François D’Haene – Le Chemin du Retour | Les coulisses d’une année mouvementée !

Le Chemin du Retour… et quel chemin, bien plus technique qu’un Chemin des Anglais, de nuit, humide et en marche arrière !

Pendant l’été 2022, une fracture de fatigue m’oblige à renoncer à la Diagonale des Fous, mon objectif principal de la saison. Fin 2022, le sort s’acharne et une triple fracture m’éloigne des sentiers pendant plusieurs mois, alors que je n’avais jamais connu de blessure majeure.

Je vous emmène avec moi dans les coulisses d’une année mouvementée 🍿

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The way back… and what a way it was, much more technical than a Chemin des Anglais, at night, wet and backwards!

In the summer of 2022, a stress fracture forced me to give up the Diagonale des Fous, my main goal for the season. At the end of 2022, fate took its toll and a triple fracture kept me off the trails for several months, even though I’d never suffered a major injury.

Let me take you behind the scenes of an eventful year 🍿

© réalisé par Nicolas Favre – @nico_films_

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Being back on the start line of the Diagonale des Fous isn’t easy at the best of times. This year was really chaotic for me. and it’s this adventure that I’m going to relive and tell you all about. In June, when I was preparing for Hardrock 2022 I felt that something wasn’t quite right after a minor fall in a stream. I had a weird little pain in my heel. It took me a very long time to figure out what it was. I could go on very long bike rides without it bothering me. My foot wasn’t really swelling up. Then, I managed to run the Hardrock with a bit of discomfort At that point, it was really just a bit sore but there was already something niggling. Actually, I recovered well afterwards, I restarted training for the Diagonale, gradually increasing the training throughout August. I managed to do the Echappée Belle almost painlessly Then, at the end of September, when I tried to resume my last training block before leaving for the Diagonale, that’s when I noticed something really wasn’t right and coming back from a training session it got a bit worse and that’s when we discovered that there was a large bone oedema on the calcaneus and which tended to open up a little and transform into a stress fracture. This was also when we were preparing Ultra Spirit so he decided not to run the Diagonale des Fous. That’s great! It was a pretty tough decision to take but it wasn’t that difficult to take, because it was obvious to me that I needed to rest and look after myself to be able to be back in good form afterwards. We’ll need to lose 10 kilos before the Pierra Menta! Just a tiny bit of bacon in the soup, just to have a bit of flavour! A little bit every day, just for the sake of it. just for the sake of it, yeah. His foot was starting to get a bit better, but well, he was trying to be careful, to not run downhill that’s why he was doing a bit of paragliding again. So, one Monday morning, I was coming down from my usual training session, as usual, I land next to the house and I do two or three steps as I land and I realise that my right foot no longer works and my ankle is completely twisted. So, when I went to get him in the field behind the house I immediately saw that it was… that it wasn’t going to be just a minor thing. When I arrived up there, François was looking very peaky, his ankle was at a right angle. So, I put him in the boot of the car with a poultry farmer’s help, old-school style. We went down to my doctor’s surgery, where we have an x-ray machine, etc. In the mountains, we are always kitted out. I look at the x-ray and take out my phone, we needed to find a surgeon immediately. With the X-ray done, I meet the surgeon. I must admit, I now realise just how serious it is; a triple fracture of the malleolus. So, then for me it’s obvious, I’m going to be off for a while. and…obviously, now… Now, it’s not a case of counting the days, or even the weeks out of action. Now, there are different opinions on how I should start again what it’s going to be like. There are some positive aspects, but there are nevertheless a lot of uncertainties and doubts. At any rate, everyone is pretty clear when they tell me that the next six months will be intense and very difficult The most stressful thing is François who asks you the question, and you know it’s coming, "Will I be able to run again?" And well, we don’t have the answer. It’s a little bit hard, then there’s all the rest afterwards: the plaster cast, the operation, the plaster cast. and there are the crutches, and months on the sofa. A very tough period, during which we had to adapt as a family and try to deal with it as calmly and as best as we possibly could. Basically, this is to try and reduce the oedema a little the inflammation, They are 25-30-minute cycles. We already do as many as 3 to 4 in a day so afternoon snack time comes around quick! My second favourite pastime of the day. The