Finally! After a long, slow and hard road made of exercises, studies and calculations are able to live in full all my "dream." Could I begin by saying the placement, time or condition with which I came to this but there ' tempo.Vorrei is first established, however, something very important: Those who practice an extreme sport such as ultramarathons is prepared to risk of physical injury to the finish? I will, maybe it's crazy, but that's how! During the race I had to make a decision: cp to thirty-five, after one hundred twenty-four km, thirteen hours and thirty minutes of running and when it was still missing so much time at the end, the masseur noticing that the pelvis out of alignment I had told me that if I continued I ran some risk. This in a person with doubts and weakness could be a good excuse to leave, but I've decided to keep aware of the risks they run. A decision to head clear and not clouded by fatigue. I thought that if I wanted to make a run I would have simply went to the park, so the thought was to continue. Different matter if the doctor m'avesse stopped or had happened in training, in which case just to get to race day in good condition I would stop obtorto collo.Una time to run, however, I do not retreat at all. I wrote this should not be an example to anyone, even the advice I always give to others is that if there is a problem we must always stop to avoid worsening the situation ... as always, between saying and doing is half of the sea ... Granted everything I can now describe the thrill of a dream eleven months in preparation, which has taken shape along the two hundred forty-six kilometers of the route from Athens to Sparta, Pheidippides covered up and that has culminated after thirty-three hours one minute and a thirty-eighth and second in the second position of the Italians in the race. These are the numbers. It 's the twenty-September, the day before leaving for Athens, I went to Milan by his friend Mark and his family that are among my most ardent fans. I turn the phone el'oroscopo says: "You are preparing for a great debut? The tension grows as is normal, manage them and enjoy a memorable moment of life." These things generally do not believe, however, when you're really going to live a "Dreams", read these words will be an additional emotional charge, moreover, as they say "it's not true but believe it." I'm loaded like a spring and tell everyone to be convinced of winning the race. Motivation and belief in my ability is very high. Arrive in Athens and the first person I meet is good Poponesi Philip, the legendary Popof, nice guy. I start looking Maritati of his friend James who is waiting for me for some time, take a taxi to the hotel and in the meantime deepen understanding while I eat almost all of the sweet almond paste that is offered me. Talking with him I see that now is a good person and very calm and in addition it has also a very strong motivation within themselves. London you get here and it seems to have been there from the countless times I had seen the videos of previous years. ... I was living the "dream" IN A FILM GIA 'Vista, a strange sensazione.Tantissimi athletes from all parts of the world greet each other more in languages \u200b\u200bthat meet them 'after a year, I think a meeting between old school friends. Meanwhile, I register, they give me the chest and the heart starts to beat faster. I look around and there's other Italians, and then we present the usual jokes about the intentions of the race. At one point she left them stunned: "I?? GUYS HAVE COME HERE TO WIN!" Does anyone really believe it at the end. Give us the room, so take along with James posto.La my precision leads me already to prepare the various envelopes and with the changes for the various cp few hours later I go down in the hall and I offer volunteer to be examined before and after effort to a study that some researchers are doing, so I control the pressure, I do blood tests and see the heartbeat. Meanwhile, the athletes get so plentiful and I seem to be on the tower of Babel, and 'everything's great. I look around and think, "THESE ARE NOT MILES DUECENTOQUARANTASEI stop." I take a walk outside the hotel to see the weather conditions that do not promise anything good, the temperature drops suddenly, and at this point that I take a decision then will be crucial for the success of the race. I'll be back in the room and picks up an envelope, the k-way that is intended for a resting spot along the route. "Tomorrow WITH THIS LIFE TOGETHER AROUND THE WAIST," I tell myself. And now the evening meal is eaten together with all athletes in the barracks as they are all in a row and then sit at tavoli.Veniamo cheered by the sleight of Philip, his joy is contagious and our tables there is always a lot of people. And in the afternoon, however, I notice one thing and that there are many Nordic athletes who drink gallons of beer as if it were water ... mah?? Pre-race morning, you put everything in boxes to be sent to various points along the way, have breakfast and while I know a bit 'with everyone, especially with our Brazilian friends. I have the honor to speak with the legendary Valmir Nunes, ultra marathon runner who won Brazil's toughest races that every thing in my Portuguese Rio. In the days to follow will be his official translator when there are the nice couple Papi. The day runs quietly in the afternoon's meeting with the organizers to explain a bit 'of things. It is evening and dinner together. The night before an event like this should be serene, you should rest well but ... downstairs are having a party and the music comes right up to our room, the problem is not that because I was still resting, but the shouting Andrea sleeping in the room with us. The legendary DART perhaps taken from