In shorts and a flocked t-shirt “marathon”, Obviously, Xavier Darrieutort is making his last strides in the Bois de Boulogne. This 45-year-old Parisian is taking part in the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB) on Friday August 26, mythical race of 170 kilometers and 10,000 vertical meters positive. France Bleu Paris met him before he left for Chamonix.
“This is the home stretch, now you need to rest, eat well and hydrate well to be in good shape on D-Day”, explains Xavier with a smile. No training makes this banker back down, father of three young childrento be well prepared: “You need at least 5 outings a week, between 10-12 and 25-30 kilometres. I sometimes run to the office, from Auteuil to Bercy, round trip it’s about 22 kilometers so it’s not bad. And then there is always a long outing at the weekend, preferably with a drop.”
– Mary Maheux
This makes 6 months that he trains at this rate, for his 3rd UTMB. A passion that follows him for more than 10 years : “I started trail running in 2012 with the Diagonale des Fous in Reunion and I haven’t stopped. For us especially, Parisians who have a somewhat standardized life, being in the mountains, especially at night, left to our own devices , it’s still incredible. It’s a real moment of freedom that I particularly cherish.”
A third UTBM on the clock
And if the Parisian returns for the third time on Mont-Blancit’s primarily for breathtaking landscapes, but not only: “It’s a pretty incredible popular fervor, worthy of the Tour de France. You have an atmosphere of madness. The start is something that really gives you chills and after you cross villages that are full of people, everything the world is cheering you on, it’s great.”
Notice to amateurs, to train, Xavier has used Ile-de-France heritagenotably by going for a run in the forest of Meudon, in the Parc de Saint-Cloud or even in the Bois de Boulogne.