092 RUNNERSWORLD.COM/UK SEPTEMBER 2019
PHOTOGRAPHS: JOÃO FARIA, GETTYTHE NIGHT BEFORE the Madeira
Ecotrail race, the rain came down in
such a torrent that I thought the entire
island might sink under the weight of water. As
we gathered on the seafront to await the bus
that would take us to the late-morning start
point, in the hills above the elegant capital city
of Funchal, the rain was still pounding the island
in a way that seemed personal. The bus turned
out to be an open-topped vehicle, which meant
it became very crowded downstairs, and steamy
too. The bus seemed to hunker down and dig its
wheels into the roads to take us up the steep
hills to the start.
There were four races to choose from in the
Madeira Ecotrail – 80km, 40km, 25km and
15km. I chose the shortest, as I was in no way
prepared for even 25km on mountainous trails
around Madeira, an island seemingly purpose-
built for offroad running by rangy types who
laugh at boulders. An autonomous region of
Portugal, it lies about 600 miles southwest of
HOT ON THE TRAIL
John Carroll visits the island of
Madeira for a race like no otherLisbon and is lush, volcanic,
rugged and beautiful in an
I-woke-up-like-this kind of
way. It’s also the birthplace
of Cristiano Ronaldo, who
some say thinks of himself
in similar terms.
The 15km begins at
355m above sea level,
at the Pico dos Barcelos
viewing point, which serves
up wondrous panoramic
views of the island. We
reached it at about 10am,
which meant we had
almost an hour to kill
before the race start. The
organisers were still setting
up, but given the atrocious
weather over the previous
hours, they could be
forgiven. The clouds finally
ran out of rain and just
hung threateningly over us,
possibly restocking. Rather
than have to pull on my
rain jacket on the move,
I wore it from the start.
Later, of course, I would
have to take it off on themove. The
weather can
change fast
around here
and it can – and
did – get awfully hot,
awfully fast.
The course, though
mostly downhill for the first
8km, began with a cheeky
little ascent, which took
me by surprise. From there,
though, we turned off the
road and began to run
along a series of levadas
down to the city. Levadas
are channels that carry
irrigation water around
the drier parts of the
island. Narrow paths run
alongside these marvels of
engineering, and it was on
these that we spent most
of our running time.
The paths were about a
foot wide, perhaps a little
more, and on one side was
the flowing water, while
on the other there was
fencing, or a wall, or, hereand there, a
drop onto the
banana trees
below. Between
the paths we
navigated a series of
steps and for the first half
of the course, it was down,
down and more down,
which was a real test
for the knees.
Because of the narrow
walkways, passing someone
was out of the question –
unless the runner ahead
was prepared to step over
the water channel and lean
against the side of a hill- and this restriction also
meant slowing down
was rarely an option.
Occasionally the track
would widen, at the end of
a series of steps, and here
it was safe to move aside
or pass someone. These
moments also gave us the
time to enjoy the views
of the rich green hills that
rise behind the city. As it
The longer routes of
the Madeira Ecotrail
take you deep into
the mountains and
to the coast, while
the short race
presents its own
challengesFUNCHAL, MADEIRA