Tor on Marathon

Tel Aviv Marathon 2014

By Tor Rønnow on Monday, March 10, 2014

I turned 25 – again !

This past Friday I completed the spectacular Tel Aviv Marathon in Israel. The weather was beautifully sunny much in contrast to this past winter here in Denmark. See more on the race below.

My list of 25’s look like this:

25 27.08.2006 Landskrona (Sweden) Pictures
50 30.06.2007 Kristianopel (Sweden) Pictures
75 20.04.2008 Zürich (Switerzerland) Pictures
100 02.11.2008 Skovmaren (Denmark) Pictures
125 26.04.2009 London (England) Pictures
150 19.09.2009 Vänersborg (Sweden) Pictures
175 21.03.2010 Rome (Italy) Pictures
200 22.08.2010 Blokhus (Denmark) Pictures
225 24.07.2011 Skinnermarathon (Denmark) Pictures
250 20.05.2012 Copenhagen Marathon (Denmark) Pictures
275 28.02.2014 Tel Aviv Marathon (Israel) Pictures

Tel Aviv

Tel Aviv is a very modern, “western” city with an impressive skyline and all the things you would expect of an international metropol. However, the “poor orient” is always just a few blocks away, and the israelean security context is an immanent shadow everywhere in the infrastructure including accesses to e.g. shopping centers.

If a single point of interest should be singled out, it must definately be the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, the collection of paintings is simply breathtaking! Visiting this museum alone justifies a visit to Tel Aviv. Go there!

Jerusalem and The Dead Sea Experience

The Holy City Jerusalem is in the proximity of only an hours drive away from Tel Aviv. Visiting Jerusalem was a mindblowing experience, seeing the place where Jesus was crucified and the wailing Wall cannot be described in words. Also, taking the Dead Sea Experience is something only the body understands, however, the pictures might hint the fun.

Tel Aviv Marathon 2014

The Tel Aviv Marathon 2014 started at 06.30 in the morning on the 28th of Feb. and the day and the event turned out to be so classy with soothing views on the Mediterranean Sea and many key points in Tel Aviv. The course was not deprived of hills/”bumps” so it suited me well to merge with the half-marathon runners when hitting midtown going home from Old Jaffa. In conclusion, Tel Aviv Marathon is definately your time worth while as is Israel as a turist/traveller experience.

See or relive Tel Aviv Marathon 2014 here:

Tel Aviv Marathon 2014 – billeder/fotos af Tor Rønnow (Danish)

Tel Aviv Marathon 2014 – pictures by Tor Rønnow (English)

מרתון תל אביב 2014 – תמונות על ידי טור Rønnow (עברית)

Marathon

Outlook 2014

By Tor Rønnow on Monday, December 30, 2013

And a Happy New Year to you too !

I eagerly look forward to 2014 and to hopefully a much better running year than this past 2013, which turned out to be a bit of a nightmare for me personally. My left foot was in pain for most of the year, actually I have not been able to perform a proper “run stride” since August 2012 ! So I really beg for a miracle to happen to bring me back into the game, I miss the daily training and I miss to “try my best” at the marathons. Performing a sub-4 hour marathon again in 2014 would be a dream come true !

H.C. Andersen Marathon

There are a number of events that I look forward to in 2014. Obviously, participating in the World Half Marathon Championships in Copenhagen will be a unique experience. Shy of two months later I will celebrate my marathon 10-years anniversary in the annual NYKREDIT Copenhagen Marathon, as you know one of my favorite events. And in the autumn I hope to revisit Odense and the H.C. Andersen Marathon, the second-largest marathon in Denmark and a class act for sure !

You will find other classy races in my list for 2014, and only class events will appear on my list ! I sincerly hope that 2014 will be the year where people realize that quality is essential to, yes, everything, also running events. I think the current trend towards e.g. trail and natural running are proofs hereof . See you out there !

Marathon

Firenze Marathon 2013

By Tor Rønnow on Monday, December 9, 2013

The City of Florence
As you might know, the author Dan Brown choose Florence as the main city in which to unfold his plot in the thriller “Inferno”.

The choice is probably not accidential when you consider the historical importance and reputation of Florence, not to mention the divene “sons” of the city, the renaissance artists like Botticelli, Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci. So surely, having a marathon in this beautiful city is a must, and such has in fact existed now for 30 years ! Below you find my entire race report, however, let’s start with a few impressions of the city of Florence.

The Art in Florenze
The biggest attraction in Florence must be the incredible David statue by Michelangelo. You have to stand before this 4 meter high masterpiece in marble to understand why. It is simply beyond words, yes, beyond this world ! Add the fact that it was finished in the year 1504 B.C. and you’re left with one of the most incredible pieces of art you will ever see.

A trip to Florence is justified alone by seeing David, but once there you’d obviously pay visits to the Duomo Church and to the Accademia and the Uffizi Galleries (amongst other attractions).

Firenze Marathon 2013
Ok, the race itself, Firenze Marathon was a very nice experience ! The route was extremely scenic, the event was well organized, and the weather turned out just perfect this late Sunday in November 2013.

In conclusion, it’s pretty easy to recommend a visit to both Florence and it’s marathon race. When I re-visit the marathon through my pictures here, I’m not one second in doubt: Firenze Marathon was my best this year 2013 !

