SAFA Skysailor Magazine

18 SKY SAILOR September | October 2022 It was a brutal race, from 42 athletes at the start line, 10 did not finish. No bad accidents, no reserves thrown, but a ridiculous amount of hiking and very demanding conditions made some of the fittest and best athletes pull out, either physically or emotionally incapable to continue. I congratulate all athletes made it to the end of the race, either to the raft in Port de la Selva or still chasing a competitor in front, fighting to jump one more place in the ranking, no matter if it was 3rd or 30th position. You’re all heroes. The prizegiving was fun and chilled, with fancy food and wild stories. Every team trav- elled a unique, mind-blowing journey, which is hard to comprehend unless you’ve been there. We had a good debrief, especially with Ross, he was a great supporter and we both learned a lot during this race. My team was a dream team. People often don’t understand the dif- ference between a smaller race or a beast like X-Pyr or X-Alps. The latter are long, meaning everybody gets tired and hits their default mode. It’s easy to roll for three days on adren- aline and enthusiasm, you don’t even need to sleep or eat much. However, after a few days, when mistakes accumulate, fatigue and sleep depravation builds and the monotony of long, intense days hits hard, then you can’t cheat it any more, all the narratives are ripped off, and everyone is their real self. Ross, Chris and Jesse rocked all the way through! My X-Pyr Relaxing at the coast All photos: Courtesy Kinga