One Last Push

On Friday night Racing the Planet organised for a local astronomy expert to give a presentation around the camp fire on the astronomy of the Atacama Desert . The laser she used to point at the constellations was quite cool, but unfortunately I could not understand a word of what she said, so shuffled back to the tent hoping for a decent nights sleep. No chance!

There was real end of term feel around the camp on Saturday morning as the hobbling, shuffling, aching competitors ate their last freeze dried meal, packed their bags for the last time and prepared for the final short run into San Pedro. 

We had expected a 16.9km run on Saturday, but the organisers cut it down to 9.3km so that they could hold a staggered start and ensure everyone reached the town at about the same time. This was a huge relief as I am not sure I could have managed an extra 7km! So at 9.30 the slowest third of the field set off, loudly cheered by the rest of the competitors. Then at 10.30 the next group left, including Gibbo who was really hobbling. Finally, at 11.00 the top 30ish competitors set off, including Hollers and I. For the first kilometre neither of us could really run. We were right at the back of the field and our blisters were so sore we both hobbled along like old men. Before setting off it had been a huge struggle to get my feet into my shoes due to the swelling and blisters from the long day and the fact that I had not put them on since 8pm on Thursday. So I was now struggling to find a comfortable gait as pain in my little toes, big toes, heels and toe pad meant that however I ran, something hurt. The first two km of the run was over a steeply undulating hard packed sand path which would have been lovely if I could have run on it properly. 

Hollers was just in front of me as he fell headlong into one of these mini valleys. He tumbled down about two metres and lay there for a split second looking dazed, then jumped up, dusted himself down and carried on. He said later that his right foot had refused to take his weight and so he had just tumbled down into the dust. Not a great start really! After about 15 minutes the blood was pumping round my feet and the pain in the blisters subsided enough for me to run with something vaguely resembling a normal stride. We ran along together with our only aim to finish in under 75 minutes, thus ensuring that Hollers did not lose a place in the overall rankings. As we approached the town of San Pedro a few people cheered us on as we passed them in the street and some kids ran up to us to give us high fives. We trotted on, through the dusty, narrow streets of the town and saw one of our fellow competitors shuffle-walking in the opposite direction already wearing her medal. We must be getting close! 

We turned one final corner and headed up the gentle slope toward the finish line. Hollers and I shared some serious mutual admiration, heaping praise on each other, before holding hands, taking off our caps, holding our hands in the air and, as the cheering from the waiting crown seemed to get louder and louder, we finally passed under the bright yellow banner for the final time. We managed to finish in just over an hour, so Hollers held on to his 6^th overall place – an amazing achievement. We had a big hug and then had the lovely Atacama Crossing medals draped over our heads. These really are medals worthy of the effort. The are big and heavy and beautifully made, so I certainly felt like all the effort had been worth it for this impressive prize. Gibbo came straight over and hugged us both. Then it was straight over to the pizza table for a slice or three of pizza and a delicious cold coke. (every time the pizza guy bought out new pizzas he opened the box and every slice was gone in 20 seconds. No exaggeration, it was incredible!). 

We spent another half an hour thanking people, hugging fellow competitors and volunteers, and having lots of photos taken at the finish line. There was a great atmosphere with a small local band playing, lots of family and friends of competitors catching up with their heroes, and plenty of satisfied competitors sitting down with big grins on their faces while others looked pretty contemplative/dazed as they came to terms with what they had achieved.

Back at our hotel (luckily only 100m from the finish line!) I quickly called Mum and Dad to let them know that I had survived and then the three of us cracked open a beer (and a pineapple juice!) and sat soaking our sore feet in the pool, reflecting on the last seven days. After a while we dragged ourselves away from the pool and met up with some other competitors for a late lunch in a local restaurant. There was already a lot of food on the table and, as I sat down next to one of the top 10 finishers, he announced that he was just about to start his third main course! There were some seriously hungry people here! I tucked into a deliciously juicy steak with chips, washed down with a few more cold beers. 

A quick change at the hotel and we were back out for the celebration banquet, held in an outdoor restaurant near to our hotel. A BBQ dinner was followed by the awards ceremony and a slideshow of all the photos of the event, which were great fun - different people cheered when their tent mates came up on screen and the female volunteers squealed whenever the better looking competitors were shown! After the formalities, we carried on drinking for a while and then, when one of the competitors proposed to his girlfriend who had been one of the volunteers all week, there was an even happier, contented buzz about the place. I was really chuffed for Emily, the bride-to-be, as she was good fun and had been really nice to us all week.

We carried on drinking and chating for a while, trying to ignore the fact that we had a 6am wake up and that the clocks were springing forward in Chile, meaning even less sleep. Eventually we said our final goodbyes and staggered off to bed. (the staggering being a result of sore feet rather than alcohol of course).

If you are still reading this blog and have not falen asleep, then well done! I am afraid that there is more to come as I wanted to put down some of my highlights, lowlights and general reflections on the event…

 
Highlights

1) Finishing the race: a definite highlight! I experienced a huge sense of satisfaction as I ran the last 100 metres and then crossed the line. It was especially good to finish with my Best Man Hollers, such a good friend and steady support over the years.

