New Course Record for Kristina Madsen at the Desert Ultra
01 December 2022
5 Stages in 5 days to cover 250km through the Namib Desert with daytime temperatures between 35 – 55 degrees Celsius and sleeping in tents at night by 5 – 10 degrees. That is definitely a challenge! For Kristina Madsen, SCOTT Running Ambassador, it was already the second time participating in this race.
After fantastic first two stages, 50km each through sand, low scrub and thornbushes, Kristina was in the overall lead and far ahead of the Female course record.
On day three a marathon had to be covered with the first 15km going through a riverbed with soft sand. Kristina had a really hard time as she started to feel sick and had to battle through it the whole day. On her Instagram, she wrote at the end: “It has been a crazy adventure and I have to admit that racing while being sick is the hardest thing I’ve ever done. But what are your options?”
Day 4 is called a “rest day” with a half marathon uphill again on soft sand starting at midday, the hottest possible time. Thankfully, Kristina had recovered a bit an felt better than the day before, finishing in 2 hrs 42 mins in third place.
The 5th and final day brought on the longest and most remote course for Kristina. Thanks to an early start of the race and a mostly cloudy day, the desert was merciful on the runners. Kristina finished second on the day which means a second place overall. She was the first woman to finish and broke the female course record by almost two hours (31hrs 05min 40sec)
What a story! Stay tuned for the documentary of her journey training and racing in the heat on sandy grounds. But until then, Kristina will race the Ice Ultra in Swedish Lapland in February next year.
