THE setting could scarcely be more breathtaking. On Saturday morning, a couple of hours north of Barcelona in the shadow of the Pyrenees, over 2500 runners will make their way through the mountain range as they attempt to be crowned champion of the Salomon Ultra Pirineu and Salomon Pirineu Marathon.

The task in front of the runners is daunting, to say the least. The marathon is a 28 mile endurance run through the stunning surrounds of the Cadi Moixero Natural Park, climbing to an altitude of 2400m, while the ultra-marathon is an epic 68 mile test, with the athletes climbing to 6800m. It is safe to say, it is not a challenge for the faint hearted.

The races are the last of the season in the Skyrunner series, with the previous leg having taken place in Glencoe last weekend. While Glencoe was one of the most technically challenging races in the series, this weekend’s race in the Pyrenees is an entirely different test, with the treacherous terrain and altitude adding another layer of difficulty for the runners.

Glasgow-based Tom Owens is one of the most promising prospects in the marathon race, and having skipped the marathon and ultra-marathon in Glencoe last weekend in order to be in as good as shape as possible. “It’s always a bit of an unknown in terms of how your legs will feel when you begin a marathon but my preparation has been good and I’m feeling optimistic,” the 36 year-old Salomon team member said.

“You can’t make targets in terms of positions because you don’t know what other people are going to do but it was won in 4 hours last year and if I was having a good run, I could be around there. Sometimes you feel great from the first minute but other days, it doesn’t feel so great at the start but it can turn around so you need to be ready to have bad patches. There’s such big climbs in this race that no one is going to feel brilliant but you just need to remember that everyone else is hurting just as much and you know you will come out of the other side of it.”

This is Owens’ first visit to this race and having never raced in the Pyrenees before, he admits that there is a hint of apprehension mixed with his pre-race excitement. “I definitely feel nervous having not run on the trails before but I’ve looked at the profile and spoken to people so I have a bit of an idea of what to expect in the race,” he said. “The unknown element is very appealing though, I’ve done a lot of the races on the circuit and so to do something new is very exciting.”

Greg Vollet, Team Manager of the Salomon International Trail Running Team, knows all too well how tough these races are for the athletes and he has seen countless runners ‘blow up’ before they reach the finish line. “The most important thing is to have good race management,” the Frenchman said. “There are fast parts, hiking parts and very technical parts so it is vital for the runners to

manage their energy to make sure they are fresh as they approach the finish. And the altitude makes it very tough – once you get to about 2000m, you begin to really feel it. The best advice I’d give is to not start too fast. You need to make sure that you go at a pace on the climb that when you reach the top, you are fresh and are able to smash it on the downhill. The line between not pushing hard enough and pushing too hard is blurred though, and this is the balance the runners must strike.”

The landscape in the Pyrenees is stunning but for Vollet, it is not as spectacular as last weekend in Glencoe. “It was amazing in Glencoe – that is some of the most amazing scenery I have ever seen and that’s my favourite race,” he said “All of the races have their own charms though and here in the Pyrenees, it will be different compared to Glencoe but equally fantastic. It’s great that we are all here, creating these incredible memories. All the teams run together, eat together and live together so we are not competing against each other, we are competing with each other.”

All eyes will be on the superstar of trail running, Kilian Jornet. The 29 year-old is from this region in Spain and went to school only a few miles from the route. The multiple world champion is something of a hero to the local people, with thousands expected to line the roads to show their support to the Spaniard as he sets off on one of the toughest challenges in the running calendar.