on rocky jeep tracks, it wasn’t long before the the mtb'ers had built a formidable lead , but disaster struck Kaji Sherpa in the form of a puncture. Matt Hart (Torq Ltd), seemingly recovered from yesterdays ordeal, and putting his Kona Hei Hei to work, took the lead but had a battle on his hands with Ajay Pandit (Creative Mapping). It was nip and tuck all the way but in the final few kms Matt managed to shake off Ajay and secured a 2nd stage win for the Brits. Kaji came in 7 minutes later and waited with baited breath for the race leader, Phudorjee (Peregrine+First Ascent) to arrive. There were a number of permutations but basically the top 2 mtb'ers needed to gain approx 1.5 hours on the top 2 runners to take 1st and 3rd place, going into the final day. To everybodies amazement and disbelief however, Phudorjee came sprinting into Tatopani only 1 hour after the first bikers, followed shortly after by UK runner Philip Morris, both completing the 54km stage in a little over 3.5 hours. This sets up a tense and exciting final stage into Beni, with only 18 mins separating 1st and 2nd and 28 minutes separating 3rd and 4th. Results for day 7 Matt Hart (Torq) 2:24:16 (biker) Ajay Pandit (Creative Mapping) 2:25:45 (biker) Thagendra Gurung 2:31:46
ITS ALL DOWNHILL
Day 8 Tatopani to Beni / 22km / 1190m - 800m
After a soak in the hot springs at Tatopani, the competiors were ready to tackle the final stage of the Berghaus Yak Attack 2008.
Ahead of them lay 22km of downhill trails, (a relatively easy day after the previous stages!!).
It was always going to be hard to stop the bikers from taking this stage, even if you are Phudorjee Lama Sherpa or Philip Morris!!
Matt Hart (Torq) set out hard to try and take 2 consecutive stages and had built a 30 second lead when the mountain gods stopped him in his tracks with a puncture.
Ajay Pandit (Creative Mapping) took the helm and never looked back, screaming into Beni in 55 minutes.
Having fixed his puncture Matt fought his way back through the field with some daredevil riding only to be thwarted a kilometre from the finish with another puncture.
The top placed mtb'er, Kaji Sherpa, came home in under the hour, making it virtually impossible for the race leader, runner Phudorjee Lama Sherpa (Peregrine adventures+First Ascent) to retain his lead.
As it was, the first runner back was Philip Morris, pushing himself to the max to keep a top 3 place and much to Pasang Sherpa's (Torq) dissapointment he managed it, coming in only 30 mins after his third place rival; an incredible performance.
Nirjala Tamrakar chose the last day to take her first stage win for the ladies, completing the 22km course in 1:47 but it wasn't enough to get first place in the ladies category. That title went to Yangdi Sherpa who finished todays stage in 2:30:15.
So after 200km it came down to the final 20 to decide the King of the mountains title and after a hard fought battle, the mountain bikers came out on top in 2008 in the shape of Kaji Sherpa.
FINAL RESULT - Kaji Sherpa BIKER 20:52:43
- Phudorjee Lama Sherpa RUNNER 21:08:34 (Peregrine Adventures and First Ascent UK)
- Philip Morris RUNNER 22:06:22
- Pasang Sherpa BIKER 22:15:29 (Torq Fitness)
- Jangbu Sherpa BIKER 23:01:53
- Ang Gelu Sherpa BIKER 23:08:27
- Sonam Gel Sherpa RUNNER 23:20:43
- Chandra Bahadur BIKER 24:41:49 (Newport Complimentary Health Clinic + WalklikeKungFU.com)
- Matt Hart BIKER 24:49:45 (Torq Fitness)
- Dipak Raj Rai RUNNER 25:16:40 (HeatmaxUK)
- Ajay Pandit Chhetri BIKER 25:22:52 (Creative Mapping)
- Thagendra Gurung BIKER 25:30:43
- Dipendra Bajracharya BIKER 25:31:39
- Dawa Sherpa BIKER 28:42:19
- Sonam Gurung BIKER 30:47:21
- Rubeen Shakya BIKER 39:37:50
LADIES Yangdi Sherpa RUNNER 29:23:55 (Darren Crosby Builders) Lakpa Diki Sherpa RUNNER 33:08:37 (HeatmaxUK) SIta Rimal RUNNER 37:04:05 Nirjala Tamrakar BIKER 41:22:39 (Fluidforce)
RACE SUMMARY
They say good things come to those that wait and that was certainly true for the Berghaus Yak Attack Champion 2008, Kaji Sherpa.
For 7 days he trailed top runners Phudorjee Lama Sherpa and Philip Morris and by the halfway point it appeared that the title would again be going to the runners.
With fresh snow covering the trail up to and over the formidable Thorong La pass, Kaji had to produce an incredible performance to keep with the runners. Carrying an extra 12+kg he arrived at the summit only minutes later than the race leaders.
After crossing the pass the advantage definately shifted to the bikers, with 2700m of descent to negotiate. Although the first part of the descent was snow covered, Kaji slowly started to claw back time from the runners.
