The Coastal Challenge 2018 #TCC2018 – Stage 4 | iancorless.com – Photography, Writing, Talk Ultra Podcast

Day 4 from Coronado to Palma Sur is a unique day – starting at sea level, the route climbs to just under 1000m in 10km and then stays high with a rollercoaster of hills dropping to just over 600m at 25km and then climbing again to 900m at 30km. From here, the runners drop like stones, all the way to the finish line in Palma Sur with 37.1km covered.

You guessed it, once again Tom Evans and Hayden Hawks dictated the pace at the front, running side-by-side they matched each other’s pace all day. However, it wasn’t all chatty. Hawks confirmed at one stage in the stage they were separated by over a minute but it all came back together. “Tom is just too strong,’ Hawks conformed. ‘I am trying hard, but he can match me, in all honesty, I am working hard to keep up.’

Evans is running a smart race, he is doing just what he needs to do to maintain his lead and should Hawks attack, he matches it.

The duo finished in 3:56, a ridiculous time for the 37km and once again, it was a new stage record.

The ladies’ race has a very similar format to the men’s with Ragna Debats blazing a trail at the front of the race on her own. She is so strong that no other lady can come near and to be honest, not many of the men either! She did have a little trouble today going off course in a riverbed section which frustrated her. However, she got back on track and once again won the stage with a clear margin.

As the days have passed, Timothy Olson has got stronger and stronger. Today he was pushing hard throughout keeping a close eye on Hawks and Evans. He has openly admitted he can’t maintain the pace they are running but he will try anyway. It was all looking good and then in the final 8km he took a bad fall and heavily sprained his ankle. He is out of the race unfortunately!

Marcus Scotney had a good day, pulling back time from his errors on day 3 and today he finished 3rd on the stage a great moral boost 21 minutes behind the dynamic duo.

Suzanna Guadarrama today found her true form and ran the stage with 2016 TCC champion, Ester Alves. The duo pushed together all day and finished in Palma Sur 2nd and 3rd. This result will almost certainly impact on the general classification with Mirta Reaple not having a good day. Josephine Adams had a good day placing 5^th.

Tomorrow’s stage is 49km from Sierpe to Drake Bay (it is the longest stage of the race)