Running 300 kilometers between Alcoutim and Sagres, always along the tracks of the Via Algarviana, in less than 72 hours. This is the challenge that ALUT – Algarviana Ultra Trail, which will take place between November 29th and December 2nd, launches to trail running practitioners all over the world.
The ALUT «is a unique event in Portugal and as there are few in the world», since it «crosses the country from east to west and a whole region: the Algarve».
«There are more than 300 kilometers that separate Alcoutim, on the banks of the Guadiana River, to Sagres, next to the farol of Cabo de São Vicente wave ends the land and begins the sea in the coming and going of the waves of the Atlantic Ocean», illustrates the ATR –Associação Algarve Trail Running, which organizes the event.
The competition is limited to 100 participants, the number considered ideal by the organizers, so that the experience of those participating is the best.
“We like athletes to be known and treated by name and not by dorsal number. From the beginning, we defined that 100 would be the limit of our abilities to know and treat each athlete individually, with all the dedication and attention. All athletes have our phones, in the months before ALUT we talked several times, supported and answered all doubts. On the days of the competition, this attention and dedication extends to all support teams, family and friends. Furthermore, ALUT is not a race, it is a journey. An inner journey, through the interior. None of this is compatible with a mass event», illustrated Germano Magalhães, one of the organizers of the event.
This is a sporting event – and of great demand -, but also an event that «shows what is most genuine in the Algarve» and, of course, the Via Algarviana, which crosses the interior of the region.
«Events such as ALUT can be an asset for large routes such as Via Algarviana, when articulated with their managing and promoting entities, since it is necessary to pay attention to the concept of each project and all organized events must respect it and take into account its characteristics and specificities», considers Anabela Santos, from the Almargem association, who manages this pedestrian and cycling route.
«After the first edition of ALUT, many of those who participated and their families are amazed and pleased to have known the other Algarve, an Algarve that is far from the beaches, which remains authentic, genuine and with a great cultural and scenic wealth» , added Bruno Rodrigues, from the ATR association.
This year, special attention will be given to areas affected by fires. The organization of the event will, on the one hand, «raise awareness of the effects that a catastrophe of this magnitude imposes on territories and their people» and, on the other, «contribute to the recovery of natural elements and local economies».
«The scenario that athletes and companions will encounter is also part of the interior journey that we have already mentioned, we understand that it will be a moment of reflection and introspection, a reminder that everything is cycles, that after night comes day, that from the ashes is reborn the green”, according to Germano Magalhães.
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