7th CSC Soldier competes in Adventure Races

Courtesy Photo | Marcelo Tordomar, (left) and his teammate, Maj. James D. Eskelson, a member of the U.S. Army Reserve’s 7th Civil Support Command Headquarters compete in the eight-day, 261.3 kilometer Transalpine-Run Sept. 7, 2013. (Photo courtesy of Maj. James Eskelson, 7th CSC)  

KAISERSLAUTERN, RP, GERMANY

11.15.2013

Story by Sgt. 1st Class Matthew Chlosta 

7th Mission Support Command

KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany – Running full-speed at nosebleed elevations, traversing creeks, rocks, caves, scrambling over scree and hiking up goat trails with skier-type walking sticks, might seem crazy to some people, but to adventure racers, including one U.S. Army Reserve Soldier stationed in Europe, they’d race no other way.

Maj. James D. Eskelson, a native of Brigham City, Utah, and a member of the USAR’s 7th Civil Support Command in Kaiserslautern, Germany, and his teammate, Marcelo Tordomar, a native of Buenos Aires, Argentina, completed the ninth-annual Transalpine-Run considered by extreme sport aficionados as one of the toughest stage races in the world, Sept. 7, 2013.

Whatever you call it, adventure racing, endurance racing or ultra races; most people think that those who participate in extreme sports are gluttons for punishment and maybe a little bit crazy.

But, there is a method to the madness.

“Since January two-thousand thirteen we have been training specifically for this event,” Eskelson said.

The teammates ran between 30-60 miles every week prior to the race.

“This enabled us to start the run in good health, great shape and well prepared,” explained Eskelson.

To prepare for extreme sports, a competitor must conduct extreme training. During the course of an eight-month period leading up to the Transalpine-Run, Eskelson conducted daily cross-training, spinning class, alpine skiing and muscle strength and endurance training, in addition to his daily long-distance running.

Eskelson, 49, and Tordomar, 48, also competed in “smaller” events. Eskelson ran the 133-mile Harz Adventure race in Germany and the 310-mile Expedition Africa Adventure race, while Tordomar took part in the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc 2012, which is a 68-mile race across France, Italy and Switzerland; the 62-mile, three-stage El Origen race in Patagonia, Argentina; the 62-mile non-stop Patagonia (Argentina) Run; and the 50-mile Yerba Buena-Tafi non-stop race, also in Argentina.

“These endurance events helped me be successful and deal with the stress and strain of an eight-day Alps crossing,” Tordomar said.

The eight-stage race included 366, two-person teams from more than 30 nations, who competed in several different classes including male, female, individual and mixed.

The race course covered over 160 miles, and traversed a total of 51,982 feet in elevation changes. The competitors endured daily stages of 26 miles or greater, about the same distance of the modern-day marathon as well as elevation changes that averaged 6,562 feet, daily.

This year’s trek routed racers from the start point in Oberstdorf, Germany through Austria, Switzerland, with the finish line in Latsch, Italy, located in the southern Alps.

During those eight days, Eskelson and Tordomar had the opportunity to compete against more than 700 athletes from all over the world at one of the toughest and most spectacular long-distance races in the world including international trail running elite and fully-sponsored race teams.

For safety reasons and to be able to motivate each other, participants compete in two-person teams. Eskelson and Tordomar met, via an online web site for extreme sport enthusiasts earlier this year. They met face-to-face for the very first time the day before the race.

“Our goal was to enjoy the entire experience, meet new friends and be official finishers,” Tordomar said.

During the race, Eskelson and Tordomar battled both their minds and their bodies to complete the race.

“Marcelo injured his Achilles tendon on the first day, which worsened during the race,” Eskelson said. Tordomar also developed a huge, fifty-cent coin-sized blister.

Not only did Tordomar battle physical injuries, the thin air of the Alps, with an average elevation of 8,980 feet, played a significant factor in the physical and mental challenge to just finish the race.

Eskelson explained, “In order to qualify as having officially completed the grueling eight-day event competitors were required to meet all the mandatory times at the checkpoints along the route during each stage. If you miss one you are not officially ranked, nor does the team receive recognition for competing.”

To many extreme sport competitors, merely competing and finishing is the reward enough. Winning a race like this is for the truly world-class athletes who spend every waking moment preparing.

Eskelson and Tordomar do not have the luxury of training all day, every day. So, to finish a competitor has to reach back for some competitive edge. Eskelson’s edge is his Army Reserve training.

“To keep Marcelo in the game I had to rely on multiple facets of my military training like leadership, teamwork and combat lifesaving skills,” Eskelson said. “Specifically, after Marcelo’s early-race foot injury my mindset and goals transitioned from trying to finish in the top one-third overall, to finishing in the top one-third of our class division (age group), to just surviving each day in order to finish the race.

“As physically difficult as this race was, it was equally tough mentally for me to keep my focus on maintaining Marcelo’s mindset, so he remained positive each day and that our goal was to finish together,” Eskelson said. “Moreover, I utilized my combat lifesaving skills daily on his injuries and came up with some rather creative techniques for covering and bracing his right foot and blister.”

While competing in events like Transalpine-Run are incredibly difficult affairs, the beautiful scenery of the mountainous southern Alps buffered the physical pain Eskelson and Tordomar experienced along the way. Eskelson even lost eight pounds during the race.

“Overall, this was an awesome, once-in-a-lifetime running event and to me the only way to really see the European Alps,” Eskelson said.

• Date Taken: 11.15.2013
• Date Posted: 01.29.2014 11:54
• Story ID: 119801
• Location: KAISERSLAUTERN, RP, DE
• Hometown: BUENOS AIRES, C, AR
• Hometown: BRIGHAM CITY, UT, US