{"id":167607,"date":"2025-09-04T21:37:52","date_gmt":"2025-09-04T21:37:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/what-is-life-like-for-a-race-organizer-the-fire-broke-out-while-the-race-was-already-underway\/"},"modified":"2025-09-04T21:37:52","modified_gmt":"2025-09-04T21:37:52","slug":"what-is-life-like-for-a-race-organizer-the-fire-broke-out-while-the-race-was-already-underway","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/what-is-life-like-for-a-race-organizer-the-fire-broke-out-while-the-race-was-already-underway\/","title":{"rendered":"What is life like for a race organizer? “The fire broke out while the race was already underway.”"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n\"Javier
\n<\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n

Updated <\/span>

\n

Two years ago, a \u00a0massive wildfire\u00a0 threatened Portbou, a town on the \u00a0Mediterranean border\u00a0 between Spain and France. As firefighters scrambled to the scene, another group was also making its way toward the town: the runners. The \u00a0300 participants\u00a0 of the \u00a0Costa Brava Stage Run\u00a0 were progressing toward their finish line, unaware of the flames lurking nearby. What should be done to ensure their safety?<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a \u00a0dicey situation\u00a0,\u201d recalls \u00a0Jordi Vissi\u00a0, one of the organizers from \u00a0BiFree\u00a0, a prominent race organizing company in Spain. \u201cThe fire started while we were underway, and we had to assess options with the firefighters, police, and the Civil Guard. We could have stopped the race, but we needed to get those 300 runners to safety. Ultimately, we agreed with the authorities that it was best to let them finish the course and organize from there.\u201d Behind the \u00a0nervous moments\u00a0 at the start and the joy at the finish, there\u2019s typically someone like Vissi resolving the myriad issues that occur around organizing events.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn another of our races, the \u00a0Pyrenees Stage Run\u00a0, a runner broke his leg while exiting \u00a0Andorra\u00a0, in an area without mobile network coverage, and it put our team to the test. The helicopter arrived in \u00a015 minutes\u00a0, showing that we had a great team prepared for any contingency,\u201d he adds. Together with his partner \u00a0Tom\u00e1s Llorens\u00a0, Vissi decided to take on the challenge a decade ago. They wanted to more than just organize a single race; they sought to orchestrate multi-day events spanning up to a week.<\/p>\n

\n
\n\"\"<\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
\n

GUILLEM CASANOVA<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

For instance, from Sunday, \u00a0August 31 to September 6\u00a0, 150 participants in the \u00a0Pyrenees Stage Run\u00a0 will trek across \u00a0240 kilometers\u00a0 and over \u00a015,000 meters\u00a0 of elevation gain from Ribes de Freser near Ripoll to Salard\u00fa in the Aran Valley. Vissi, Llorens, and their team not only manage the course and supply stations but also the dinners and hotels for the participants; everything is included.<\/p>\n

Why Organize a Race?<\/h2>\n
\n
What motivates anyone to take on the challenge of organizing a race?<\/dt>\n
Vissi<\/strong>: Our parents founded a running club in our hometown of Blanes, and that’s where we met. We started helping out with local races, eventually realizing we needed a change. I had completed a dual degree in Business and Economics and was working in the family office. When my parents wanted to retire, I decided I didn\u2019t want to continue in that business; I wanted to focus on sports.
Llorens<\/strong>: I\u2019ve always been a mountain enthusiast. After finishing my Biotechnology degree, I had a chance to work on a study about lakes. I thought I could combine my passion and profession in the \u00a0Pyrenees\u00a0, but I spent four years with a lot of office work. I needed to get outside, and alongside Jordi, I saw an opportunity.<\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n

The Early Setbacks<\/h2>\n

In 2015, they endeavored to emulate the widely acclaimed \u00a0Transalpine Run\u00a0, one of the most famous stage races in the world. Despite the promising concept, the launch of the \u00a0Pyrenees Stage Run\u00a0 encountered a significant setback: nobody signed up. \u201cThe first edition was a complete disaster; it was a nightmare we hadn\u2019t anticipated. We had \u00a0150 places\u00a0 available but only 23 runners showed up. We lost a lot of money. We had bet everything on the project because it seemed so clear, but it took a long time to gain traction,\u201d Vissi explains. The event only filled to capacity in 2019, followed by the pandemic, which further complicated matters. Fortunately, things have changed. This year, \u00a0registrations\u00a0 for the Pyrenees sold out within an hour and a half, with two additional races already in the works.<\/p>\n

\n
\n\"\"<\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
\n

PAULA PADILLA<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cWe would love to have more local participants, but we can\u2019t grow beyond our current capacity. Since the first edition, we have limited it to \u00a0150 runners\u00a0 due to hotel capacity in some towns we visit. It\u2019s already a challenge to distribute all participants among various businesses. Now our challenge has shifted to ensuring that people don\u2019t feel frustrated when they fail to secure a spot,\u201d shares Llorens, one of the many brave individuals dedicated to organizing races in Spain.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n


\n
General News – 2<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Updated Thursday, 4 September 2025 – 23:11 Two years ago, a \u00a0massive wildfire\u00a0 threatened Portbou, a town on the \u00a0Mediterranean border\u00a0 between Spain and France. As firefighters scrambled to the scene, another group was also making its way toward the town: the runners. The \u00a0300 participants\u00a0 of the \u00a0Costa Brava Stage Run\u00a0 were progressing toward […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[36738],"class_list":["post-167607","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-general","tag-deportes-mas-deporte"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/167607","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=167607"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/167607\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=167607"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=167607"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=167607"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}