See or relive Firenze Marathon 2013 here:

Firenze Marathon 2013 – billeder/fotos af Tor Rønnow (Danish)

Firenze Marathon 2013 – pictures by Tor Rønnow (English)

Firenze Marathon 2013 – foto di Tor Rønnow (Italiano)

Marathon

BMW Berlin Marathon 2013

By Tor Rønnow on Thursday, October 3, 2013

For the second year in a row and the fourth time in toto I have had the priviledge and pleasure to participate in one of the biggest sport events on the planet, the majestic BMW Berlin Marathon.

Once again, we runners were blessed by a day with perfect weather for running, 5-15 degrees Celcius, no wind. The Kenyan Wilson Kipsang was not only the fastest of all but the fastest ever, thus booking a new world record: 2.03.23 ! What a feat – my biggest congratulations !

Below you find a series of the best pictures of the day and the full story is in the links. Enjoy.

See or relive BMW Berlin Marathon 2013 here:

BMW Berlin Marathon 2013 – billeder/fotos af Tor Rønnow (Danish)

BMW Berlin Marathon 2013 – pictures by Tor Rønnow (English)

BMW Berlin Marathon 2013 – bilder von Tor Rønnow (Deutsch)

Spirituality

Norwegian Adventures !

By Tor Rønnow on Saturday, August 10, 2013

Long before I started to run marathons, I was first – and always – a mountain hiker. Few things in the world can compete with the soothing solitude, the vast valeys and views, and the fresh air in the Norwegian mountains. This summer 2013 came to contain a pack of the best of my beloved second country.

Dalseter

As written in my July posts in 2009, 2010 and 2012, this hotel Dalster and its surroundings is a very, very special place for me. This year I managed to climb a few of the peaks nearby (Ruten and Sprengpiggen) and also tried something new, namely to ride on horse through these marvelous landscapes, to cut it short an absolutely fantastic and breathtaking experience ! Even this very day of writing I miss my white companion, Dari, of Åsli Ridecenter. Below you find a collection of the finest impressions from the Dalseter days 2013, click each picture to see in larger scale (opens in a new window/tab). In the horisonts you have the mountain chains Jotunheimen and Rondane, I have hiked a lot in these areas when I was younger. Pure love.

Jotunheimen and Besseggen

The perhaps most renowed hike in Norway is the airy climb over Besseggen, a quite demanding trip but still no harder that both kids and elderly can manage it within 8-10 hours. You sure feel walking in the footprints of Peer Gynt and in companionship with the Norwegian “mountain” poets such as Aasmund Olavsson Vinje and Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson (Nobel Prize Laureate 1903). Toss in some tunes of Grieg and the norwegain experience is total ! The trip is often done by taking the ferry from the nice hut Gjendesheim and thereafter walking back from Memurubu.

The Old Strynefjell Mountain Road and Videseter

The next experience was mainly in the car. I know what you might think. However, I am talking about the trip from Gjendesheim to Videseter passing through on the Old Strynefjell Mountain Road and in very rough and remote landscapes.

Aurland, The Nærøy Fjord and Gudvangen

The danish writer Karen Blixen made the mysterious Nærøy Fjord known through her poetry. The fjord has in recent times been added to the list of UNESCO Heritage sites and the nature is indeed as breathtaking as the pictures you see. We took the car ferry boat from Flåm to Gudvangen – passing lovely Aurland [in proximity of the incredible Aurlandsdalen], probably the most scenic fjord trip in Norway, possibly the world. We were not too lukcy with the weather, though, however, we still enjoyed coffee at the Stalheim Hotel with the spectacular view onto the Gudvangen Valley.

Haukeliseter, Hardangervidda and the meaning of Life

The last part of the trip was spend at Haukeliseter on Hardangervidda, another of the larger norwegian mountain areas. The weather was phenomenal and we managed to climb yet another peak. I have hiked in the norwegian mountains since I was 4 and days and landscapes like these bring me back to the thoughts and feelings I have had since I was that little reflective kid in the vast Nature. The intuitive feeling of the shortness of a human life span. The recognition of Nature and Life itself being so much bigger, richer and outlasting than a single individual, a community, an era in the civilization, even a geological era. So what is a Life ? It is just the days passing by, the feelings you have, the stuff you do. A human life has no real extension or span after we die, and to have a real Legacy is first of all not LIFE and secondly entirely an artificial construct based on the willingness of the hereafter. Basically, we human individuals will be remembered through two or three generations – at best – and will most likely be entirely forgotten after just 20-30 years after we die. This may sound depressing but it leaves an important point for how to live our life: DO NOT CARE ! Do you feel this or that, do you do this or that, are you rich or poor, skinny or a fat ass, nobody really cares. The important thing is that YOU care.
Unfortunately, we live in times where the media and the Internet may seduce us to think that all kinds of crap is “important” and will have “lasting effects” and what not, however, this line of thinking and living is hysteric and completely out of proportions if you ask me. No, the mountions and the Nature teach and reconnects us to the profound wisdom of living: The important thing is that you just live and let the days pass by, hopefully in happyness and with your loved ones around you, doing stuff you like. It is that simple.