the tension, nervousness or bitten by a tarantula starts to rant and go on like this for a few hours from when it does not take the mattress and goes in the bathroom to bed ... but not at 2 km to 2 meters from where it was before, barks a little, then for peace for all s' sleep. Wake up at 4 for me, breakfast tea with honey and toasted bread and then starting at 6 for the center of Athens, the Acropolis from where you start. Usual usual photo, the flags of most of the world are present, is a collage of colors ... It 's a wonderful thing. I put myself in line at platoon of athletes and I see that there is also what eventually will be the winner, the great Ivan Cudin a boy whose humility is directly proportional to its size. It's seven o'clock and I are part of the group close and Ivan, we exchange a wolf and then take everyone away on his way. I was not surprised to see the athlete from Friuli in the queue because it was he who advise him. The first few kilometers down, the city wakes up, people still go to work sleepy encircle the long snake that winds through the streets of the capital of Greece. On my way to tell the truth, already the lowest of about thirty seconds per km on that provided I'm in a group without any problems. Philip Luciano and run and catch up a bit 'set. Stop for physiological Popof and I still go, of course are the first kilometers. Reach the group of Brazilian friends that goes together slowly, m'aggrego them and we get to chat a bit '. I realize But the pace is slow and shooting them a bit 'after a hundred meters off. At this point we say goodbye and I'm blessed quiet and peaceful on my way. The miles will follow the time goes and everything is ok. The landscape changes, the city is passed to the industrial hub ... ugly?? Macaroni! My calculations on the refreshment I see that are wrong, are clearly lagging behind what I had calculated, but I do not even try to recover Shot down and even go on like this without problems, so I know I'll get to the finish. Reach James, do a bit and then the elastic detachment. Caramel meeting on a climb and pitch too. The sun is up, I see the sea and are alone and this gives me an inner peace that only the Tibetan monks may have. After a while, from a distance, I see the silhouette of Henry slowly, and I know who suffer much moisture and it will withdraw from them recently. Mentally, my first stop is at Corinth, I'm always alone and I go very well. On the way up before you get close to see an American guy walking and I ask him if he had problems, he says he walked the climb and then resumed, and continued going forward. After a while I reached this athlete, begins to exchange jokes and meanwhile surrenders in Corinth, we take pictures and go on. This guy has a special technique that is running for fifteen minutes, then I walk an hour and stops to do some stretching. Always have a bottle of water and wonder how I have no. Once in a CP requires me to take one but it is too heavy so I empty two-thirds of the content and then will supply more and various refreshments. The clock is ticking and I food with a gel every hour and drink coca cola or tea and water at several stops in the various cp c'incita American family, have now become my supporters and is also a real pleasure. At a certain point I tell Harvey to go because I had to change my socks, I do not see again ... .2 days later at breakfast, I will say that he had retired because night of the flood. We are in the afternoon, the city, the sea has given way to vineyards and the departure of that snake now only a vague memory, you see only small groups, is now full run. The more it goes on and also remains an aura of vineyards in the memory, now is the whole country even if used to open dump, with dead animals at the foot of the road that anticipate our pace, sometimes coming back from the traces of past civilizations was and that made me understand what was ancient Greece. In the various towns where people transit makes me feel its warmth, sometimes popping and kids asking for autographs. The route is all ups and downs that leaves no breathing and it is much harder than I had seen in movies, and I thought, but that's okay. It approximates the evening, the temperature drops dangerously, a little 'tired of peeps, but go ahead. A few drops of water coming down. "Damn right it did not take," I tell myself. Having miscalculated the race pace I spare much further. The darkness seems to have an octopus wraps its tentacles to me, I did not light I have nothing ... just the k-way I had expected I could be useful. The loose and I wear it, I fix a bit 'damp. After a bit 'cold and the rain starts to come down while I make extensive lower body temperature. Water I enter hooded raincoat, bath me and everything becomes difficult to resist but I am calm and go forward. I can help a criminal code that helps as an oasis in the desert going so save me. I ask for volunteers a night light, now the flood rages, however, another intuition saves me the race. I ask the athletes of the garbage bags and so do I, at first I make a hole for the head and arms and put up the second only a hole for your head and wear, so bound by ' I make a hole inside his head to let out light and resume running perfectly waterproofed. The rain shows no signs of quitting, I drink a cup of hot broth me back a little of that, the division while the other athletes are repaired by the storms. I get to a point where there is a drop-down dirt, a wash of water along the entire width and length, and no risk way because you do not see where support for the feet, the flow is the highest of my caviglie.Dopo a little rain falls but I do not divest the bags and raincoats. Arrival at cp thirty-four Andrea and I sat next to me says it will withdraw a resting