Busan 5 Mountain 30k Trail Run - May 1, 2016

I heard about this small low-key run through some local Busan Facebook friends and thought it would be a good one to do.  A local run, easy logistics, fits into my training schedule, etc. plus I’ve done most of the trail before.  Although only 30k, I knew it was going to be a long day on the trail due to the rugged terrain and yes, the “5 mountains”.

Helpful race info.

The trail runs along the ridge of Geunjeong san (mountain) along the Geumjeong Fortress wall. Although technically one mountain, we’d be visiting 5 or 6 prominent peaks, or Bongs, over the course of the run.  The circular fortress wall which is about 17k in length was built in the early 1700’s after a couple of invasions from Japanese and Manchu forces.  But later crumbled during the latest Japanese occupation and WWII. They are slowly restoring it.

Only problem with my plan was the week of the run I came down with a wicked cold. I think I may have gotten it during a quick trip to Shanghai and running in the cruddy air there, or perhaps the plane ride, or perhaps something else entirely – who knows with these things.  But it was so bad I actually took a couple of sick days off from work, a rarity for me. The day before the run I did a little 10 mile ‘test run’ and since that run was really bad with all the hacking and hawking, I decided that I wouldn’t do the 30k the next day.  I’d be smart, rest and be ready to continue training next week.

Yeah, sure. . . .  later that day I started feeling a little better, so screw that thing about being smart;  it’s only 30k, how hard could it be? Rachel simply rolled her eyes and took a deep breath.

The trail map, translation by a co-worker who also helped me register.

Took the Busan Metro line 1 (I’d say about half full of hikers who got off at the midpoint of the mountain that I’d probably see again at some point later in the day) to my stop at the northern terminus of Nopo and then met up with the FB friends for the short taxi ride to the 9am start.  Of course it was a very sunny day and I kept thinking that I would have rather started in the cooler 6am temps, oh well. I should add that as a low-key event, the course would be marked, but there’d only be one aid station with water at about the halfway point.  I should also add that the organizers, the Busan Mountain Marathon Club, didn’t charge an entry fee either. It turns out that this was the 9th year for the run and perhaps the first time they ever had foreigners join. Hyon Shim, one of the FB friends who I met that morning, and I were the US contingent and all of the other approximately 40 runners were locals. They couldn’t have made us feel more welcome.

FB group photo before the start.

As we were standing there some of the people in front started to run so I guess we were off. We went along some roads to start, but then soon enough got on to smaller and smaller roads that headed uphill and eventually petered out into a trail and then into some really steep rocky, rooty single track. It didn’t take long for me to start my hacking and heavy breathing routine.  With my cold not really gone my oxygen intake was not optimal and my heart rate went up considerably, I could hear my heart beating in my clogged up ears.  The coughing and runny nose would be with me for a while until I could hawk up enough gunk for the initial clearing of the pipes.  Judging from the prior days ‘test run’ a few miles should be good.  Only problem the next 3 or 4 miles were pretty much directly up. The little elevation chart I plotted doesn’t show a lot of detail, but I guess you get the picture.

General elevation Chart.

Top of the first peak, the trail goes along the ridge and over the far peaks ahead.

I’d say that the total elevation gain throughout the 30k was in the 4,000 to 4,500 foot range.  Anyway the uphill ‘struggle’ would basically be the way the whole run went, I could jog along some of the gentle down hills and the few flat spots, but once going uphill it was a very slow go.  But hey, it was basically a training run and it was a nice day, very sunny, a nice breeze, although at about 70 to 75 degrees a bit warm for my liking, it was nice. Rachel said to take the day and have ‘fun’, but also be careful and take one of the bailout points if I had to, so that was the plan.

I didn’t know the very first few miles and very last few miles of the course, but I did know the middle part well enough. The first part was easy to follow since the runners were relatively closely spaced and they hung ribbons pretty well.  The only question on the middle part was whether they’d hug the fortress wall’s rugged single track path or take the wider, smoother and easier wide dirt path. . . yep, we took the single track.

The trail going along the Fortress Wall.

The other thing I didn’t know was that at 3 points along the trail they had people stationed with an ink pad and ‘chops’ that they would stamp on your run number signifying that you passed that way.  It wouldn’t be good to be off course at those spots. I should add that the trail markings got very sparse throughout the middle part, I was relying on memory, staying near the wall, and even some old warn out markings going in the opposite direction from a run I did 7 months ago.  Anyway the checkpoints, the middle one also doubling as the water stop, were strategically located along the course at the far end of turns and of course at the highest peaks along the way. I managed to get all three of the pink chops.

