Winter Hill Runner Antonio Codina put in a good display in the Eiger 250 after teaming up with a friend who shares his passion and love for the long, brutal races, Anthony Stevens. As the name suggests, the race covers 250km and (depending on the route) about 18,000m of elevation. Some years the route has changed depending on the weather and this year was no different.
Large storms battered the region just a few days before the race and some of the trails were affected by rockfall, so the route had to be modified. The race started at 8am with about 150 runners, and just a few of their friends and support teams watching. There were two consecutive climbs that took competitors above 2,600m - steep at times but a chance to enjoy the beautiful landscape of snow-capped mountains.
Once they reached higher altitude, Stevens was struggling with his breathing, recovering from a cold. They just had to take it a bit easy, or they risked not finishing. The first night section took the duo high over the snow-covered Lochenpass, the snow only interrupted by large blocks of rocks, making progress slow.
The Jeizinen to Belalp route had to be changed due to rockfall, and the pair were skirting the mountains at about 1,000m high. It was so hot and steep the pair were exhausted, but the locals in Finnen were ready to take runners out of their misery with their cowbells, accordion music , lots of cold drinks and raclette cheese. The Belalp to Bellwald route started at about 2,000m, and the duo h.