moment when we started to have doubts and reconsider things Will he be able to run again? Is his career over? Will he be able to return to elite racing like this? There’s a ton of metal in his ankle so, we were saying, we’re not out of the woods yet, it’s necessary to undergo extensive rehabilitation well guided, pay close attention to every symptom. To be honest, we weren’t feeling very at ease, we were wondering, "will we get François back to his original self one day?" Have fun! See ya man! So, it was a really long forced rest but honestly, I’m surrounded by great people, I try and stay motivated, and tell myself there are other sportspeople who are less fortunate than me, that this is the first time in my life I’ve ever been injured, that it’s only 6 months that I need to stay positive so I really try to keep busy, to set myself milestones, goals, to deal with it as best as possible, to do everything as seriously and intelligently as possible. So, there’ll be daily sessions at the physio’s, a lot of effort, rehab work at home. For this treatment we have very little… there’s no consensus, there aren’t any norms, it’s still a major trauma, so it’s him who will define the outcome as we don’t have a set protocol, like a cruciate ligament or a sprained ankle when we know how much time that takes. So, before, after! So then, from January he was able to go to CERS, in Cap Breton for his rehabilitation. From then on, I think it went pretty quickly The first stay there, I arrived with crutches, barely able to put my foot on the ground and after 2 weeks I left… personally, I felt like I was a long way off from walking, but I can forget about my crutches, I can cycle again, I can move a little and most importantly, when I get home I realise I can get my foot inside a ski boot, and that makes me feel really good! Ok, the pressure is on, will my foot get into my boot? This is the toughest part of the day. The surgeon has authorised 45 minutes. Ok, he said 300 metres, but then it turned out that I do a bit more than 300 metres in 45 minutes. So, I called him back, he said "Okay, 45 minutes." We’re better out here than at the physio’s don’t you think! I’m getting a bit too over confident, that ain’t good! We’ve even missed the runny nose! Next, we plan a second stay at Cap Breton. Again, again, go, go, Pull, push, pull, push, Push, pull back, push, pull back. So, we plan a second more intense stay at Cap Breton where the focus is on starting reathletisation and to see if from being able to walk, I can turn it into slow running, and therefore impose heavier demands on my foot. Today, we’re going to try and run, if I still know how to put one foot in front of the other! it’ll work.. I’m going to be assisted by an anti-gravity running machine, which means you can reduce the weight on the foot strike, therefore by reducing the body’s weight, we will be able to rediscover the motion of running. I think we’re going to try and do around 15 minutes. We gradually increase the load to see how the ankle reacts and every day we either increase the length of time, or the distance or the incline to increase the load. and that’s it. Little by little we’re getting closer. We really need to build up calf muscle strength to be able to absorb the stresses of running. So, muscle gain, joints, bones and trophic levels are all starting to look good, so now, it’s really focusing on the muscles and getting him "up and running"! Go, go, go! Go François! He has two aerobic sessions per day with me, where we don’t directly treat the ankle issue, but we’re treating the specific nature of his sport and it’s at a very, very high level. He can’t afford to fall behind in his training. A little recovery time on the bike to round off the day. Just a 10-hour day… At the end of this stay, in between, I manage to run a bit around the track and so it opens doors and above all I’m realising that with all I’ve achieved over the last 2 weeks, ski touring is much, much more feasible. So we could both register for the Pierra Menta which was a really nice project to do together, and I think it did him a lot of good too. To be able to experience that together was brilliant, We could enjoy some great climbs, I tried to help a bit in the climbs and guide her a bit in the downhill and so without taking too many risks, and so we had a really amazing Pierra Menta together that we would never have thought of doing it together. It went really well, it was a really great adventure that we experienced together. It allowed me to return into my world, my universe, where I might usually ski a bit more intensely but it really gave me a taste of things to come and the desire to get back on the trails as fast as possible. The winter goes well, he manages to train well, he starts having good sensations. He does return to CERS one last time early spring for more reathletisation. When I returned I was able to do 7-8 km in between and pretty quickly I was doing 10-12 km. I was able to go back and explore the Pyrenees, be