What a crazy year! 5 ultras, a road marathon, becoming an active part of the running community and just a rollercoaster of an experience. I ran a total of 3019 km in 2023, with 48.805 m elevation gain, which took 313 hours, plus of course all the cross-training, stretching and procrastination before and after runs. Here is a brief look back at the season, mostly through the lens of races.
Black Hole
Distance: 107 km (allegedly)
Time: 13:41:14
Place: 41st overall, 35th male
I’m really glad I ran this race, for many reasons. First of all, it is a unique format and it will not be repeated. I volunteered at the inaugural 2022 race, then ran the second (and final) year. The format is simple: you are not allowed any gear – no watch, no phone, no poles, no vest, no maps, nothing. Just a bottle and a raincoat in your waistbelt. You also have no idea where, how far and how long you will go. Just start running and follow the course markings. The finish is somewhere between 55 and 120 km away.
Maybe three kilometers into the race I started chatting with a guy, Peti and we hit it off so well that we ran the whole thing together, cracking lame puns for nearly 14 hours. Camaraderie through shared suffering at its best! Peti is a really funny guy and we supported each other all the way to the finish line. It’s great to have a friend to run these with, especially when you have no clue how far the finish is. I’ve done a 100+ km race last year, but the sparse nutrition and many unknowns made it quite the challenge. I’m really sad the race won’t be returning next year.
Mátrabérc
Distance: 54 km
Time: 07:52:46
Place: 87th overall, 4th age group
Maybe my favorite route in Hungary! This is where it all started – Mátrabérc was the first ultra I ran in 2020 and this ended up being my 4th finish here. It is a brutal route, with almost 3000 meters of elevation gain in it, but it also is maybe the most scenic, with amazing views along the spine of the Mátra range. In previous years, I did this race around 8:45, but this year I slashed that down to a 7:52. Not bad! Not very competitive either though…
Ultrabalaton Relay
Ultrabalaton is a mega race that is a lot of people’s first running event. For those of you who don’t know, it is a 210 km loop around Lake Balaton, with more than 20.000 participants in relay teams and a few hardcore people who do it solo. This year, I joined a family and friends team to run it. As a running event, it was not very challenging for me, I didn’t push the pace or do crazy distances as I was already tapering for UTH. But I had fun, enjoyed the camaraderie and seeing people pushing themselves beyond what they previously thought they could do, like my uncle Atti running a half marathon distance (broken into two sections). Here are some more photos:
UTH Szentlászló Trail
Distance: 84 km
Time: 11:30:54
Place: 25th overall, 15th male
Ultra-Trail Hungary is the biggest trail running event of Hungary and I was running the 84k race for the second time, while my sister Zsófi was competing in the 111k. This race is also a big favorite and this year I got to share most of the kilometers with my friend, Yahya. Beautiful sunrise, great views and huge climbs of course. But the big highlight of this event is the finish. It’s in the center of Szentendre, with a ton of people there, cheering you on. Even better, after I finished I got to see Zsófi come in 4th in the 111k!
Summer
Between May and September, I took a break from racing. UB Trail was the main event for the year and I wanted a very consistent training block leading up to it. That didn’t fully happen due to other big life changes, but the summer was a solid build nevertheless. It also had a great adventure: hiking through the Svaneti Mountains in Georgia.
Edelény Marathon
Distance: 42.2 km
Time: 3:25:35
Place: 8th
Disclaimer: I am NOT a road runner, nor do I intend to become one. But I knew UB Trail was coming up and being a fast course, doing something fast before it could be great preparation. So Yahya and I jumped in the car and drove to the other end of the country to this cute little road marathon event. I wasn’t feeling very fast, so I did what any “reasonable” runner would do – substitute training with technology, buying carbon plated shoes!
The event itself was a wild ride. Yahya had to retire about halfway due to health issues, but I could hold a pretty good pace until about 30 km in, where I just hit a wall. It was a hot day and people were really fading. In trail running the variety of speed and terrain comes naturally, while here you just have to consistently keep a fast pace. I was really suffering by the end and after dragging myself over the finish line in 3:25:35, I just collapsed on the grass. I’m proud of the time, but I know that with better prep, I could go much faster than that. But also, I’d rather run a trail 50K any day over a road marathon!
Ultrabalaton Trail
Distance: 115 km
Time: 12:02:26
Place: 1st overall!!!
Ultrabalaton Trail was a breakthrough race this year and I’ve already written about it in more detail HERE. But here is a recap! I set out with an ambitious plan of going sub-12 hours, which I thought would put me into 5-6th place. The shock came at 36 kilometers, where my parents and Zsófi greeted me excitedly: “Marci, you are in 2nd place!” What the hell? I didn’t realize I was that far ahead. By 51.5 km I was tied for first. Around 75 km I took off and soloed to the finish, winning a race for the first time in my life! I crossed the line in 12:02:26. I still can’t believe it, what a crazy adventure!
Tortúra65
My plan was to end the season after the Ultrabalaton Trail 115k, but some friends of mine invited me to join one last event in December. Our little group is called Hannibál Hegyisport SE, a sports club mainly focusing on climbing, mountaineering and skimo. This was just a few days after my birthday in December, and we joined a lovely 65km grassroots hiking/running event called Tortúra65 (translated, it means “torture” or an extremely strenuous experience), held in the Bükk range in the eastern part of Hungary. This time of the year the weather is usually harsh, cold, windy, with either snow conditions or crazy mud.
Well, we got lucky. After a crazy week of snow the previous week, the conditions were actually perfect. A beautifully sunny day all day, with snow on the higher elevation sections, but barely any mud later. We left before sunrise and made our way along the route. We went as a team, although a few people eventually opted for different distances and paces. For me finishing this event in just under 10 hours was perfect – no rush, not too much strain, just chatting with friends, while enjoying the Bükk, which is a place I rarely spend time in. I’m also really proud of the others, especially Olivér and Lukács who ran longer than they ever have before. We ended the day with a huge dinner, then a few beers sitting in an outdoor spa!
Events & Community
It wouldn’t be a complete recap without talking about the awesome groups I joined. I may have found it late in the year, but it has become very important for me – Runity! A great running group that meets every Wednesday for group runs and workouts, as well as some socializing. The organizers, Vivi and Gabi are absolutely lovely and the participants are great, ranging from recreational runners to hardcore racers, so we have a nice mix of people running at different paces.
The original running group I joined in January (that is now unfortunately less active) is the Expat Trail Run group. One morning I was headed out for a run and sitting on the metro, I saw a guy sitting in identical orange Altra trail shoes as me – those are not very common in Hungary, so we quickly bonded over being Altra fanboys. That’s how I met Gordon, who is an amazing massage therapist, but also the organizer of the expat run group. I joined the group run right away and I came back to many more throughout the year. This is where I met Yahya too, who I raced with 2x this year.
Conclusion
I don’t have much else to say at this point – it’s been an epic year and I can’t wait to train and race even harder next year. Maybe even compete a bit more, but also give back more to the community that I love so much!