“The South West Ultra” will not take place. A 202 km foot race over two days and one night, the first of its kind in the Dordogne, which was to bring together around twenty experienced runners in this extreme discipline on Saturday July 16 and cover three departments from Pomport, in Bergeracois. In the middle of a heat episode, the organization of such a race raised questions. But it was not the heat wave that got the better of the event. Its organizer did not declare it in the rules with the authorities, who informed him on the eve of the departure that he was liable to a fine if it took place.
The 202 km road course was to cross the Dordogne, Lot-et-Garonne and Gironde. In all, 22 enthusiasts, mostly regulars at these extreme races were enrolled, with an average age of 56. The departure was scheduled from Pomport at seven o’clock in the morning on Saturday, for an arrival on Sunday evening. Most, from all over France, had planned to arrive in Dordogne on Friday evening to prepare for departure.
A home visit by the police
But according to the law, timed or bib races are subject to a obligation to declare to the prefecture two months before the event. What was not done, according to the prefecture. The gendarmes went to the organizer’s home on Friday morning to notify him. The heat wave and the potential danger for organisms is perhaps not for nothing in the severity of the authorities.
The organizer, a Périgourdin accustomed to this type of race, had planned 20 liters of refueling water per rider. He assures that all of his participants are seasoned runners capable of running in the heat, citing similar races held in deserts in the United States. If he decided all the same to organize his “Ultra”the organizer incurs in addition to the fine a cancellation of the French Federation of Athletics.