in the mountains, do a bit of trail running, long excursions even if I was just going slowly. And then, at the end of the stay, a kind of weird pain, I felt like something else was wrong, something wasn’t right that I wasn’t recovering properly as I usually would. So, on the MRI we clearly saw two new lesions, femoral neck at the sacrum, so two new stress fractures that stood out, you could see them clearly. Once again, I had to tell François, "Listen mate, you need to rest again" and yes, we’ll need to do some deeper research because stress fractures three times in one year, as well as a traumatic fracture on landing, that’s starting to add up. I really fought for the first 6 months after the broken ankle and the beginning of May was really… it was very, very difficult for me to accept that, to acknowledge that we had to start from scratch and search for something that we might not even find straight away. So, that meant running was out of the question, no shocks, fortunately, he could go cycling. So, he put all his energy into cycling. François can’t sit still, he needs to move! From early May to the end of July, I was focused on this healing process to understand what had happened, and do the necessary tests. I think I did my very best to heal properly. I did a few more hours on the bike than planned by doing successive excursions, and long mountain circuits. But we were pretty clear that cycling wasn’t going to cause me any more discomfort or pain, and it was important for me to re-boost my mindset and rediscover a more positive impetus to put me in the right direction so I could plan the future. I really followed the plan to the letter up until the end of July and then very slowly I started to go hiking in the mountains with the kids, slowly start doing some mountain vert again. And it’s tough because you start by doing 300, 400, 500 metres of elevation climb and the next day you’ve got huge aches and pains because of the downhill and so you’re starting again from scratch. In the end, you realise your body has great muscle memory and after a week, ten days, two weeks, you notice that you can you can actually tap into what you can do, and rediscover your sensations in the mountains. From August onwards, he could return to the trails, so it was really a nice time, and to also go out running a bit with Jim to prepare for his UTMB®. So then we were really starting to think about the comeback, what goals did we have in our sights? and when should we schedule the operation to remove the plate and screws? We had the launch for the Salomon collection for which I was hoping to be able to run. and we also had our event that Carline and I organise at the end of September, Ultra Spirit We decided to try and say we’d move the operation to the end of September or in October to give us 5-6 weeks to be able to play outside! From around 10th August, we started to do back-to-back weeks with elevations of 7,000m, then 9,000m, 12,000m, 15,000m, sometimes even more to finish in mid-September with weeks of around 200km and roughly 30-40h. François needed a goal at the end of the season to test his body and his sensations. We saw that these five weeks, let’s say, which were intense training sessions, hadn’t had any adverse effect on the progress that had been made, my vital signs had stabilised. Overall, the test results were pretty reassuring, they weren’t excellent, but they weren’t that bad either. We all agreed to say, okay we’ll give it a shot, but by not getting carried away and if there is the slightest doubt or something’s not right, we stop, we’re not taking any risks. When we analysed it all, we said, if we set this challenge in motion, which for me was to return and do the Diagonale des Fous to give the adventure a shot in 2023! The Reunion Island trails! And we’re off again! This section is as runnable as ever! So, here we are back on Reunion Island. This makes me happy, I feel good because last year I was here but I couldn’t go on the start line. Since then, I’ve had a really tough year and today just to be able to say that I’m on the start line and to be here full of desire, renewed energy and motivation at the start, it makes me extremely happy. I think he’s in a very positive frame of mind. He’s got the drive and the mindset. I think it’ll be a first to do an ultra race with a metal plate and screws in his ankle. That’s the hindrance that we have.. Will it hold up? How will the ankle deal with it for such a long time? But he seems confident to me, he wants this, so he’s done everything possible to make it happen. and I hope we can crack open the champagne at the finish line. I’m actually pretty happy that he’s doing it, I think it will do him a lot of good. and obviously, I’m also a bit worried, let’s just hope it all goes well. Let’s cross our fingers that there won’t be any injuries or anything, Not bad! We can carry on preparing the aid stations. This race means a lot to me because this was my first-ever 100-miler in 2009 So this year will be my 