The PdG, Part 2—Entry, Logistics, Gear, Etc.

Sliding along in the dark, 2022 PdG. Photo: Arolla Berger

Assuming I piqued your PdG curiosity in Part 1, here are the basics on getting into and preparing for the PdG. We’ll cover sign-up, logistics, gear, and touch on training. There’s a lot here, but it’s more detailed than complicated. 

Signing Up to Race

The 2024 PdG will take place April 15-21, 2024. The deadline to sign up for the 2024 race is September 30, 2023. Navigating the process takes a little time, so don’t dally. Check it out here and here. It’s as detailed as one would expect from the Swiss. What follows is primarily based on my experience with the 2022 race. Make sure to consult the 2024 regulations here. 

Registration, lottery, categories

There is an entry lottery to select the approximately 1500 teams. Organizers announce lottery results in late November. The registration fee is CHF 1500 (1 Swiss Franc is currently around $1.12 US). You pay when you register, but it’s refunded if you don’t get in. If you get in and cancel by a deadline in late February, you can get refunded CHF 400. 

You need a team (a “patrol” in PdG parlance) of three to register—it can be mixed-gender. You must name all team members and an alternate when you register. I could not determine from the rules on the PdG website whether the alternate must be in Zermatt at the start. Ours wasn’t, and we checked in without issue. You also name a team leader or “chef de patroluille.” I was the chef for Team Tahoe Skimo, which proved the source of some ribbing from my teammates. Suffice it to say that the chef says there’s always more climbing on the PdG pre-fixe menu. 

Organized and filed and ticking along like a Swiss time piece, race entrants gather their official documents at the 2022 PdG. Photo: Sdt Julien Franzini

There are categories for different types of teams, and they have confusing abbreviations. P1 and P2 are categories for Swiss and international (i.e., non-Swiss) military teams, respectively. P3 is the category for a civilian team with a mountain guide as one of the team members. Those teams get a preference in the entry lottery. The guide must be a “full pin” IFMGA-certified guide. We ran into another American team that included an American guide. P4 is the category for civilian teams without a guide and is the largest in the field. 

We entered in the P4 category. As a team race, there are no typically defined age groups. Still, there is a competition for “senior” divisions of the civilian categories (P3 and P4) with combined ages of (I) up to 102 years, (II) 103 to 150, and (III) 151 and over. Team Tahoe Skimo’s combined age was 146, putting us at the older end of the Senior II division.

Full or half course, start and estimated finish times

Both the full course from Zermatt (called the “Z course”) and the half course from Arrolla (the A course) are run twice during the week of the PdG, generally on Tuesday (Z1 and A1) and again on Friday (Z2 and A2). You choose whether to race the Z or A course. You can state a preference for either the first (Z1/A1) or second (Z2/A2) running, but you don’t get to choose. The Z2 race generally includes all the elite (i.e., super fast) racers, like those on national teams and those who compete in the ISMF World Cup. Start days and times are subject to weather delays. We happily started a day later than scheduled to let storm snow settle and temperatures moderate. Plan your travel accordingly.

Start times are generally from 10 PM to 1:30 AM, with the addition of a 3 AM for the Z2 running. You select a preferred start time when you register. The entry lottery gives you better odds with a later start time, but you must finish by 4 PM the following day, regardless of your starting time. There are also time cuts for certain checkpoints on the course, only the first of which varies with your start time. Generally, post-start, the cutoff is three hours to reach the Schönbiel checkpoint, which is about 10 km and 875 m of ascent. The timecuts for the subsequent checkpoints are fixed. Estimate your pace and choose your preferred start time accordingly. The regulations have a helpful chart to assist in your choice. You can start later and spend less time in the dark, but you’ll have less cushion for a slower pace. 

In 2022, about a third of all teams that started either did not finish (DNF, i.e., dropped out), were disqualified (DSQ, nearly always for not making a time cut), or finished with only two team members, which voids the team’s result. You don’t want to train all winter and jet to Switzerland to DNF or DSQ. Estimate your pace conservatively. For whatever it’s worth, we estimated a 12-hour finish and were given an 11:30 PM start time. But you’ll read more about our experience in Part 3.

Logistics

If you get in, you must plan your travel and lodging. Here’s the basics.

