Susanna Ylinen skated 200 kilometers in Kallavedi

– It was really nice, really fun, Susanna Ylinen says with a big smile.

Judging by her expression, the woman has gone for a run of a couple of kilometers. In reality, it was almost nine hours of sports performance, during which Ylinen skated 200 kilometers.

– In previous years, I had looked enviously at men who weighed 200 kilometers with a glazed look in their eyes and a bent back. I was wondering if I would be up for it? Last year I decided that it’s for me – or at least I’ll try!

Previously, Ylinen had “only” skated 100 kilometer runs. There were 7–9 of them on the belt.

The story continues after the picture.

The cold came

On the last Saturday of February, Kallavedi had a frost of 5–8 degrees. The wind blowing from five to six meters per second made the air fierce.

– During the first 100 kilometers it even got warm at times, but then it got terribly cold, Ylinen says.

The chills were probably exacerbated by dehydration. The woman had drunk only four desi during the first hundred years. He didn’t have time to drink enough, because it was a competition, and Ylinen didn’t want to drop out of the top ropes.

The actual race was 100 kilometers. Ylinen won the SM gold in the women’s series and was sixth in the overall competition. He skated alone for the last century.

– I tried to attract men to the second hundred, but since it was not an official race trip, no one went.

Between the hundreds, Ylinen took a one and a half minute break, during which he drank a liter of liquid and went to the bathroom. After the break, the next 40 kilometers were just as painful because of the cold. She added tank shorts, then a vest and merino mittens.

However, nothing helped until suddenly at 140 kilometers everything changed.

– Feelings suddenly rose when the fluids were absorbed. Euphoria struck. I knew I could get through this. Then I just enjoyed the last 60 kilometers.

The story continues after the picture.

Back stuck

Ylinen pushed around the 7.5-kilometer Lenk on touring skates.

– The men laughed that I give a terrible handicap, because they had speed skates.

However, the hiking skates felt better on the feet, so Ylinen preferred them. Still, during the 200 kilometers, chafing and cracks were not avoided.

– I already felt at the beginning that the sock was torn, but I didn’t have any seam to fix it. I thought welcome bladders, now let’s skate! I don’t care about them. If I had reacted to every problem, then I would have been able to fix something all the time.

I felt the most pain in my back. The low and static position was raw, because Ylinen was not used to such a position.

– After the race, it was really difficult to take off the mono and put on socks. For a couple of days, there wasn’t much bending over after the race, Ylinen laughs.

The story continues after the picture.

To the sauna!

After the race, Ylinen’s sister took the lust athlete to eat and warm up in the sauna. At the end of the work, the freezing cold hit the body again.

– I put on two down jackets and went to sit in the sauna. Little by little, the heat started to return, Ylinen says.

The appetite was endless on Saturday night, and the water still tasted good two days later.

The story continues after the picture.

New adventures

Ylinen is a mother of four children. He hikes a lot with his family and has previously sought his limits on ultra tours of various sports.

Ylinen turns 40 this year. In honor of that, he plans to attempt four wild sporting feats. 200 km skating was the first of them.

– This was the easiest of them, the woman says.

He doesn’t want to reveal the other three yet, but it’s four different sports.

– The following are also ones I have never tried before. I’m looking forward to them with a little dread, but my fingers are itching already!