Day 2 of the spectator races for WOC 2011 were back in the same arena as the first day. After the walk of the previous day we opted for the bussing option that worked perfectly, especially as the rain poured down as we wound our way up the mountain. Umbrellas out, it continued to hose it down as we desperately searched the finish arena for some protection. Luckily the WOC competitors shelters were still up, so we stood tall and official-looking and piled into one, glad of the chance to prepare for our runs out of the rain.

Day 2’s terrain was the same map as the middle distance WOC qualifiers of the day before, rough karst limestone, with low visibility and many fallen trees and brashings. A home made cardboard sign on the way to the start read ‘careful many holes’ and ‘very sleepy’. I think by the end of the day a few people were feeling sleepy, judging by how long they were out on their courses.

After a couple of easy controls following tracks to lull us into a false sense of security it was bam, into the wet rough forest, climbing over fallen trees, down crags and slippery moss strewn rocky slopes. It was a primeval experience, expecting any minute a dinosaur to appear from behind a rock or Rambo to jump up with a scary look on his face brandishing some home made weapon.

Eventually we were spat out of the forest into a huge grassy valley complete with cows, but the respite only lasted a couple of controls before a viscous climb took us back up hill before a last encounter with the limestone forest. I had walked almost the entire course but again I think it wasn’t a bad strategy as I lost little time to mistakes.

Afterwards their were horror stories of 1hr per km and people lost for up to 30 mins on legs, but I rather enjoyed by encounter. There is a rest day tomorrow so that we can all visit Aix le Bains and Chambery for the WOC sprint qualifiers and finals.