Since I’ve started to run, I’ve encountered all kinds of races and in some years, like for example in 2019, when I wasn’t afraid I would embarrass myself, I’ve gone to more than 30 running events. I have already told you and written quite a lot about some of them, but never about this specific story, back at the beginning of the 2019 summer. At that point, on June 1st, I decided to attend the Sibiu International Marathon, which was pretty decent in the first place. It was on a Saturday, so it seemed like not enough, and then I linked this with a more unconventional race from the region. If you want to visit some landscapes in Romania, Corvin’s Castle in Hunedoara should be a priority. In the meantime, not far away, there is also Deva’s Fortress, which you can go and explore.
28 kilometers from Hunedoara to Deva
I decided to do so with both on the same day, and how I did that was to run between them. I was carried by a bus from the castle to the start of the 28-kilometer run to Deva. Apart from the castle, Hunedoara is a disgrace. It is an old industrial town with a depressing view. I was “lucky” enough to admire the landscape for a couple of kilometers after the start, until we switched to a left turn and went through a dusty road with enough vegetation to have the power to imagine myself in another place, more interesting. True, the race was a one-of-a-kind experience, especially after the 42-kilometer run the day before, but I doubt I’d do it again. In fact, I am thinking of going only to run it the other way around.
No snakes, what a relief!
Still, until then, I’d like to point out the pinakle of the 70-kilometer adventure, which meant an abrupt, very abrupt 1 kilometer climb to Deva’s Fortress, where the finish was scheduled. A massage, a well-deserved water bottle and flashes of short-term memory in which I remember every step of the just closed race. They say there are quite a lot of snakes where the finish has been settled. Fortunately, I didn’t catch the eye of anyone. I just went down carefully, to rest my feet as much as possible, and after changing my clothes, I took a minibus to Sibiu’s train station, where I would meet the train to Bucharest.
Oh, a almsgiving…
The problem, at some point, was that the minibus stopped for a break. Unfortunately, there was an almsgiving, and when there is free food, Romanians just don’t want to miss anything. Because of the issue, we were running late. I was fuming, but in the end, with everybody’s tummies full, we depart, and I arrive around 15 minutes before the scheduled hour of the train. Of course, it had some delays, but regardless, I was heading back to Bucharest.
Two good overall experiences ticked, and going back home, which is a third (I have already said that a train trip in Romania is harder than running 50 kilometers with ascent) and I needed to get ready for the effort test scheduled for the next day. Yep, I was hardly waiting to make some extra effort. I was surprised, though, to carry it up to 93%. My best result was yester–I haven’t taken another one since then.