Usually, the races in which I take part have a certain distance, but in 2019 in the city of Poltava during the race "Ltava Running Race" got acquainted with another format of the race. The peculiarity of the race on the racetrack in Poltava was that the participants had to run for one hour and this sets it apart from the races where participants run a specific distance. So I managed to participate in the "Ltava Running Race" for the first time got acquainted with a new format of races, during which participants run for a specific time. After getting acquainted with this format in Poltava, Kharkiv and its 6-hour race was waiting for me.
This year I decided to continue my acquaintance with the races for a specific time and decided to take part in the next race of this format. This time Kharkiv and its 6-hour race were waiting for me.
Registration
Participants could register for a 6-hour race through the main website of the running event races.org.ua. On the website of the running event, participants were asked to choose one of three formats, namely to run for 6, 3 or 1 hour.
The route of the race had a circular format and participants had to run on it for a certain time. One circuit of the race passed partly through the territory of the Forest Park and along the bicycle path next to it. There were 2 food outlets on the circle (water, rehydration, fruit, compote and borscht), the first on the initial circles, and the second near the middle of the circle. Participants of the race could get their starting package both the day before the start of the competition and on the day of the race on the territory of the cycling center.
Run
The 6-hour race in Kharkiv took place at a location already familiar to me, called the Forest Park. I got acquainted with this running location of Kharkiv for the first time in 2019, when I took part in the Easter race "Easter Run" (then it was 30 kilometers) and the running series "Kharkiv Grand Prix" ("Kharkiv Night Half Marathon" and "Kharkiv Trail Half Marathon”). Although in 2019 I expected that the Kharkiv Trail Half Marathon would be my last start at this location because after participating in three races in the Lisoparku, I began to get the impression that local officials give permission to run only in the Lisoparku, so as in Kharkiv there are no other locations for running.
And this feeling did not disappoint me. Since the race was originally planned to be held in the Park of Machine Builders, I was a little happy because of the new location, but later it was announced to change the location to the usual Lisoparku because officials in Kharkiv allow running only in the Lisoparku and nothing to run in other parks.
Gathering his running gear, he went to Kharkiv on Saturday night to get a starter pack and run through the Lisoparku again. Since I got to Kharkiv quite late, I decided to get the starting package on the day of the competition.
Sunday morning began with a trip to the starting point, and at the same time a small surprise prepared by local officials, who decided to collect a kind of jackpot from competitions in one place and decided to hold triathlon (cycling) and running competitions at one location. And thanks to this, getting to the starting place of the race became "quite convenient", especially when you learn about the triathlon competition, and accordingly, that the track is blocked half an hour before the start of the competition.
After jogging along the Belgorod highway, I still managed to get to the starting town, get my starting number, and went on a 6-hour jogging trip through Lisoparku. During the first hour of the race, the kilometers were covered quite effortlessly and we managed to run 6 miles. But the further he ran, the more he began to tire a little, as he gradually became a regular routine, where one circle was replaced by a new circle and visits to food outlets between them. Where participants could refresh themselves a little with water and regain their strength with various fruits and compotes. At the end of 6 hours, I managed to run 43 kilometers, which meant that the main goal for which I chose this race still managed to reach and run a distance greater than the marathon.
Impression
The Kharkiv 6-hour race had a good route, which passed partly through the park, where there was shade, and partly on a sunny bike path, but there was no special discomfort from the sun. Volunteers were placed at the main turns to indicate the correct direction of the run. In addition, there was good support at food outlets where participants could regain their strength. And in general, the race was quite well organized, despite its specific format and a small number of participants.
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