spot. I ask him to join me, I will not leave him alone even though he knew that his condition may also cause damage to me. Call home, told of his intentions and I at this point is only a mile to the rest I leave because I'll have a massage. Check point thirty-five, one hundred twenty-four km race after thirteen hours thirty minutes of humidity and rain. I stop, I lie on a table and I do have a massage, at which point the officer touching the muscles of a leg tells me to get up for a moment because he wants to check something strange. "You have your pelvis out of alignment, it is risky , want to continue? "In all the quiet answer," YES !!!", because I think practicing an extreme sport I can get to caress and embrace death. Unlike the speech would have been if the doctor m'avesse ripped the chest, in that case I would have to accept the decision. Are now twenty and forty, and it seems the night is dark ... meanwhile begins to rain. I decided then to extend a bit 'to stop eating a nice plate of spaghetti, the digestion could not adversely affect my gait as I walked for about an hour even though at a quick pace. This will be the only hot meal solid food that I will send down in thirty hours of travel. Downpours alternating with brief sunny spells one after another, the various cp are exceeded. It 's still long ... but that's okay! Fatigue and tiredness are now my fellow travelers, however, are not heavy and oppressive, cohabit peacefully with them because I knew would come, accept them and they make me happy ... but company I'm in charge and I make them shut up. Long before the arrival at the steep mountain dirt road, it is very difficult, not an end. I reach many athletes, but this is not a problem for the cp me.Sono the foot of the mountain ... great drink and allotment. Start the dirt road that climbs the mountain and covers. It 's very dangerous. Slips, there are many athletes who stop turning because they perceive to be hung on the wall on a narrow street, accompanying them on the volunteers .. I fall twice, m'aggrappo stones and helps me Corrado, another friend Italian with whom after ten minutes of talking in English I find I have the same nationality. With great difficulty coming up, there refreshment take a sleeveless fleece that I had to bring them and start the descent. The road is wide, slippery, steep and with large stones set in gravel, if I get more speed and I do not stop down em'ammazzo risk of ruin, so much calma.Dopo a bit 'another pause a bit' longer and are achieved by a little group formed by Italian athletes only, it goes together, trying to keep up morale. So we get to laughing and joking cp fifty-two after twenty-three and a half hours of racing we are told that Ivan won the race ... the adrenaline goes up to the highest level, cry and sing the national anthem ... a really good time. We share all at once But the advantage on the closure of the next restaurant is gradually declining and has dropped just quaratacinque minutes. We wonder whether it made sense to continue to sink all, or to continue with their own forces. Paul is the one most in need at that time tells us to go, with great sorrow we leave to its fate, but will after a tremendous force that will take him to the finish. I continue with James and Philip, after a while 'even the athlete comes off the Umbrian and triathlete and I continue Puglia. A note of particular merit goes to James Maritati for the support he gave to Paul during the night, waiting on the mountaintop for a quarter of an hour, wiping the sweat and the rain it was quite motivating and moment by moment, step by step. JAMES GREAT !!!!! It runs really well with his friend in Puglia, but let's move on to the great reproach of the rush to tear. By now the sun is high and I still wear the night, her eyes seem to beg me to want to quit but I'm stronger than all. Cp sixty, I say to James that our paths diverge here because I change and I do have a massage minuti.Tanta losing about twenty people pass me and call back the ranking, I do not care that much. I get back together and quietly allotment from now ... a new and fantastic race. A nice downhill and then a lot of miles uphill where I seem to have two speeds more than all, review all the Italians and many other athletes. Seeing my all m'incitano prodigious pace, enthusiasm always takes me more. James still reach that says "Go, go, come on, you're doing great," I see him in trouble. I'm a few tens of meters with him trying to understand the situation, which unfortunately is critical. I talk to him tell him to the finish without him coming, I slow down and I hold her hand. As an older brother tells me to go and that he will arrive at the finish. With a heavy heart that distribution, the goal now is left is a twenty-five miles in normal conditions a breeze ... However, after two hundred kilometers is a little different. It's drizzling a little bit more and I get back in trim from rain. ... And now I see only goal while missing twenty kilometers, I stop and I shall have an advantage over massaggio.Il closing time of the next CP is huge and I can afford it, perhaps even exceeding long stay with the zelo.Mi reaches Popof and advice to him massaggio.Il a masseur at a certain point I have to the tibia at a point and makes me very badly, again with the fear that could happen to me a few minutes qualcosa.Dopo Philip is still behind me and tells me it's broken immediately because she was while massaging addormentando.Lui not keep my rhythm, I go ... it's a race dissolved and quiet flight down, up and slow down the pace on the straight is sciolta.Moltissimi athletes bent almost overcome by fatigue and overcome, many of the roadside looking for a little peace of mind. I'm almost at Sparta, the road is a long discesone full of