For stage 4, on Friday, they told us to bring extra food in our backpacks, that we were preparing for being on the course for about 12 hours.

The day before when they announced stage 3’s details, I sat in the lounge staring blankly out the window and cried. I hadn’t cried since the Gobi March in June. Some of the other runners tried to console me, to no avail. One man said, “No crying Linh, we are almost done the Grand Slam, so no more tears.”

I think what that runner didn’t realize is my tears bring me to a place of power. Tears are my body’s way of expelling fear and anxiety, and unearthing pure strength.  Stage 3 ended up being one of my favourite days of this trip.

So when they announced the proposed plans for Stage 4, my heart sank a little. I became quite solemn, but I was mentally prepared to go the distance because it would be the penultimate stage to this entire Grand Slam journey. We had all our gear on and assembled in the lounge ready to get on the zodiacs. One of the zodiacs that had gone ahead had a very difficult time tossed among the waves, at one swell, the nose of the zodiac pointed towards the grey skies. That is when the announcement was made, “Due to extreme weather conditions, all operations on the boat will be suspended.” All the runners cheered with relief. Mary, the race organizer, was quick to add that we would try to relocate to another island. She was still hopeful that we would be doing the long stage that day. By mid-afternoon, Kelvin, the expedition leader finally made the announcement that plans B and C weren’t possible either.  We could finally change out of our gear and settle in our cabins.

The windy conditions tossed the boat around for the next 12 hours. The race doctors offered anti-nausea medicine. I have one Scopolamine patch but I’m saving it for the journey back when we must pass through the Drake Passage, so I took a Dramamine tablet and managed to feel well enough to eat some dinner and pass out until morning.

Saturday Morning: Stage 5

The course was a 3 km loop, starting from the shore and circling the base of some nearby mountains, the entire course was fraught with extreme winds which made -1 C feel like -20C.  And of course, the soft, deep snow, was an exercise in frustration.  The only comfort was knowing this would be the final stage.  The boat had to start heading back to Ushuaia in the afternoon, so no matter how difficult things got I knew that the Grand Slam would end that day.

After about 4 hours on the course, I passed the banner one final time. Celebrations at the finish line were hurried and we had to board the zodiac to get back to the ship.

We have 2 days at sea to celebrate completing this run.

This song was playing in my head all day:
“When the night is falling,
And you cannot see the light,
And when your dreams are dying,
Hold tight,
You’ve got the music in you
Don’t give up..”

I am so excited to get back home to celebrate this epic year with my friends and family!

At the briefing this morning, the race organizers said we would have a long-ish day.

They are notorious for making it as cryptic as possible.

Before coming out to do this race people kept referring to it as the

The waves have increased considerably. It is a challenge to just walk down the hall and not uncommon for drinks and plates to slide onto people

All 69 competitors have set sail. We have been warned about the extremely rocky waters of the Drake Passage, so almost everyone is using motion sickness patches.

The boat is quite luxurious. We have 3 meals a day as well as snacks and mid-afternoon tea. We pass the time by hanging out in the lounge and exchanging future race goals and dreams.

I myself can

What a year, what a year. Here we are, the morning of departing for the Last Desert, Antarctica and I'm already feeling nostalgic for this past year. I arrived in Ushuaia with a day to spare and it's been wonderful catching up with the other runners. Ushuaia is the capital of Tierra del Fuego region in Argentina, and commonly regarded as the southernmost city in the world. It is a beautiful little town surrounded by the snow-capped Martial mountain range to the north and the Beagle Channel to the south. The first three deserts were beyond my wildest dreams - each one with its own intricate set of complexities. I'm excited for the next 11 days to be wrapping up the last chapter of a very exciting year and to be reflecting with the other Grand Slammers, 20 in total, about our experiences at the 3 races. The questions that were conversation starters at previous races are no longer relevant. "How much does your pack weigh?" - now holds no meaning, as I see runners in the local shops stocking up on bottles of wine, giant chocolate bars, bags of apples, and blocks of cheese, luxuries that were not possible in the desert races as we had to carry all our gear.