2) Scenery: the Atacama Desert is beautiful with so many interesting and dramatic features. It was real privilege to run through some of the least accessible areas in the desert and to marvel at how such huge landscapes form over millions of years. Add to that the incredible sky at night with millions of glittering stars overhead, a scene which took your breath away each time you saw it, and you surely have one of the more stunning landscapes on earth.

3) Top 10 Finishes: 
9^th Place on Day Two: the scenery during the first half of that day was amazing with river crossings, hard climbs, a stunning ridge walk and a thrilling descent down a sand dune. I was very surprised to manage 9^th place and chuffed with my determination to hold onto the position throughout the long, arduous, monotonous second half of the day. 
10^th place finish on Day 3: I was very proud of the effort this took and the fact that I held on really well despite pressure from competitors behind towards the end of the day when the course was very difficult. Hollers said that I cried afterwards because I was proud of what I had achieved and, to an extent, he was probably right.

4) Spending time with two great friends: we had so much fun and banter, as well as some very serious moments where we tried to help each other as much as possible. Both guys were an amazing support to me and excellent company. One moment sticks in my mind: after the long day, Gibbo, Hollers and I laid down in the tent with our head torches on and a pile of food in front of us. We chatted through the day, compared aches and pains and stuffed our faces. It was a really nice moment as we laughed quite a lot about how crazy it all seemed – I think we all felt both spaced out and slightly crazy due to our extreme tiredness and due to the satisfaction of having completed that long, long day.

5) The Dog: having the company of the dog for such a long time was a pretty odd feeling. He had a lovely nature. The day was proving very hard but, as I was concerned for his thirst, and also for his paws on the salt flats, it kind of took my mind off my own pain, which was nice!

6) Being incommunicado: spending time away from email and mobile was great. Some people took phones with them into the desert, but I was very glad to leave mine behind. It has become such an essential part of every day life it was nice to be without something I rely on to such an extent. Spending so much time on my own with no means of communication gave me a real chance to contemplate life, the universe and everything!

7) Messages: after a hard day slogging it was a huge thrill to receive messages from family and friends in the cyber tent. We were all very surprised at how much interest we generated. Also, so many people used the word ínspiring, which was both overwhelming and really humbling. It was very kind of people to say that we were inspiring, but the really inspiring guys are the ones for whom every step is a battle. There was one British guy, Nick, taking part. A few years ago Nick took part in some RTP events and did pretty well. He was due to take part in the Atacama last year, but fell off a horse and broke his back. He was given a very small chance of walking again, so obviously deferred his entry last year, but he recoeverd enough to take on the race this year instead. If you saw Nick walk 10 yards you would feel sympathy for him as his legs seem to wobble under him and he supports himself heavily on his walking poles. Now imagine the effort it must take for him to walk 250km on horrible, uneven, undulating terrain over seven days. Add to that the frustration he must feel at having previously been a runner near the top of the field and you realise it must have taken a monumental effort of willpower for him to complete each day. Nick, who won the Atacama Crossing 2011 Spirit Award, really is a great example and a hugely inspirational guy.

8) The camaraderie: we met some great people who were (I guess inevitably) on the same wavelength as us. As one competitor who made a speech at the awards banquet said, ´We all came here to pursue our own demons´. Whilst I am not sure I can 100% agree with him, it is clear that each person there had a clear goal to achieve and as a result we were all in a similar place with similar desires, thrown together in the middle of the desert and determined to make the most of it. The atmosphere was very much one of support, encouragement and sympathy both in the camp and out on the course. In camp, competitors lay in their tents, feet elevated on a stool, looking out and chatting to passers-by and reliving the story of the day. After each stage, the Chilean drum would beat as another finisher approached the line and there would always be a small group clapping in the latest competitor. It was common to see competitors who had finished a while ago hobble over to the finish line, clap in their tent mates and then carry their bag and water over to the tent as they had a rest by the finish line. The guys from and Guatamala made a particular impression with their singing, cheering and chanting, and their insistence of freshly-brewed coffee every day. (apparently they were also seen drinking red wine on several nights!).


Lowlights

1)      Not washing for over a week – the smell was horrific. 
2)      Trying to walk over some of the most difficult terrain I have ever seen. We spent hours trudging over miles and miles of continuous monotonous rock hard, crusty, smashed up, jagged, sharp, unstable grimness. 
3)      The pain in my feet. Now, three days after finishing the race, I still cannot walk faster than snail´s pace after the trauma my feet have been through. 
4)      The diet – heavy, bloating, tasteless, grim dehydrated meals. 
5)      The portaloos – enough said. 
6)      Illness and injury – the race takes so much out of you that I ended up suffering various indirect problems on top of those caused by the day-to-day pounding. The total toll on my body was: 
- An asthmatic cough (the doctors gave me an inhaler to help out)
- Diarrhoea
- Achilles ache
- Snotty nose and congestion
- Badly chapped  and bleeding lips
- A fever (the day after the long day I was boiling hot, but also freezing cold all at once) 
- Cuts to my legs and arms from sharp bushes
- And of course the damage to my feet and toes – blisters and bruises – which was of course expected to some degree, but I never imagined it would be as bad as it was (I still have swollen feet, two huge unbendable big toes and gunk oozing from various parts of my feet!). And my feet were not nearly as bad as other peoples. One British girl had such damaged feet that you could never imagine that she would be able to carry on. A finger of pink pus oozed from one of her wounds, snaking slowly across her foot like lava from a volcano. How she carried on, I have no idea.

