Runner's experience at Siberian Ice Half Marathon

On an August day 2014 I saw a Facebook post on my cousin's wall about the Siberian Ice Half Marathon with the caption "I could try this next", and a link to MyNextRun's registration to the race for January 2015. I got curious and found out a bit more - for example that it is the coldest race in the world. I told my cousin, "if you are in, I'm in" and that's where it started.

I started to figure out the journey's practical part and it turned out to be complicated: a visa, DIY trip, too much hassle. Fortunately my cousin refused to hear it, she thought that it was the more reason for us to go to Siberia. 

We finally bought flights to Omsk, signed up for the race, got our visas and booked accommodation. The hassle was actually quite small in the end. Now it was time to start training. The early winter was mild in Southern Finland, so I couldn't get to train in the proper conditions. I had to take off without any preparation for running in minus degrees. 

The local race organisation was supportive and informative from the beginning. I was even asked to join an international press conference via Skype. I was a little surprised by the attention, but then I understood that only 12 of the ca 1000 participants were foreigners. Our security, well-being and enjoyment was a top priority. 

We flew from Helsinki via Moscow to Omsk on Siberian Airlines. To greet us there was the owner of our accommodation, Igor, who only spoke Russian. It was a little challenging, but our photographer Pera took control of the situation and everything worked out. Igor took us to our halls, the supermarket and gave us instructions from the running organisation.

We were quite astonished as we suspected to go just pick up our race numbers and were greeted with a welcoming ceremony at a local boxing gym. Children performed a song and dance, and us international runners were introduced. The organisation had planned out a great program for every hour of our stay (both free of charge and paid), both before and after the race. We decided to do a little anventuring on our own, and get to know the place. The city was lovely and all the people very hospitable.

Along came the race morning, and we got to know the course and moved onto the start area. The course is just a 3,5 km lap in the middle of the city on flat terrain, the only challenge is the weather. This year it was only -4 Celsius, so not as bad as it can be. 

The local attendants' age varied from 15 to 80 years, and some were in costume, others in very little clothing. The date of the race was Orthodox Christmas Day, and the streets were filled with celebration and cheering. The organisers had arranged a cheering crowd for us international runners, which was a charming surprise. 

There were no refreshment points or toilets by the course, but our photographer took care of us during the run. My own run didn't go so well as I had been sick in the weeks before, and I finished at 2:45. Nevertheless, I was very happy as the experience was so much more than running. 

On our last night we went out to party with the other international participants to a local dance restaurant. Also an English speaking member of the race organisation joined us. From the party Igor took us directly to the airport and our home journey started. 

The trip was absolutely memorable and I can warmly recommend it to everyone. All you need is an open mind, sense of humour and the attitude that everything will work out.

A video of our race can be seen here!

Greetings, Kaisa Aaltola