6th Diagonale. Yes, I hope to be able to enjoy it as much as I have in all the other editions. At any rate, it’s already a victory to be on the start line. To relax, I’m going to bed. I never even dreamed of being here, I just wanted to be able to run in the mountains. We had five incredible weeks, so the route that brought me here was sheer happiness for me and I need to keep that in mind because the Diagonale des Fous will not be easy. We’ve had time to do a bit of scouting, we went to the Cirques, we did 2 or 3 great traverses, to enjoy sweating in the local humidity and acclimatise, check out 2 or 3 sections, and most importantly to reconnect with these trails, the atmosphere, rediscover my pace, my bearings. So, that’s why it was important to me to come a little earlier than usual, usually, I arrive 5 or 6 days before, this time, we arrived 8 to 9 days before. This meant we could take 2 to 3 days to cross Mafate, go back down to Cilaos, do some great scouting. We’re starting to prepare the aid stations. Try and figure out how long it will take, more or less, from this point to that point which in turn dictates how much food or water we need to drink and what time we will get there? What clothes do we want to wear? What shall we put on? We break down the course route a bit, note down what the important sections are and what we need to take to which place. We’ve distributed everything, prepared the assistance for the dream team. There are a lot of things, including: food, clothes, headlamps and all that. Choose who will be where, when and how. The little bags are ready. You have to be on time at the aid stations too! Are you doing a clapper board now? – Let’s go, looking forward to it! – Go! Well done! Shall we go for a bit of a hike? Come on Okay, bye bye! It’s always fun to be returning to the start line so, I couldn’t wait to be there. The last few days went really slowly and then, there we are at 9 pm on the start line, even more people than usual, this start line always has a really welcoming atmosphere, and there you are, everyone in the same boat! Everyone is a bit stressed before this big island crossing which will be tricky for everyone concerned. The Reunion is never easy. The race sets off, as usual. I said I’d set off steadily, but my natural reflexes come charging back. So, I do a seafront start as per usual, quite up front. When you see that François has registered, your race plans take a nose dive. He takes the lead and you think, "oh boy he does seems in great form!" And then pretty quickly, we’re in a good group of around ten of us until Domaine Vidot. It’s mega hot until Domaine Vidot, we’re sweating. I’ve rarely sweated like that. So that’s gives an idea what the rest will be like. I’m thinking we’d better not forget to hydrate properly! I think we can say, the first part of the race was fast, they were all grouped together. I thought he seemed pretty good. He had a few little niggling physical pains but he was pretty confident, and physically he was OK. The section up to Notre Dame de la Paix, Mare à Boue, is not a great section for me. I know very well that my body has been compensating for a while and yes my pelvis is pretty painful and my hips are hurting, it hurts a bit all over on the flat sections I haven’t done any training on the flat or on rolling, runnable sections since early August and so I know it’s this first part that worries me the most and is stressing me out It’s really hurting, I can’t get any spring in my step, or lengthen my stride, but I’m also thinking, OK that part that I was dreading so much is done 2,700, 2,800 metres of elevation climb It’s around the 50km mark, so the pace is pretty quick compared to what I usually do in the Beaufortain and what I do in the mountains, but I know from then on the average speed will drop and this is where I will come into my own, it’s a great group of 5. Almost 60, 70 kilometres all together and we take it in turns to lead, we chat, we have a laugh. I’m thinking, the group may not be fast enough for me but at the same time I’m so happy to be in this group right then, to be a part of it and I’m feeling good all round, I feel like I still have a bit of an advantage. So, I enjoy it. It’s brilliant. The weather is warm. I think it’s the first time I haven’t worn a long-sleeved top on Reunion Island. I manage to stay in a tee-shirt throughout. Quite pleasant race conditions, the climb towards the Bloc and the Piton des Neiges is a bit wet but very pleasant, not particularly fast, but rather pleasant. Then we follow on with 1,100-1,200 metres of downhill to reach Cilaos early morning. Slept well, perfect! Ready to start the day! In the downhill from the Bloc, it’s a really steep downhill into Cilaos, my pelvis starts letting up, it’s pulling less around my backside but instead the pain changes, it goes inwards and my stomach is really hurting, I’ve got stomach cramps and gastric issues so I’m not feeling that great when I arrive in Cilaos. You OK? At Cilaos, I could feel it