Fly in and out of Geneva or Zürich, then take the awesome Swiss trains. There’s no need for a car. With your race entry, you’ll receive complimentary or discount Swiss rail vouchers for travel to/from the race start/finish. Zermatt lodging for the night you start the race (and a second night if organizers delay the race) is included with your race entry, as is dinner that evening. 

How far ahead of race day should you arrive? We considered lots of options, and each team member chose differently. I arrived nearly a week ahead of the race. I wanted a big cushion to erase the jet lag. One of my teammates took the opposite approach and arrived in Zermatt the day before the race and tried to keep his sleep schedule in our home Pacific Time zone—that kind of fell apart when the race was delayed a day. Our other teammate arrived three days ahead of the race.

Since we were already in Zermatt, we remained in our Air BnB until the race start instead of switching to the hotel provided by the PdG. Another option for pre-race time in Switzerland is to book a place in Verbier for whatever time you want to spend ahead of the race and then keep it through the day after you finish. Late April is almost shoulder season, so this is less expensive than it sounds. Take the train from Verbier to Zermatt the morning of your start date, do the mandatory gear check and race briefing, and then use the hotel lodging and dinner provided by the race organization in Zermatt. Again, plan for a possible delay of your start by a day or two.  

Consistent with all its other meticulous organization, the Swiss military will transport one luggage item per team member from Zermatt to Verbier for pick up at the finish. We heard or read about a size limit of an airline carry-on, but one of our team had a ski bag with a second set of skis and gear for post-race ski touring accepted without question. 

Based on a recommendation from someone who’d raced the PdG a few years ago, I considered spending a few days ahead of the race at a hut at altitude for acclimatization. The Refugio Guide del Cervino on the Plateau Rosa near the Testa Grigia (reachable by ski lifts from Zermatt) seemed like a great option. But I didn’t do it. I live at 6,400ft and train at around 8,000ft, so the need for acclimatization was questionable. And COVID or not, I’ve spent enough time sleeping in hut dorm rooms to know the risk of catching a bug. No thanks. 

Finally, late April is prime time for Alps ski mountaineering. Many North Americans make the short trip to Chamonix after the race to get after it. 

A systematic gear check ensures each entrant skins off with the proper gear. Photo: Samuel Ebneter

Ski approved during the PdG gear check. Photo: Samuel Ebneter

Gear

Let’s talk gear. Check the official PdG regulations. A whole section—found here–details the required equipment, including the incorporation of ISMF and UIAA specs for certain items. Of course, you’ll need the usual skimo race kit, but there are some special requirements for the PdG. 

The Swiss military has a pre-race gear check that is very Swiss and very military. In a word, meticulous. Each team member lays out their kit on a table marked with outlines of each piece of required gear. A soldier then checks each piece, sometimes measuring and weighing items. They have gauges to check for minimum pole diameter and boot sole lug depth. Swiss AF! (25mm and 4mm, respectively, if you’re that much of a nerd). Stickers and tags are affixed to gear that has passed inspection.

Here are a few of the special PdG requirements and some thoughts from our experience.

Skis

Thankfully, we were not required to have ski brakes (or leashes), and it appears they are not required for the 2024 edition. And on skis, you’re likely wondering whether you want to ski that much off-piste high mountain wild snow on 65mm underfoot race skis. I did. Just commit to race skis. Ski everything on them in your training. We did see a few pairs of light touring skis on some teams doing the half-course race from Arolla, but we saw none on Zermatt starters. And we did not regret our race skis, even with the very poor conditions we experienced (more in Part 3). 

