The north of Lanzarote once again surprises the most demanding athletes with spectacular landscapes
Sport, mountains, landscape and a spirit of achievement – these aspects came together again last weekend in the event held in the north of Lanzarote, a place internationally known by lovers of mountain races for the Haría Extreme Lanzarote competition, a test that was to host the World Trail event in 2020 but which had to be cancelled due to the pandemic. This year, due to the continuing uncertainty of the health situation, Haría Town Council decided not to hold the event, but wanted to keep its promise to the faithful trail runners who had already marked the date on their calendars, so together with the Club Haría Trail Team (HTT) they organized the Haría Titán Lanzarote Trail Race. The competition surprised everyone with its high participation, with 550 registered athletes, and with the interest shown by foreign athletes, who made up 70% of the total number of participants.
Despite not offering notable altitudes for mountain races, Lanzarote has managed to position itself very well among trail events at national level. This is because the lack of altitude difference is compensated for with unique landscapes and with organisers who take care of every detail of the routes and look after the participants. The Haría Trail Team is a local club with experience in organizing MTB and trail events.
The Haría Titán event was made up of three race modalities: 40 km, 21 km and 14 km, all of them starting and finishing in the beautiful Plaza de Haría. On the day of the race, the sky was completely clear, giving the impression that the organisation had taken this detail into account too, ensuring the participants would have clear views of the landscape surrounding them during the race.
The race kicked off at eight o’clock in the morning with the start of the main event, the 40 km race. The Gallo Mountain, the beautiful Gallo Valley, the views of the Guinate Valley and the impressive La Corona Volcano were some of the places through which the participants of this distance passed. Marta Molist, current Spanish Ultratrail champion and first place holder in the CCC modality of the UTMB, took the victory in the women’s category. In the men’s category, local runner Jachinso Hernández was the first to cross the finish line.
The 21 km modality was the next to get underway, and this distance saw the largest participation of the day, with 180 runners accepting the challenge. The route covered fewer kilometres than the main event, but had landscapes that would force participants to go slower, allowing them to enjoy the environment that surrounded them for as long as possible. The fabulous Alto de Malpaso, the Mirador Rincón de Aganada and the demanding Alto de Malpaso were features of this route. It took Belinda Guillén just over two hours to reach the Plaza de Haría, a few minutes after Raúl Caraballo and Rubén Rodríguez had crossed the finish line together.
Finally, at 10:00 a.m. the start was given to the participants who had signed up to run the 14 km course, a distance that completely surrounded the village of Haría. This race went through places like the Valle de Los Castillos, the Vega de Máguez and the unique Montaña de la Atalaya. Many smiles were seen in the Plaza de Haría after completing what for many was their first experience in a trail race. Nuria Muñoz and the Ledesma Ramos brothers were the fastest to complete this modality.
Participants and organisers were very satisfied with the final results of the event. Haría proved again that it has that something special that hooks lovers of this sport, and it is clear that Haría’s Town Council is already working to celebrate a great trail event in 2022 that will offer a starring role to the mountains of the north of Lanzarote and its spectacular scenery.
