Days six and seven of the Marathon des Sables 2013
News from the field...
Day 6 - Today wasn't so bad, apart from being dog tired and everything aching a fair bit. The terrain was relatively kind, lovely open flats and dried up lakes. I had intended to run as much a possible but the heat got a bit too much so was forced into a walk from cp 1 to cp 2 where I met Daz. We were in good spirits so continued in our individual races, but just before cp 3 I met him again and he wasn't doing so well. I really thought I was going to have to get the medics involved, especially when he started wondering off in the wrong direction and wouldn't respond when I called him! We spent the rest of the race together and crossed the finish line when I promptly burst into tears (again!). I then spent the next hour crying about everything, reading your emails, watching others cross the finish, phoning home, everything set me off! A two year journey and I've done it, I've completed the Marathon des Sables!!!
Day 7 - Today was a 'fun run' which wasn't competitively timed and I have never seen such a slow start to a 'race'. The countdown reached zero and everyone wandered over the start line, chatting and laughing. The elites were part of the main field and not sprinting into the distance and the rest of us could chat to people we wouldn't have normally been with. The whole 7km were over dunes so the terrain wasn't easy but nothing mattered, sore feet, rough terrain, dehydration, none of it mattered. The only sad part to the day was that Rob and Mark weren't with us.
News from the field...
Day 6 - Today wasn't so bad, apart from being dog tired and everything aching a fair bit. The terrain was relatively kind, lovely open flats and dried up lakes. I had intended to run as much a possible but the heat got a bit too much so was forced into a walk from cp 1 to cp 2 where I met Daz. We were in good spirits so continued in our individual races, but just before cp 3 I met him again and he wasn't doing so well. I really thought I was going to have to get the medics involved, especially when he started wondering off in the wrong direction and wouldn't respond when I called him! We spent the rest of the race together and crossed the finish line when I promptly burst into tears (again!). I then spent the next hour crying about everything, reading your emails, watching others cross the finish, phoning home, everything set me off! A two year journey and I've done it, I've completed the Marathon des Sables!!!
Day 7 - Today was a 'fun run' which wasn't competitively timed and I have never seen such a slow start to a 'race'. The countdown reached zero and everyone wandered over the start line, chatting and laughing. The elites were part of the main field and not sprinting into the distance and the rest of us could chat to people we wouldn't have normally been with. The whole 7km were over dunes so the terrain wasn't easy but nothing mattered, sore feet, rough terrain, dehydration, none of it mattered. The only sad part to the day was that Rob and Mark weren't with us.
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