Race No. w/ chops, I hope I wasn’t the only one with the turtle chop.

Although not a lot of English was spoken and my Korean is equivalent to about a 2 year old toddler, on those rare times I was running with someone my fellow runners took great pride in the trail and pointing out the way and generally were really nice and helpful, smiles and having trail running in common go a long way.  I should also mention that my new FB friends, were all way up ahead (did I mention that they were all probably less than half my age?).

After about 6 or 7 miles, looking back at the ridge and the Fortress Wall in the upper left.

At last I was on the last big uphill push to the last double peaks of Buhaeryeong and Baekyang Bongs, I had done the trail going down in the opposite direction which is a bear in itself, going up the way we were now is just cruel.  Plus at that point there was full sun, afternoon temps and I was running low on water so I was taking sparing sips which while ok to sooth my sore throat wasn’t really enough to keep me fully hydrated.  I had planned to replenish at the base of the hill where I had seen vendors on my other trips through, and yes they were there, but all they had for sale was beer and makoli, a fermented rice grewl-type of milky looking liquid.  I asked for water and they rattled off some very quick Korean and laughed a little bit, I’m sure they were saying . . . ‘come on man-up and take in some real fluids’.  At the time I had just forged ahead and now I was finally at top, got my last chop, and a little water in my pack.

One of the last two peaks, looking back at the ridgeline. The highpoint in the far right is the first peak.

After a quick look at the view of the city I was soon plunging down towards the finish which you could actually see about 3 or 4 miles off in the distance, and very very far down. Actually when coming from the other direction on a few previous runs we took a zig-zag path with long switchbacks on the way up, but this run took a straight down single track path that was simply painful with those steep and deep rock hopping jolts. Darn, I was kinda looking forward to stretching it out a bit on those soft zig-zag paths. But one final thing first, I got to a tee in the path about three quarters of the way down and since I had seen the finish from up top I thought I knew where I was headed, so down the new smooth trail I went.  Then I realized that I hadn’t seen a marker in a while, not unusual for the day, but it did seem to be even more widely spread than usual, then the doubts started, go back to the last marker or forge ahead?  Still no markers, I asked a few hikers pointing to my race number if they had seen any runners (daligi) or marathon daligi, but they simply shook their heads no. Oh crud, time to go back, and up!!  Of course easily cruising downhill without realizing it I had probably gone about a mile which took much longer going back up, but when I got back to that darn tee intersection and continued the other way that I should have gone in the first place, sure enough around a curve was a ribbon innocently hanging from a branch, bonus miles!! It happens.

Now back on track, I made my way the mile or so to the finish that was in the Children’s Park with lots of people strolling along the soft wide paths in the shade on a beautiful Sunday afternoon, lots of families with kids and strollers.

I ambled up to the finish line, basically a folding card table and they were so very happy, and probably not a little bit relieved, to see the ‘old migook” had made it. They filled out my finisher’s certificate, took quite a few photos and guided me to the shady area where other runners were having some drinks and snacking on some soybean and seaweed soup and of course kimche. The salty soup was the best tasting stuff ever, well you know what I mean.  They also kept asking me if I wanted some makoli, disbelieving me when I declined the first 20 times they asked. I thanked the race director and volunteers (which I had also done at the checkpoints and water stop) and congratulated the runners around me and of course they returned the sentiment 10 fold.

So that’s it, I had a really fun time on the trail. Oh yeah, I finished in a tad under 7 hours and 9 minutes.

Race swag – The Finisher Certificate.

Korea must be a very nice place. Every time I hit the bong that many times the po po come knocking , and I get the munchies .

Nice RR. Thanks for posting.

Wow, a RR from Sandy THE SAME WEEK as the race. I'm impressed.

+1.  Thanks for sharing!  Sounds like it was a fun adventure, old migook. (And l google translated that to make sure it wasn't a slur .  or at least too offensive)

And turning down anything that can be described by the word 'gruel' is smart in my books.

Thanks for the report and the great photos. Looks a really difficult course and quite the challenge. That is some contrast, those 2 pictures above. BTW, I did not get much out of the helpful info page, but maybe the cutoff was 17:00? So you made it comfortably. Ha. I enjoy seeing your trails. Looks like you have some challenging options there.