Dear athletes,
Here are some important points for the forthcoming 6th Olympus Mythical Trail:
AIYANNIS - CAMPING AREA: The heart of the race! Famous for the locals, where all the race events will be (registration desk-secretariat, start, finish, awards, meals). Free camping is permitted, respecting common sense rules. There are basic amenities like toilets, drinking water but no available electrical power source. However, the organization will seek to accommodate some basic needs (mobile phone charging etc.). No transportation is available to and from the Aiyannis with the organization vehicles. The distance from the central square of Litohoro is 4 km and there is a taxi station right there.
BIB PICKUP: At Aiyannis, Thursday 29/6 (19:00-22:00) and Friday 30/6 (09:00-16:00) only in person with some formal ID (ID card, passport, driver’s license). Will not be handed to third parties (acquaintances, friends, relatives). You must have with you the mandatory, as per regulations, race pack at the bib pickup to have the control punch card attached at the bib pickup. Without having the race pack you will not be handed you race bib!
MANDATORY EQUIPMENT: Carry with you the mandatory equipment! There is a time penalty for each missing item and you will be checked at "Pigadi" aid station (88km) for compliance! Recall that backpack is accepted irrespective of capacity (1+ liters), enough to be wearable (vest or with shoulder straps). Also allowed are headlamps with no extra batteries if they are rechargeable.
CONTROL PUNCH-CARD: Attached to the backpack, it will be punched out at six locations which will not be known to athletes. This will be proof that the athlete has gone through all critical and "suspicious" shortcut parts of the route! Be careful on this issue by always having your backpack with you from start to finish of the race. Each missing control punch constitutes a time penalty. The punching cards will be removed from the backpack by race staff in the checkpoint of "Skandaliara" at the 96km.
MEALS: The organization will provide participants with two meals: a) pre-race (Friday 11:00-16:00) and post-race (Saturday 10:00-22:00). Each athlete will have a coupon that will hand in for each meal.
START: At 5:00PM Friday afternoon. A fair weather forecast means that there will be no postponement of the start!
WEATHER: Forecast is for a heat wave A little above the normal range of the season, without any rain or storms. The hot weather, requires the appropriate action from the athletes about their hydration during the race.
AID STATIONS: There are sufficient quantities of food at the aid stations! You must show self-restraint and only take what necessary so to leave enough for the rest of the field.
DROP-BAG: At station "Stavros" at 36km. Drop-bags must be handed in on Friday at Aiyannis. The organization provides specific plastic bags, in which athletes must fit in all they wish to have in their drop bag. Other bags than that provided are not accepted!
COURSE MARKINGS: The red-white paint markings on rocks and trees covers 80% of the trail and is in essence the hallmark of OMT course, but is not unique to the race colors or symbols. The night reflective marking are ubiquitous and flag pole markings already been set up in the alpine plateau of Bara. There is also red-white marking tape in places where no other type of marking could be used or there was need for extra signaling! Keep in mind that the density of the markings is inversely proportional to the quality of the trail trace: light trail trace = dense markings, good trail trace = sparse markings! Special care was given for crossroads and other critical points in the trail so to make direction finding clear even for novices.
WATER: It is hot! Take water with you. Aid Stations with specific water quotas cannot perform miracles! Drink water from any of the few water sources you find on your way. Water from Enipeas river is potable. You will sacrifice performance in order to spare yourself from the heat and come out from the race in good conditions.
28 HOURS: The race cutoff of 28 hours will not be extended because of the heat! This is something that should be seriously taken into account and everyone doing his calculations. Moreover, the largest part of the race will take place in the cooler hours of the day.
CASH: Have some cash (euros) with you! If you find the aid stations are not supplying you with enough provisions you can purchase extras from shops or refuges found in the following aid stations: Prionia (18km), Litochoro (32km), Stavros (36km), Petrostrouga (50km), Oropedio (56km).
AWARDS: Awards ceremony will be held Saturday night, at 9:00PM after the race final cutoff!
FAIR PLAY: Be a sport! As required by sporting spirit of equal conditions for all, without leaving your fellow participants in a disadvantage by taking shortcuts or else. Those that abide by the rules and do not take shortcuts are not suckers but are governed by moral principles! Races are not a venue for unethical behavior and lack of dignity and respect for principles.
DROP OUTS: You may drop out wherever you feel the need or you may be forced to by accident, but the organization does not offer pick up services from any part of the course! There will be a pick up from the organization only from: Prionia, Litochoro and Stavros. Those who drop out at Petrostrouga, Oropedio or Mesorachi will be transoprted back to Aiyannis only if they can reach by their own means either Prionia or Gortsia. If you drop out at any other point in the race you must get in touch with the Aid Station volunteers and arrange with them if it is possible to get a lift with them back to Aiyannis! This of course is not a commitment neither by the organization nor the volunteers. It is just up to the goodwill of the volunteers to help out the participants that dropped out.
SPECTATORS-SUPPORT: Support crew can be wherever they can reach to! But because this is objectively difficult and for safety reasons it is better if they stay in the Litohoro-Prionia-Stavros-Cross path. External support is only permitted within the area limits of aid stations! READING: Read carefully all relevant material for the race even now that we are few days from the start. It's never too late!!! Late is when you will get in trouble and find then, that if you had read the material this might not have occurred.
Looking forward in meeting you at Litochoro
From the organization