twists and turns, I feel like a Formula One car that cuts all the corners looking for the best path, I have the chills, but this time it is not cold. Five kilometers from the finish begins to cry with joy, thinking of all the sacrifices made to all the people who had spurred on the path of preparation and my family ... thinking and weeping arrival at the penultimate cp, drink and see as always missing the last two miles and three thousand feet dining ... "Well there are less than four kilometers" and instead I tell myself when I see the last checkpoint instead of missing half a mile, two miles and one hundred metri.Non I lose heart. They are along a straight road followed by a baby in a bike that shows me the right way, sudden sharp bend to the right and down the street in front of me stands majestically in the distance and the beautiful statue of King Leonida.Smetto crying, and I waved the banner of Inter I enjoy silent and rapt that momento.La people applauded from the balcony, bars and restaurants I scream and I are having a party and the kids in m'incitano bicycle. There are two hundred and fifty meters to the finish, the drape is closed in a fist bianconerazzurro right in and start to urlare.Sono crazy, stands in the road a roar, jumping for joy, people m'osanna ... I won ... THEY ARE THE KING ARE THE SOVEREIGN OF SPARTA!. Jump up the steps leading to the statue's arrival in and jump with a leap even the last remaining instead of doing like all that caress your foot, do a dunk like basket.Ad are waiting for Henry and Andrea who complimentano.Fotografie Rite I take off my hat and my glasses and the Mayor surrounds the head with a laurel wreath, a young lady makes me drink from a phial. And 'The apotheosis. At this point I take the banner of Inter and lie down on the ground, I start posing as Paolina Bonaparte to the delight of all fotografi.Due the nurses bring me to the medical tent, I collect the blood pressure control and then I take off shoes and socks to wipe my feet and see if there are blisters or nail going badly ... wonder if any of ciò.Mi I want something to drink and I tell him: "While you're well take me a mega sandwich" ... Because I'm their king accontentato.Mi come immediately put in a taxi and go to the hotel, a nice refreshing shower and I lay in bed a little . I am an oven, flushed look like a source of much calore.Dopo some roads go in to wait for the other amici.Con my enormous satisfaction are one of the few without any problems and I walk well, many others have all my freshness problemi.Di I have to thank Vincenzo Esposito, who is my coach, really great! But now I want to remember the tragedy of Max, who sports two kilometers from the finish we have seen the pectoral tear because the judges out of time ... after two hundred forty-four km absurd, but it is the regolamento.Un big applause goes to the two Italian friends who have taken el'hanno led to the finish line holding him, the courts and people have still paid tribute to all the honors and also at the evening gala was called to the stage ... It 'HIM THE WINNER ... GREAT MORAL MAX. A curiosity, the first three finishers Italian Cudin namely, me and Poponesi, we are all born on the fifteenth February ... there is a reason '... In the evening, along with James and then we go to celebrate riposare.La morning after a nice walk downtown, pick clothes from the various check points and in the evening we go to celebrate the victory of Ivan at the restaurant which is so close to the Philip and I when we arrived we hit the base of a pole as if it was the foot of King Leonidas ... understood the irony?? Monday morning in a little beach and in the afternoon with a nice trip dining out, where the dinner was not only "out" but a little tutti.Serata with prizes for all entrants and cena.Ad a point in the evening all of us Italians go up on the steps of the arena that hosting with the tricolor in his hand and sang the national anthem. is a triumph, all the coaches and athletes from all over the world there applaudono.MOMENTO EMOZIONANTISSIMO AND WE ARE ALL WITH tears in his eyes. Not only are athletes we ran this fantastic race but also the escorts George, the father of Philip, Valentina, the companion of Paul, who was moved when we did the compliments to his partner for having found the strength to get to the finish, the Emily , wife of Alexander ... well done voi.Concludendo also say that it was a great experience, a wonderful avventura.Voglio thank my family, my coach, my company Reggio's Event and all the friends who shared with me this gioia.In many called me crying saying that Athens had made life of the very strong emotions, many have been attached to computer for steps at checkpoints at night, they fear for me and many were the messages on Facebook.Nei days after his return to Italy was all a festeggiamento.Arrivato in Reggio Emilia are now leaving for Rome where I have received three very good friends, two of them also runners.Gli ultramaratoneti, in the world, Mauro Firmani Gianluca Adornetto and (in many marathons are the pacers) have welcomed me, hugged and the tears ran down his face continued to thank me, Mauro has run me down and even shined shoes, Travelling to the Termini station did not understand and were esterrefatti.Siamo went to the bar in front and we took many pictures with the medal and the plaque with people watching us more and more amazed. LORD I AM THAT I THANK YOU FOR ALL THE SUFFERING you have shown me. Immortalized by that URL HUNDREDS OF PHOTOGRAPHERS AND THE GOAL 'THAT THE CRY FROM THE DEEP OF MY HEART WANTS TO GET IN ANYWHERE YOU ARE AT THIS TIME. THANKS AGAIN. For now, though low profile, nothing happened, a bit of rest, vacation in Rio de Janeiro and then again for another adventure ... "NINE HILLS RUNNING"
