http://www.theomm.com/event-series/omm
Probably more appropriate for our orienteering page; I guess I just like you guys better.
OMM is the most famous mountain marathon in the world, originating in the 1960s under a different name. If you asked them, they'd likely say that adventure racing arose from this event so this is a good place to post. Reading about this event inspired me to do two mountain marathons in Sweden (BAMM) and Scotland (LAMM) - but not OMM yet. (Mostly because I've been steered toward smaller MMs, e.g. only 1500 people!)
In a mountain marathon, a team of two locates a series of controls on Day 1 - not too many, e.g. maybe 8 controls in 35 km. The finish of Day 1 is a group camp somewhere on the race course, often away from roads without facilities. Participants with different course lengths all finish at the same place. I think OMM has 4500 competitors so it's a *big* group camp. Then the next day racers have a different race map starting at the group camp and they find more controls as they head to the finish line.
One of the challenges is figuring out lightweight camping equipment - tent, sleeping bag, stove, food, extra clothing - some of which is mandatory. We met competitors whose packs only weighed 4-5 kg. We were among the few teams who carried water. If you look at U.K. outdoor gear websites, you can find some amazing stuff, e.g. sleeping pads that you stick children's balloons in.
Navigation in mountain terrain can be beautiful, rugged and difficult. In both our MMs, we encountered fog so thick that some racers climbed the wrong mountain to find CPs (luckily not us). You need to think about things like cliffs, loose rock and ice.
Bottom line: These are great events for adventure racers!
I did some of these in the Alps when we lived in Switzerland, and they were a ton of fun. We nearly won a MM on the French side, in fact. The catch for me, coming from long course adventure racing, was that there is ALL THIS DOWN TIME from about 5 PM on the first day until 7 AM the next morning (when mountain marathoners enjoy their "mid-camp"). It was very social, which is fine, but I kept thinking to myself how I'd rather go straight through and be done by sunrise the next morning. Then I wouldn't have to bring the tent etc all around, too! Just a change in perspective, I guess.
I wish there were some of these in North America, besides being something fun to do I think it would serve as a bridge to "real" multi-day adventure racing.
Agreed, I'd love to have some of these in North America. Stopping at a mid-camp is an interesting and different challenge. For me, it made the race more difficult than a 24-hour non-stop event although people who dislike night racing would say the opposite. Gear selection played a huge role and we had to move faster during the two stages than we would in a non-stop race. In AR, a top racer might go through the night wearing only ziploc bags on his hands for warmth (I've seen it) but if you're going to sit still for 14+ hours at a chilly mountain campsite and race well the next day, you have to carry some actual gear in your pack. And for us gear geeks, it is cool to see how clever some of this stuff is! E.g. 'Bent made our stove out of pieces of a Heineken can, following online instructions.
In both cases, we were tourists in a foreign country so it was fun to chat people up at the mid-camp. Nobody had anything much to do so it was a great time to share stories. I brought an iPod Shuffle as a luxury item and saw others who did the same.
The one crucial piece of gear we didn't think to bring to our first MM: plastic bags for our feet to protect our dry socks from our wet shoes at the mid-camp. At LAMM, these were in the swag bag with sponsor logos printed on them since they are considered essential gear.
OMM, or formerly known as KIMM or Karrimor will feature greatly in my article for Breathe Magazine out in the next week or so (The Adventure Running Bucket List). There has been huge discussion on Nopesport.com (the UK Orienteering bulletin board) this last week in the lead up to this race. The top teams usually pair a strong fell runner with a strong orienteer. I don't think you will find a higher quality field in an endurance navigation race than OMM. It really is the gold standard.
The MM format is what I used to create the Salomon Dontgetlost.ca Adventure Running Series though without the overnight and we have relaxed our gear list from the get go. I personally think the MM format would be a much better (and safer) race format than the Rogaine though a night time start might make it more exciting. If done properly you could create a 'woodstock' atmosphere at the mandatory camp area. If all I had to do was set the courses I'd organize this type of race in a heartbeat on Ontario's Cdn. Shield.
OMM is still on my bucket list but I'll need new knees to survive the Scottish Highlands.
I don't think you will find a higher quality field in an endurance navigation race than OMM.
When I've told fellow adventure racers about MMs, they sometimes think the competitors aren't hard core because they stop for the night. However, only a small percentage of North American adventure racers could complete the elite course of a top mountain marathon within the time limit. (Alas, I am not in that small percentage.)
If anyone is curious to see what a mountain marathon looks like, here are race reports with pics from the MMs 'Bent and I did.
2010 Lowe Alpine Mountain Marathon (Glen Fyne, Scotland)
2009 Bjorkliden Alpine Mountain Marathon (Arctic Sweden)
Most North American adventure racers and orienteers likely can't even run at the pace the top OMM racers run AND navigate.
Stop for the night in late October in Scotland with wet clothes, minimal extra clothing, lightweight sleeping bag and pseudo tent. Heck, I'd rather keep racing thru the night. ;-)
One of this year's pre-race favourites is OJ and RobB that are both here on Attackpoint.
Heck, I'd rather keep racing thru the night. ;-)
That's the point - it would be easier to do that. But adventure racers and orienteers like a challenge!
The social camp is not so common at the Omm as it gets dark early and haveing nice weather is not a very common occurance either so you end up spending your time in the tent untill you realise you have over rehydrated and have to go out. The fun then is getting back to the right tent... There are also often multiple camps at the Omm, most will be fairly sivalised but the Elite has been knowen to be well up the hill in a tusocky bog and not too pleasant for the night plus an extra hour as the clock go back this weekend in the UK.
I have not raced MM's since 2006 as my ankles are knackered but must of done about 50+ in the years leading up to then. The Omm (Kimm) was always the big target for the end of the season.
I'd forgotten there was a problem with the photo quality from my original LAMM report. If anyone looked at it and was disappointed, the pictures are prettier now.
I did the OMM Elite in 2008 which was the only one on record to have been cancelled because the weather was so bad and the media was told by an irresponsible person that the mountains would be like a morgue!
If you think that Adventure Racers are OTT on lightweight gear, you should see OMM Competitors! They are absolutely crazy. For example some competitors will ditch the foam mat/Thermarest/Balloon Bed for a few strategically placed bits of padding on their contact points when sleeping e.g. hips & shoulders.
The other great event in the British calendar is the Polaris which is effectively the same as the OMM but on a MTB.
Stop giving my tricks away....
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