Ever the competitor, Phudorjee could foresee his lead slipping away and both he and Philip Morris put in a phenomenal run over 54km from Jomsom to keep the race alive.
By then, however, Kaji had cut the lead down to a mere 18 minutes, with a final stage of 22km of downhill jeeptrack to come.
Even an athlete of Phudorjee's calibre could not match the speed of the bikes on this rapid descent and so it was that Kaji Sherpa came over the finish line at Beni, 36 minutes before Phudorjee on the day and 16 minutes quicker overall, to be crowned Yak Attack 2008 King of the mountains!
Stage winner on the toughest day and ever consistent Kaji never lost sight of the lead. His self belief kept him going when the task ahead appeared impossible and his tenacity sets a great example for all. This understated and quiet champion is indeed a worthy recipient of the Yak Attack winners trophy, 500 pounds prize money + 150 pounds for shattering the 24 hour record, and is an excellent role model for all aspiring athletes.
Sympathy is not something Phudorjee would want, but it is hard not to offer it. In the lead from day 1 when he crossed the finish line equal first with UK runner Philip Morris, until the penultimate day when he defied belief by covering 54km of rocky trail in just 3.5 hours, it for so long looked like the title would be his.
Had it not been for the newly formed jeep track joining Tatopnai and Beni, making the stage for the bikers over and hour quicker than the previous year, he may well have held on to his lead, but that is the nature of this challenge, ever changing and unpredictable.
As in Kaji, Phudorjee is also an exemplary role model for budding athletes and a credit to his sponsors, Peregrine Adventures and First Ascent UK. He is always full of energy and fun, confident but not arrogant and most impressively, gracious in defeat.
Living proof that staying with the high altitude athletes is not impossible is UK runner Philip Morris. He did battle with Phudorjee on a daily basis, even matching his pace over the 5416m Thorong La pass. On the final day, with only 38 minutes seperating him and 4th placed biker Pasang Sherpa, Phil pushed himself to the limit coming into Beni the first runner and limiting the time difference between him and and Pasang to 27 minutes, securing 3rd place overall.
Pasang did well to hide his dissapointment also having given his all in a bid for 3rd (the same place as he aceived last year), but he vowed to return next year and will always be a greatly and warmly welcomed Yak Attack contender.
The ladies category was not such a close affair with high altitude runner Yangdi Sherpa (Pasangs sister) finishing over 3.5 hours ahead of her closest rival Lakpa Diki Sherpa. Young track athlete, Sita Rimal showed grit and determination to complete her first long distance high altitude race, putting in an excellent performance on the last day to get a first stage victory.
Nirjala Tamrakar, the only female mtber was also competing in her first high altitude race. At times, and especially when crossing the snow covered pass, Nirjala found the going very tough, but with the support of her friend Rubeen Shakya, never once did she consider quitting.
Rolling into Beni, 41 cumulative hours after leaving Besi Sahar, Nirjala can hold her head high in the knowledge that she is the first Nepali female mountain biker to ride the entire Annapurna circuit and to ever compete in Yak Attack.
Credit has to go to all the athletes involved, this is one of the worlds most extreme events and just to complete it is an incredible acheivment. To mention but a few .... At 19 years old, Ajay Pandit showed maturity, skill and fitness beyond his years to take 2 stage wins. Matt Hart, the sole UK rider, overcame his exhaustion of an 8.5 hour day crossing the pass to storm to a stage victory the very next day and Sonam Gurung, at an age of 55, completed the circuit for an amazing 14th time.
The mountains also claimed a few victims. Unfortunately UK runner Edward Kewis had to retire on day 2 due to a recurrent viral infection and a knee injury (we wish him a speedy recovery). Ang Babu was lucky not to be seriously injured during a rock fall but was not so lucky when it destroyed his bike frame and ended his race on day 6. Other casualties were not as important but indicate the severity of the harsh environment through which this event travels. During the 10 days 1 lap top, a camera, an ipod, several articles of clothing and a rear wheel also bit the dust.
Finally a special thanks must go to all our volunteers and sponsors without whom this event would not be possible.
To .... Kate Hobson of Creative Mapping for working so hard behind the scenes updating the race reports on a daily basis (and more so for allowing me to jet off and take part in this crazy event!) Mr Chhimi Gurung, the main man, Dawn till Dusk MTBing and Trekking, Mr Sanjeev, Nepal Cycling Association, Mukhiya (Snowmonkey), Rataman Gurung (the best dancer in Nepal!) Prokash (junior Snowmonkey), Subha (time keeper extrordinaire), ACAP, Nepal Tourist Board, Berghaus(main sponsors), TorqFitness, Mr Anil Piya of I4 Technologies, FluidForce, HeatmaxUK, Creative Mapping, Mesuca Sports, Peregrine Adventures, First Ascent UK, Darrin Crosby Builders, Newport Complementary Health Clinic, WalklikeKungFu.com Samsung, Attash.com, Mandala Graphics and finally to all the generous individuals that cared enough to privately sponsor a local athlete and making this event so successful.
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