Night Life at the Tor des Geants
Part of the appeal for me of Tor des Geants is how it is such a complicated puzzle to put together. Sleep strategy is what has always scared me the most and has been hardest to figure out.
WHY IS SLEEP STRATEGY SO CHALLENGING AT TOR?
Since planning for my first Tor, I have talked to many finishers to get their advice, and it has been all over the place.
“Sleep only in the life bases” vs. “Sleep only in refugios”
“Push through the first night” vs. “Make sure to sleep on the first night”
“Take more frequent 30min naps” vs. “Sleep longer and less often”
“Take frequent dirt naps” vs. “Avoid dirt naps at all costs”
It isn’t surprising that the advice is all over the place. Everyone handles sleep deprivation differently. One person may hit a certain life base or refugio at noon while another hits it at midnight. A refugio could be a perfect sleep spot for someone towards the front of the race but overcrowded at the back.
Sleeping like a baby at Valtournenche on night 3 of my first Tor. Unfortunately, sleep did not go well at the same spot of my second Tor.
Tor also throws interesting wild cards at you. On night 2 this year, I rolled into Coda at 11:30pm and was pumped for my first sleep, only to be told we were not allowed to sleep there. The best laid plans.
ANALYSIS OF MY SLEEP AT TOR THIS YEAR
NIGHT 1
I planned on a short nap at Eaux Rousses, around mile 50, where I took a short nap in 2022. I told the crew I was allowed to make a game time decision and that I may push on to Sella (next refugio) or Cogne (Life Base 2).
I got to Eaux Rousses way ahead of plan and felt too good to sleep. I pushed past Sella down to Cogne. I wasn’t really sleepy, but my stomach felt off. I decided to play it safe and sleep for 25min.
I didn’t sleep at all, but it did help reset my stomach. I don’t regret laying down, but 10 minutes would have done the trick. I also shouldn’t have messed around with taking contacts out and putting them back in. Those aren’t huge differences, but it all adds up.
NIGHT 1 GRADE: B
NIGHT 2
Last time I slept at Donnas, life base 3. It was hot at the lowest altitude of the course and crowded, mostly with runners of a different Tor race.
This year I planned to push up the monster 7500 foot climb to Refugio Coda. It was risky and would take me 5-6 hours after Donnas, but I hoped it would be cooler and quieter.
I was nervous about this section going into the race but was thrilled with how it went. I stayed awake and strong throughout, arriving at Coda at 11:30pm. As noted above, my spirit was crushed when I was told I couldn’t sleep here. The volunteer said I couldn’t sleep until Gressoney, at least 12 hours away.
I pushed to Refugio Barma and took one short dirt nap along the way. Barma was absolutely ideal for sleeping – quiet, dark, and cool. I told the kind volunteer to wake me in 1h10min and slept soundly that entire time.
NIGHT 2 GRADE: A
NIGHT 3
I hit Gressoney around 12pm, 50 hours into the race. I knew from 2022 that it was a great place to sleep. It hadn’t been too long since Barma, but I decided a short sleep wasn’t a bad idea, especially since I now couldn’t rely on the remaining refugios given what happened at Coda.
The 30min nap was fantastic, and I planned to push through Stage 5 for a longer sleep in Valtournenche. This next section went well, and I just needed a short dirt nap at Col di Nana to get through.
The life base sleep was not good though. I tried for 1h45min and asked for the volunteer for another 10min after that. I couldn’t sleep for most of it due to some combination of light, noise, the 130k race leaders going through, and too much caffeine at the end of the previous section. It was a lot of time spent without much to show for it.
I was still exhausted and stumbling at the start of the next Stage, and I opted to sleep for 30min at the next refugio, Barmasse. That was great and got me through the rest of night three.
Night three has been the hardest for me at both my runs at Tor. I am so sleep deprived at this point, and it is devastating to feel so exhausted and know there is one night left. This year it was a bad combination of spending a lot of time trying to sleep while feeling like that time was inefficient.
NIGHT 3 GRADE: D
Some previous Tor runners recommended table naps. I couldn’t really sleep this way and found them inefficient. Either move through the aid station quickly or get some real sleep.
NIGHT 4
Stage 6 put a hurting on me. The tail end of night three did not go well. I had about 12 hours without crew between Valtournenche and Oyace. I struggled with the heat, steepness, exposure, and hunger from Oyace to Ollomont.
When I got to Ollomont, I was falling apart and felt like I was losing touch with reality. I decided to sleep 2.5 hours and slept almost the whole time. I felt like a new person after, and it was time well spent.
I wanted to push all the way to the finish, as I did in 2022. But that was in daylight, and it was too tall a task to go all the way through night four. I was falling apart on the last climb up to Malatra. Sleep deprivation combined with freezing cold temps and wearing too few clothes was a bad combo. I managed to take a dirt nap, but this section was slow and inefficient. I should have slept 20min in Bosses and am confident I would have made up that time.
NIGHT 4 GRADE: B-
Heading into night 4. With ice cream, my new best friend, before getting some sleep.
WHAT WOULD I DO NEXT TIME AT TOR?
Yes, I plan to run Tor again. I truly love this race and continuing to solve the complex puzzle of Tor is the most motivating challenge out there for me.
A sleep plan for a race this long is probably silly and will go out the window when out in the arena, but here is how I am drawing it up in my mind:
Night 1
10min reset lie down, Probably won’t sleep much but can help reset the stomach, relax, and lower HR.
Target Cogne but can pull earlier to Eaux Rousses or Sella if needed
Night 2
1.5 hour sleep at Barma. Hopefully a big sleep to recharge and set myself up well for day 3.
Can pull earlier to Coda or Sassa if needed (and if they let me)
Night 3
Shift strategy to shorter and more frequent sleeps.
Mentally I think it will be easier not to feel like I have to push all the way through a day or night without sleep.
30min at Champoluc in the afternoon (can pull forward to Gressoney if needed or if I think that is better)
30-45min at Valtournenche
30-45min at Magia. Can pull forward for Barmasse if struggling or if Valtournenche doesn’t go well again.
Night 4
30-60 minutes at Ollomont
20-30 minutes at Bosses before the final push
GENERAL THOUGHTS
You don’t really know how you will respond to the sleep deprivation of 200+ milers until you do it. And many will understandably choose to sleep more to make the race more enjoyable.
This general strategy is a good starting point though. Follow how you feel and sleep as needed on night one. If you have done multiple hundreds, you should also have a pretty good idea of what you’ll need on night one.
On night 2, plan for a longer sleep. After that, shift to more frequent sleep breaks. You may still want or need one longer sleep per day, especially if you are pushing through five or six nights.
Next up, I will share some insights on fueling for this year’s Tor, what went well and what could still be improved.