Whilst in Zermatt recently I was fortunate to see the start of the mountain race between Zermatt and Verbier. This only takes place every 2 years and it's pretty tough. There were hundreds of soldiers in Zermatt to manage the start and the preparations. I was quite surprised at the large numbers of the media there, but when lots of exotic looking skis filled up the ski room in my hotel, I realised it was a pretty big event.
During the afternoon the army band officially opened the event by marching through the village.
The start on this, the first night, was outside the main railway station in the centre of the village, and the main street was fenced and roped off by nightfall.
I bagged a position along the fence near to the start and was in place to see the tape go down and a row of soldiers hold back the racers until the official count down is over. The soldiers make a run for the fence and the competitors surge forwards.
Most of them were wearing trainers, and had their ski boots fixed into their bindings on their skis, strapped onto their packs. As I walked back to the comfort of my (now) quiet hotel, I imagined that I would be having a much better nights sleep than any of the racers (who skied and climbed all night).
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