Rope

It’s the patrol of the glaciers, but you don’t need a glacier kit—read that as no crevasse rescue stuff. You do need a harness and a rope. And there are important do’s and don’ts for the rope. Do bring a 30m dynamic single rope of 8.5mm meeting UIAA Norm 101. It’s strictly required. Don’t bring a Rad Line or the like. “But why?” you whine. Remember you’ll be doing some down skiing roped up (and not just gliding down a glacier). Presumably, that could result in dynamic loading that exceeds the parameters of a Rad Line or other hyperstatic cord. And don’t attach a bungee cord to keep the rope off the snow by shortening it with draped “concertina” loops; this was previously tolerated, but no more. This prohibition makes a huge difference for the already difficult roped-down skiing—practice as a team. We did, but I estimate we could have shaved off tens of minutes by being better dialed with our roped-down skiing. We got smoked by Euros flying past us, with the lead skier calling out instructions and the tail skier taking in and letting out coils. Super impressive. And since we’re talking roped skiing, here are a couple of other notes: All three team members must tie into the rope—no clipping in with a locking carabiner. The middle person should be well practiced in tying a rewoven figure 8 on a bight. Team members must be tied in at least 8 meters apart. And, of course, all this gets checked by the Swiss Army. Again, practice is your friend. Finally, consider how to carry the rope when not deployed. You may want one team member’s pack slightly larger than a standard race pack.

No skinny hyperstatic ropes allowed. bring a 30m dynamic single rope of 8.5mm meeting UIAA Norm 101. It’s strictly required. Photo: Samuel Ebneter

Other Kit

Your helmet needs to be dually certified for skiing and climbing (UIAA 106/EN 1077-B). Check that the sticker showing the cert is intact because the friendly Swiss Army inspectors will. One of our team dodged a potentially expensive bullet on this. A headlamp is required, and since you’ll be starting in the dark and likely descending the Tête Blanche and the Col de Bertol in the dark, you’ll want a good one with fresh batteries.

A full metal shovel meeting UIAA Norm 156 is required. Forget the little toy plastic one commonly used in other races. Not sure about the 2024 race, but in 2023, with their entry, all racers got a sweet, lightweight, special PdG-branded Mammut shovel that meets the specs! A transceiver and probe (240cm minimum) are also required.

Your ice axe must meet UIAA Norm 152 and be at least 48cm long. Heads up, Petzl Ride and Gully owners; you’re 3cm short. It’s also supposed to have tip protection. We duct-taped ours. 

Boot crampons weren’t required or needed and would probably not have been allowed. The Swiss Army sculpts impressive staircases for the booters, and the way folks get bunched up on them, errant spikes could be a problem. While possible, I don’t know if conditions ever require boot crampons. Similarly, although you will encounter fixed ropes on some climbs and the initial down climb off the Col de Riedmatten, via ferrata lanyards were not required, and I doubt they would have been permitted. The ropes are optional handlines. 

Ski crampons weren’t required either, but we brought them based on an experienced local’s recommendation that they could assist on the straight-up, on-piste ascent out of Arolla. We didn’t use them but saw how even icier conditions could change that. And some people looked like they needed them. 

There are many other requirements for individual and team equipment – extra layers, first aid kit, emergency tarp, compass, team backups of some items like skins and sunglasses, etc. There is also some team kit issued by the race organization – a special mobile phone used to track your patrol’s progress, timing chips, and an exquisite Swiss topo map marked with the route. Though not required, we carried a minimal repair kit that we thought had a decent chance of preventing a DNF in case of a gear mishap. What I’ve covered is not exhaustive, so check the regulations carefully.   

One set of gear laid out for good measure. Photo: Dave Riggs

Training and Fitness 

I won’t say as much about it because it’s so personal and also simpler than the equipment requirements, but your fitness is obviously important. The PdG is a huge day, no matter how good you are or how hard you push. But it’s entirely doable. Check the time cuts and realistically estimate your pace. As I’ve said, be conservative. You don’t want to invest the time and money to DNF in Switzerland. 

The PdG is not dissimilar to many other ultra-endurance events in which many aim to complete instead of compete. No one starting from Zermatt was going at a party pace, but plenty, including Team Tahoe Skimo, were not constantly drilling it either. But there’s no time for lollygagging. I won’t give specific training advice; it’s too personalized. But this is the simple part: volume is your friend. It was helpful to “normalize” a 10k day in my training each week for a month or so before my taper. Your mileage may vary. 

While you’re building towards all that climbing, don’t skimp on training your skiing. I’ve mentioned the gnarly descending and flatly stated that you should use race skis. That means you’ll be well served by spending some resort time riding chairlifts and skiing all the available terrain in all conditions on your race skis. I wish I’d done more of this. 

So what’s it like?

You’re registered, geared up, and trained; it’s time to do the thing. Check out Part 3 for a recap of Team Tahoe Skimo’s experience.