Pillow Fight at the DATEV Challenge Roth

Jonas Deichmann is crazy. In a good way, of course. Everyone agrees on that. He wants to complete 120 long-distance runs in a row in Roth. He’s already done more than half. During the DATEV Challenge Roth weekend, we from BLACKROLL were there in person to cheer him on, support him, and run a few kilometers with him. Read on to find out how it went for us.

At BLACKROLL, we live what we love: sports—and the recovery that follows. So when it became clear that we’d be supporting Jonas Deichmann in his world record attempt, we quickly decided that we wanted to spend a day with him. You can read our article featuring Jonas, which we wrote before his start, here for some inspiration.

Number 58 by Jonas Deichmann

After Jonas had already completed over 57 long-distance triathlons, we found ourselves wondering: Just how difficult are 3.8 km of swimming, 180 km of cycling, and 42 km of running, anyway? Is it enough to be physically active and just take your time?

We didn’t set out with the ambition of completing a full long-distance race, but we got our answer right away during the swim of Jonas’s 58th long-distance race. After not even a third of the way, we had to get out of the water, spitting out water. Since Jonas swims a lot faster than we do, he was there soon enough, and the time to recover before the bike leg was short.

Still, we hopped on our bikes in good spirits. Jonas led the way on his time-trial bike. We followed behind in the gruppetto. The pace was fair, but over the long haul and distance, it was just too much for us amateurs to keep up. 90 km. The end. We can count ourselves lucky to have unlimited access to our compression boots.

The hype is real

With our legs feeling almost fresh again, we headed out for the “little run,” as Jonas always calls the evening marathon with a grin. Despite the Germany soccer game, it was clear that the hype he’s currently generating in Roth is real: Dozens of people accompany him every day. Some for part of the way, others for the entire long-distance course. During the Challenge Roth weekend, there were even hundreds.

Jonas draws people in, inspires them, and motivates them to achieve their personal bests. That goes for us, too. Although we’re all athletes, we hadn’t trained specifically for this—and jumping straight into a half-marathon cold is quite a challenge. We’re proud of ourselves. And we’re already back in the boats.

Pillow fight

The next day, the compression boots are back in nonstop use. This time, however, at the Expo Area of Challenge Roth. Here we’re set up with our event tent, and all the triathletes can see for themselves how effective the black boots are. But it’s not just the compression boots that deliver on their promises—the Recovery Pillow, designed to help you sleep better, is also a big hit. At times, this turns into a pillow fight at our booth.

Roth, we’ll be back

Challenge Roth, the local community, Jonas Deichmann—you simply have to see and experience it all at least once. An incredible atmosphere, thousands of spectators, athletes suffering and celebrating, tears of pain and joy. We’ll definitely be back next year. Maybe even with a serious attempt to complete a long-distance race—at least as a BLACKROLL relay team.

Because, in a way, that’s also a life goal hidden deep in our hearts. If Jonas can do 120 in 120 days, surely one of us should give it a shot!?