As you read these lines, I’m most likely and hopefully still healthy somewhere along the Rhodope mountain range, running the Rodopi Challenge (ROC), an 89 km ultramarathon with a total elevation gain of 4,800 meters.

This race is considered an “entry point” into the world of ultramarathons. If you’re aiming to run legendary races like the ROUT 189 km long (yes, really!) with over 9,000 meters of elevation then this is where you begin.

The last time I ran this race was in 2019, but honestly, it doesn’t feel like five years ago more like fifty. So much has happened since then, both good and bad, that I barely recognize the person I used to be.

Apostolos in 2019 and Apostolos in 2024 two different people.
The values remain the same; what’s changed is how I approach them now, shaped by new experiences, events, and circumstances.

Back in 2019, the race was 82 km, and it was perhaps the toughest, most grueling race of my life.
At the 49th km, I nearly dropped out I had turned completely pale from dehydration (no exaggeration).
But in the end, I didn’t quit (I’ll share that story in another email), and I crossed the finish line after 18 hours and 9 minutes, side by side with Mr. Sakis a man running for his daughter, who at the time was struggling with anorexia.

This year, I hope things go differently.
I hope I won’t have to go through what I did in 2019 just to reach the finish line.

The landscapes of the Rhodope Mountains feel like they’ve been plucked from a Tolkien fairytale fir trees, narrow trails, hidden corners, fresh streams, and moonlight filtering through the forest, blinding you at night.
If you think you’re running alone in the woods, think again.
Besides the farm animals and livestock, this forest is home to most of Greece’s large mammals: hare, wolf, jackal, fox, brown bear, weasel, otter, wildcat, wild boar, deer, roe deer, buffalo, wild goat.
It’s quite the crowd!
So far, I haven’t encountered any of them up close and I sincerely hope it stays that way.

What am I carrying with me for these 89 km in my specially designed trail running backpack?

Carbohydrate gels
Electrolytes
Energy bars
Headlamps ×2
Socks
T-shirt
Batteries for the headlamp
Iodine
Gauze
Whistle
Emergency thermal blanket
Waterproof mobile phone (with buttons and no internet so the battery lasts!)

Does it all make sense?
I caught myself wondering that a few days ago.

I’ve been following a vegetarian diet for the past nine months, so some things had started to wear on me.
Why rice again?
Why wake up at 6 AM on a Sunday just to go running?
Why go train after work at 11 PM?

No matter how much I shared these thoughts with my people or tried to reason through them, I couldn’t find a clear answer.

Because once again, the answer was within me.

My choice to run this extraordinary race and therefore, my responsibility to accept the “consequences” of preparation.

I don’t know if I’ll reach the finish line within the 19.5-hour time limit.
But I do know this:
We are called to go against the grain.
To do the things we’re “not supposed” to do because they don’t fit the definition of “normal.”
To keep going, even when we know we might not make it.

That’s life.
That’s purpose.
That’s excellence.

The excellence and the unattainable essence of the human spirit.

And as a wise old man once told me when I asked if I was going the right way during a mountain run:
“You can’t get lost if you’re running with your heart. Keep going, my boy you’ll make it.”

So we keep going. With whatever we have.

Love, respect, and integrity the “water” in the quiver of our body to overcome the barriers of the mind and reach the ever-flowing springs of the finish line.

Apostolos Koumarinos