was getting more difficult it was a bit more tense in the aid station. In fact, he started to have really bad stomach ache. Go, go, go, well done! When you leave Cilaos, there’s this short downhill, then you head all the way up to Taïbit pass from the river. There’s a little over 1,000 metres elevation climb and from then on, even if we are a tight group of 5, I can feel there are varying levels within the group. The group broke up a little in the climb up to Taïbit. I think each runner wanted to keep their own rhythm in that climb. and François and I ended up together for a while. It’s such a pleasure to run with guys like that. The pace picked up a little in the Taïbit, Jean-Philippe set off, François hit the gas. and that started to create gaps. In this uphill, it seems more or less OK, but I’m uneasy about my stomach I hold off a bit, but as we go over the top of Taïbit, I think I’m in 3rd place then. On the other side, we arrive in Marla and Michel is there at the aid station. Then there’s a long section where you can pick up speed to exit Salazi side, Col des Boeufs, the Sentier Scout. There, I have my second big aid station with Victor, and my stomach still isn’t brilliant, so I do the best I can to eat some solid food, drink some sparkling water in the hope it goes but I’m slightly worried about the long downhill that’s next, the downhill from the Sentier Scout that leads you to the Mafate’s islets. I know that the downhill really shakes up my stomach and it’s hurting so it isn’t a very nice downhill, but for the moment I’m not losing too much time. Meanwhile, Germain has gone past me due to the many pitstops I have to make. I saw him stop, he was wincing, and he stopped and I thought OK we’ll see if I see him again later or not. We leave the islets behind, we cross over and arrive at Grand Place. Here, I crewed for François, who was already a little tired when he arrived, not his usual self as I’ve known him to be on an Ultra. I know this is the hottest section in the Grand Raid. It’s the section from the Grand Place where we descend right to the bottom then go to the Roche Ancrée to the river and go back up to Roche Plate. So, here I’m very careful to eat and drink properly, to leave with 1.5 litres of water to be prepared for the next section. I try to do he climb up Roche Plate really slowly, to avoid tiring myself out even more but now I can feel that the gastric issues I had have really taken their toll and I’m starting to suffer quite a lot from dehydration. I go uphill slowly telling myself, try to look at the race in general, that I must reach the finish line. At Roche Plate, it’s a bit like Grand Place where I know this aid station will be crucial and here I think I make the error of ingesting too much as I eat and drink a lot. We had the impression that he was getting a bit weak, but in fact compared to other runners, he was doing OK. We iced him down quite a bit, the heat was really stifling then. In fact, when I set off again, I manage to haul myself up the Breche climb after Roche Plate. Then, in the downhill, I immediately feel that I’m cramping and that my body is overheating, and is slightly dehydrated. And I remember having already experienced that on another race years ago. So, I tell myself, I mustn’t let my body shut down and overheat. so I immediately slow my pace, and as soon as I find a bit of shade or water I sit down I try and lie down, I try and rest. It’s a striking image of this 31st edition of the Grand Raid At the beginning of the afternoon, we see the quadruple champion struggling to move forward, he’s suffering terribly from the heat. I’m heading down to the Orangers, I see him sitting down. I say "François, what’s wrong?" And he replies "No, I’m not OK, I’m not OK". I say "Come on, get up, let’s go, let’s go together" and he replies "No, I need to sleep". So, I have 3 or 4 naps on the rocks and when I arrive at the Orangers, I have a much longer nap. I splash myself with water and lie down, but I can tell that it’s not going away, my body is still cramping, and it’s getting worse, so I decide to set off again and the downhill is a nightmare going down to the river, I’m barely moving forward. Don’t overdo it François, it’s water! The closer I get to the river, the more I think I should put my entire body in the water, even if the river is warm rather than cold, and then, I think that I’m definitely starting to feel a bit better. My body kick starts again a bit and I manage to move forward normally. We get closer to exiting Mafate. This is actually a section of the race where the climb isn’t too bad for me. I reach the top of Dos d’Âne, I think I’m 3-4 minutes behind Alexis and maybe 7 or 8 from Lambert. So, I think, OK, I lost a lot of time by napping but actually they must be tired too. OK, now I just need to make it to the finish line. Later we found out that he’d set off again and he was continuing his route. So, I try to go and see him in the descent from Dos d’Âne, where he was running but his face was