How Matthieu Bonne Broke Historic Six-Day Ultrarunning Record

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Neglect racing an Ironman. Matthieu Bonne has taken your entire “swim, bike, run” issue to a model new stage.

On March 28, 2023, the self-proclaimed Belgian ultra-endurance sports activities actions addict broke the seven-day biking world file, pedaling 3,619.72 kilometers (2,249.19 miles) by way of the Arizona desert in per week.

That August, he smashed the world file for the longest nonstop ocean swim. With solely a Speedo swimsuit, a swim cap and goggles, and some lanolin with zinc oxide to lubricate his pores and pores and skin, the 30-year-old swam 131 kilometers (81.3 miles) in 60 hours, 55 minutes, and 43 seconds inside the Gulf of Corinth, Greece.

With these two historic marks secured, ending a trifecta, or should we’re saying triathlon, of data was his logical subsequent step. That’s how Bonne ended up breaking the virtually 20-year-old  six-day working file.

On the 6-Day World Championships in Balatonfüred, Hungary, this September, Bonne ran 650.1 miles (1,046.3 kilometers) to interrupt Greek legend Yiannis Kouros’s mark by larger than 6 miles.

“It’s the best accomplishment of my life,” Bonne acknowledged. “I nonetheless don’t think about it actually occurred.”

The Entice of the Unattainable

Whereas swimming, biking, and working all collectively has flip into ubiquitous, competing in each self-discipline individually on the best stage is a totally utterly completely different matter—significantly at these extreme distances. In actuality, it’s as uncommon as a result of the six-day working event itself. The concept of the six-day foot race dates once more to the 1700s, nevertheless has fallen out of favor and most of the people eye inside the ensuing centuries. It wasn’t really put once more on the map until this spring, when American Camille Herron broke the women’s six-day world file on the FURTHER event organized by Lululemon. Her file, too, was taken down in Hungary by Danish athlete Stine Rex, who bested it by 7 miles collectively together with her 567.7-mile (913.6K) effort.

Whereas multi-day ultrarunning events in the mean time are additional obscure than 50K to 100-mile and even 200-mile path races, 24-hour, 48-hour, 72-hour, six-day, and 10-day races on the observe and the roads—along with observe and freeway events the place runners contend to complete distances like 100 miles to 1,000 miles as fast as they will—are nonetheless held yearly across the globe.

Among the many best in these timed-run codecs was Kouros, the Greek legend who has held, and nonetheless holds, many ultrarunning data courting once more to the early Nineteen Eighties. One thought-about untouchable was his six-day world file, which was set at 1,036.8 kilometers (644.2 miles) in November 2005.

The seemingly unimaginable feat pushed many away, nevertheless not Bonne. He was drawn to it.

After a failed attempt by way of freezing rain in March ended after 793 kilometers (492.7 miles) and landed him inside the hospital for per week, Bonne doubled down. He employed a coach and full group to help him get the file. He did tempo work for the first time, attempting to increase his frequent six-day race tempo from a 9:39 per mile tempo to an 8:03 tempo. He did as quite a bit as 215 miles in per week. His peak teaching consisted of what Bonne known as a “simulation” for race day: 300K (186 miles) unfold out over three days in six 50K chunks, with fast breaks in between each.

Then, in September, it was time to deal with the Six-Day World Championships in Hungary. Spherical and spherical a 900-meter observe he would attempt to make historic previous over larger than 1,000 laps.

The Psychological Toolbox

There’s a number of time to fill over six days. However, Bonne was strategic with utilizing points like his headphones, caffeine, and replaying movement footage in his head to keep up himself motivated and distracted.

“I think about it is best to in no way use music regularly because of it’s a instrument,” Bonne acknowledged. “Use it when you will have a tricky time or are struggling. In case you persistently take heed to music, you don’t have one thing inside the toolbox to grab when these moments happen.”

That’s why Bonne waited 10 hours sooner than he listened to music or podcasts inside the race. All by means of the six days, he used them conservatively. He listened to his residence music, or EDM, when he wished a pick-me-up. He listened to podcasts for the night time time hours to actually really feel like he had agency over these miles.

A novel trick to fill the gaps between audio durations was replaying movement footage in his head. Not listening or watching, nevertheless going by way of your whole movie in his ideas.

“Movement footage like Into the Wild or Gladiator are my favorites,” Bonne acknowledged. “I’ve seen these movement footage many cases and I can play it over as soon as extra in my ideas. It’s a superb one- or two-hour pause, and I merely go from one psychological instrument to a unique.”

This technique moreover utilized to his vitamin, gear, and crew. When temperatures reached 90 ranges by means of the day, he’d pull out a cooling vest and the trendy Omius headband. He saved caffeine until he was drained.

His crew resembled that of a pit crew from Formulation 1, consisting of his coach and physiotherapists caring for his toes, physique, and muscular tissues all through breaks. Except for working straight by way of the first 24 hours and final 21 hours, Bonne principally ran about 20 hours a day with 12-minute breaks every three hours, plus a three-hour break for sleep after every 21-hour stretch.

