It had been a long time since I entered a race without knowing if I could finish it. Mentally, I was confident—I have a strong mindset. But physically, running 200 km and swimming 50 km seemed impossible. I thought about getting a coach, but ultimately decided to train the way I always have: doing what I love, when I want. I looked forward to the race, but it also felt like I’d bitten off more than I could chew.
Race day started with excitement. At 7:00 a.m., we set off with a plan. We hit the first checkpoint smoothly, and it felt incredible to finally be racing! We navigated the rugged terrain, sticking to our energy plan, even if it meant endless rounds of gels.
One of the coolest swims happened after a fairly long run. Someone told Nanna to watch for the ferry that would be coming by, and Nanna said that wouldn’t be a problem for us to make it in time! And as we were lying there, and I, as usual, was only breathing to the right, I could see the ferry approaching! I saw and heard Nanna at the front of the boat shouting to Alex, “Faster! Faster!” And HOLY HELL, did he pick up the pace . It was insane swimming next to the Finland ferry – you felt as small as an ant. Turns out the ferry was 10 minutes ahead of schedule…
Hours blurred together as we pushed through runs and swims. My cap broke twice, and I dropped gels from my Kangaroo shirt constantly, but Nanna was amazing, cheering us on, handing us what we needed, and helping keep our spirits high. At one point, we had a 10 km run on asphalt, which was my personal low—straight roads and hard ground were brutal. But we kept going.
Stage 2 brought colder and longer swims but the water felt perfect, and our pace was good. We were starting to feel a bit chilly, but no big issues yet. The navigation was smooth, the swimming felt strong, and we were keeping to our energy plan perfectly. Team 5 and 4 overtook us on land, but we managed to pass Team 4 in the water again. As we navigated across a longer island, Nanna handed us dinner, and Anders nailed the navigation. Everything felt right and we were in high spirits.
Then came a tough stretch: lost in the dark, struggling to find the path. We had drifted off-course, and Team 4 passed us. We considered waiting for daylight, but finally found our way back, though we had missed some crucial energy intake during the confusion. This took a toll on us, but seeing Nanna again was like a lifeline.
As dawn broke, we were more walking than jogging, making unwise decisions out of exhaustion. We struggled to keep up with our energy needs, and Anders began to falter, missing gels and barely managing to eat. We were hazy, but we tried to rally, joking about Alex’s hallucinations—seeing “llamas” and “boats” where there were none. The mood lifted when a man cheered us on, shouting, “You are amazing, and so many people are rooting for you!” It was a huge boost.
The daytime swims started feeling colder, and our pace slowed. Anders’ navigation confidence was shaken, and I tried to help, but we were all exhausted. Still, we kept laughing and supporting each other, even as we felt the cold seep into our bones.
At Stage 4, Thomas cheered us on, but we knew a grueling 4000-meter swim lay ahead. Alex swam so fast that I could hardly keep up. When we got out, we faced another long swim, and though the water seemed warm, Anders was shivering uncontrollably. We tried to warm him up, pouring tea on him and giving him food. Seeing him in such a state scared me—it was like he was barely there.
We knew we might not make the cut-off. When we reached Nanna, we asked about our chances, expecting to be pulled from the race. Instead, she shouted, “NOW IT’S NIGHT MODE!” and told us we had a two-hour buffer. Anders, however, wasn’t convinced and argued that we wouldn’t make it.
Finally, Anders decided he couldn’t continue, and that was where Team 1’s race ended. After 38 hours, we felt both pride and relief. We had pushed ourselves to the limit and had an unforgettable time. Reflecting afterward, we knew we’d made some mistakes, and of course, there were regrets—wondering if we could have pushed a bit further. But we also learned a lot about what it takes to compete at this level.
We were so proud of 38 hours out on the course! So amazing and so much fun! Of course, we’re going to apply for OWR 25. We’re already looking forward to it.