incredibly drawn. I didn’t think he looked in good shape or looked that good. François, stay on track! Stay on track François! Stay on track! So we were in the downhill from Dos d’Âne to La Possession. I manage OK in the technical parts because it doesn’t hurt my stomach too much as you don’t necessarily need to run. On the other hand, when it’s more runnable or road sections, it’s way more difficult for me. Also, I can’t fuel myself properly anymore so it’s complicated. It’s not the easiest part of the race for me to manage but I try to adapt to it, I try to find a way, a few resources to keep going and despite it all to enjoy myself a bit. Then we arrive at La Possession, which is the penultimate major aid station and I’m thrilled to see Carline and all the team Here, it was really tough for him, we felt that to be able to get to the end he was going to have to really grit his teeth and dig deeper than he’s ever had to before. I was losing focus because I hadn’t eaten for several hours and I saw myself in a bad way in Mafate, I wasn’t sure I’d manage to get out of there. And at last, I’m starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. So, I set off again, still with the same desire to reach the end but I have a hard time running, as soon as I run I have searing stomach ache. I alternate sections with walking-running in the climbs I’m doubled over enough to be able to move forward but as soon as it’s flat or goes downhill it’s difficult but we get through the Chemin des Anglais and arrive in La Grande Chaloupe. Welcome to La Chaloupe, your family is waiting for you over there. We felt he’d got a bit of a second wind, but he was also really tired so he said that he needed to take naps. We put him back on the trail, he was still motivated, but really pretty weak, his energy was a little bit limited. Come on big guy! I know that from this point on, it’s mostly all in the mind. I know that the uphill is OK. There are one and half to two hours of big climbs until Colorado. You’re doing this for your own pleasure! Because the Diag remains a challenge, you need to be ready, you need to be 100% physically fit. Of course, it was a difficult comeback but he can be proud of this position. To have been up with the front runners, at least for more than half the race. He also learnt a lot on this Diag, and pushed his body pretty far, which wasn’t totally ready for the challenge. It was a daring move to comeback after a year of injuries on such a tough course. Honestly, the Grand Raid is very distinct with very technical descents. I think when you are lacking training in technical downhills, there’s no way you can make up for lost time! If you don’t give it a go, you’ll never know! I can keep a certain pace and a certain dynamism. Also, up there, I know it’s the final descent, I know that I’ve already done it when I’ve been more tired than this. So here, I try not to injure myself, stay focused until the finish line. It takes me about 50 minutes I think to reach the Stade de la Redoute where there is still quite a crowd despite the later-than-usual time. And there’s a beautiful tribute from the locals who are still there. I’m happy to have gone the distance, on my two legs, my two ankles and with my pelvis in more or less one piece, and to tell myself that yes, it was a tough day but which forced me to adapt, and that’s what I came for, so I’m really happy. I was thrilled to see him arrive in La Redoute I think he really gave it his all. I am really proud because it was so moving the way he really battled through to the end. All the public who supported me today were just incredible, it was like being at home and the fervour on the trails since last night was really fantastic. I just want to thank you because it really helped me to reach the finish. I think it’s really great that he can, after having won so many races, have the mindset to finish. I remember when I was in the Cirques, there were journalists who were saying to me "François is suffering, he’s going to drop out", and it made me laugh and I replied to them "No, not today, that’s not possible". After this year’s desert crossing, I was absolutely convinced he was going to finish and he didn’t care how but he really wanted to finish. What an impressive attitude to have from someone who is usually in the lead yet he literally dragged himself to the finish line, he has such a great attitude. In a way, it’s the end of a chapter for me. I want to thank all my team for their support and help. And today, it’s obvious to me that it wasn’t just my adventure, it was a joint one. And on the trails, it was this unwavering trust and support that people had in me throughout this period and how they helped me I relied on them even more and I also tried to enjoy it and make them happy by showing them that they did the right thing to push me, to put their trust in me and that together we can take on some formidable challenges. I thought it would be an adventure, but not of this magnitude! And that’s what we love!