In these breaks, Bonne would eat. He took in principally gels and isotonic drinks whereas working because of after the first day chewing shortly turned troublesome. By the 12-minute breaks he’d down rice with hen, blended rice with beef, and bread with jam. He moreover threw in whey protein shakes all through his three hour breaks.

“Usually, I requested my crew for a frozen ice gel,” Bonne acknowledged. “It goes inside the freezer and after they offer it to you, it’s like an ice cream and cools you down. I craved that and sweets like M&Ms masses.”

Alongside together with his crew coping with his every need from massages to fueling, Bonne was ready to commit his slowly depleting thoughts power to the exact race and his tempo.

“My energy is that I can keep a tempo for a very very very long time,” Bonne acknowledged. “I’m not the quickest runner on the earth, I do know that, nevertheless I can keep it up for a very, very very very long time. That’s my energy, significantly the longer it takes, the upper I can merely cope with the house.”

What Happens Over Six Days?

The first prolonged break received right here after working for the first 24 hours straight. Bonne banked the entire miles he might with the intention to have some cushion for the remaining 5 days. It was lastly time for his first three-hour rest, and his group took stock of his toes.

That’s when the trauma of his first six-day attempt in March returned. Lung factors in the long run hospitalized him the first time spherical, nevertheless he’ll at all times bear in mind the foot ache he endured.

“I had open wounds on my toes and the ache was unbearable,” Bonne acknowledged. “After the first day, my toes have been starting to actually really feel the an identical. I instructed my group that I couldn’t bear this ache as soon as extra.”

That’s when his crew began to do your entire problem-solving for his or her runner. They labored on his toes, caring for blisters and taping them as a lot as cease additional from forming. They prepared his meals, his gear, and saved him motivated. All Bonne wanted to do was run, watch movement footage in his head, and play video video games to interrupt up the run.

Having fun with video video games wasn’t quite a bit part of the psychological toolbox he might attain into. In its place, it was a way to interrupt up the run into sections reasonably than one overwhelming chunk.

“It was having fun with strategies along with your self, little ideas video video games” Bonne acknowledged. “That’s the one methodology you probably can receive the world file is having fun with psychological video video games to remind your self it’ll be OK, although you are very quite a bit struggling.”

Over six days, there are many objects to interrupt the run into. Usually, the game was seeing how far he might go in an hour. Others, it was practically surviving the next 10 hours.

Milestones have been moreover extremely efficient motivators. Hitting the 100K and 200K marks—and proper by means of 1,000K —have been extreme components mentally. The an identical went for watching himself get nearer to Kouros’s file with each step.

The file was in no way positive. Heavy rain on the fourth day compelled most runners to retreat indoors for an extended break. Not Bonne. He borrowed a clear plastic poncho from a competitor and trudged correct by way of it.

It wasn’t until he hit 1,000K that he let himself think about the six-day world file was going to happen. Spherical 5 A.M. on the last word day, the group roared as he crossed the four-digit mark. To have enjoyable, he took a 12-minute break. It is going to be his last for the last word six hours.

“My group made the selection for me to take six-minute breaks,” Bonne acknowledged of that final stretch. “Mentally, that was very onerous to only settle for. Twelve minutes is already fast. Six minutes is nothing.”

Working as fast as attainable, he went as far as he might until the sixth day ended. Bonne acknowledged no phrases might describe breaking a file as historic as this one.

“I’ve accomplished many crazy points in my life, nevertheless this one is solely on the excessive of the file because of the downside of this downside,” Bonne acknowledged. “To really have accomplished this and achieved this file of 20 years, it’s crazy.”

Not Carried out However?

After the clock expired at 12 P.M., Bonne’s group dragged him a few hundred meters to his tent. There was champagne, a TV interview, a doping examine, and, sadly, solely two hours of sleep ahead.

The podium ceremony required his presence. Bonne acknowledged he was the happiest athlete on the earth as he was honored there. He acknowledged the event lasted until 10 P.M.

“It was a very prolonged ceremony,” Bonne acknowledged. “As soon as we lastly went once more to the chalet. I slept until 8 A.M. I did some blood checks to confirm I was OK. Then I slept your entire day, your entire night time time, and your entire subsequent day.”

Though he has nonetheless felt drained publish run, Bonne’s ideas is already onto what’s subsequent. With primary accomplishments in swimming, biking, and now working, he might pursue a model new enterprise as soon as extra.

In its place, he thinks he’s going to stick with ultrarunning.

“It merely opened my eyes and it merely confirmed me that there aren’t any limits,” Bonne acknowledged. “If I didn’t get the file, I’d’ve thought maybe this isn’t for me. Because of I did, the long term is open.”

He hasn’t decided exactly what feat in ultrarunning he needs to attempt, nevertheless there’s one determine he is keen on going after. Together with the 1,000K mark set in 1984, Kouros nonetheless holds world data for 48 hours and 1,000 miles.

“Kouros nonetheless has a few additional world data which might be historic and untouched for a very very very long time,” Bonne acknowledged. “Some data which might be 30 years earlier. I consider I’m going to educate to get some additional data on his resume.”