 
Advice for future competitors

If I had any pointers for anyone who is taking part in the race, beyond the usual, they would be: 

1) If you are in any doubt, take poles. They were very useful and, combined with good upper body strength, can save your legs a lot of strain. 

2) Practice walking. A lot. I think I walked at least 70% of the entire race and, as walking uses different muscles to running it is well worth practising.

3) Take a pack of instant noodles for every day – lovely to eat straight after finishing a stage – salty, tasty and rehydrating and a great change from the heavy rehydrated meals. 

4) Get to know your feet very well. Understand your weak spots. Know how to tape your feet. Choose your shoes very carefully and buy decent gaiters to keep out any debris. Your feet are your most important tool in this event.

5) If you are injury-prone, try and own a freezer that can produce lots of ice cubes. I was going through about 100 ice cubes a day in the months before the race as I had to soak my Achilles in cold water twice a day.

6) Research, research and research some more. There is masses of really useful information about these races online and little ideas and tips can make a big difference when you are at the end of your tether, tired and grumpy in the desert.

7) Although pack weight is a huge issue and you want it to be as light as possible, don´t compromise on everything, especially when it comes to comfort. For example I thought I was clever taking some hotel slippers which weighed next to nothing. Unfortunately the ground in all the camps was pretty stony and I may as well have taped two pieces of A4 to my feet for all the protection the slippers gave me. 


So, was it all worth it?

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew 
To serve your turn long after they are gone, 
And so hold on when there is nothing in you 
Except the will which says to them: ´Hold on´;

If you can fill the unforgiving minute,
With sixty seconds worth of distance run - 
Yours is the Earth and everything that´s in it,
And – what´s more – you´ll be a man my son!
Rudyard Kipling

Tears all round, a full house! 
It turns out that Gibbo also cried during the event, his outburst coming on the morning of the long day. Apparently he cried in plain view as he sat up on his sleeping bag trying to tape his battered feet, totally freaked out about how he was ever going to get through 45 miles on them. He was disappointed that neither of us gave him sympathy, but we didn’t notice. I would never have imagined Gibbo crying at anything, so I probably thought he just had a snivelly nose! But the mere fact that this event reduced all three of us 36/7 year old men to tears at some point, is testament to how much it put us through and gives a real appreciation of how the mind and body can overcome a great deal if they need to.

I guess overall my primary feeling is one of pride. I am very pleased and not a little surprised with what I have achieved. I always felt that I could finish the race, but never in 13^th place. A few weeks before the race I could not run more than 20 minutes and I was pretty worried about how long it would take me to cover 250km! The longest I had ever run before was 4 hours, but I guess all the pre-race hard work and a certain amount of determination prepared me well. I was also lucky not to suffer terrible blisters or any other debilitating injury during the race. That fact, added to a competitive, bloody-minded spirit got me through the event and I am over the moon with how it went.

However, I am pretty glad that it is all over and I can return to normal life again. I can now satisfy those cravings I had out in the desert for fruit and coffee, and I am really pleased to once again be drinking tea, beer and wine after giving them up a while ago in preparation for the race.

I am now looking forward to the next chapter in my life, with my exciting new photography business. Once my feet allow, it will be a real pleasure to start running again, but now without the pressure of the Atacama and the concern of injury. I will also relish not having to run with a pack! On top of the running and gym work I have spent the best part of two hours a day stretching, icing, strengthening and massaging various parts of my body (especially my Achilles) in the last three months, so I will not miss that at all.

Racing The Planet generally put on a really good event for us. Entering one of these races is not cheap, so it was important that the service was good. They are a small and relatively new company so there are inevitably improvements to be made, but generally the whole event was professionally run and, due to the small number of competitors, it maintained an intimate and very friendly feel. The volunteers were great and the permanent members of the RTP team were great, always having time to speak to you and answer your most inane queries with a smile and encouraging word.

Overall the event has taught me a lot about myself. I am much more capable than I thought of getting on with the task without complaining. The event has taught me that my body and mind make a great team. I can achieve much more that I had ever thought possible. The pain of the body and the monotony of the mind is dulled as, together they numb your senses and take your thoughts elsewhere, whilst never losing focus on the bigger ambition - finishing in one piece and with some level of pride. One competitor who spoke at the Awards Banquet said that he was aware that the event would force him to leave his comfort zone and he was prepared for that. But he said that he was not prepared for his comfort zone to be totally obliterated! It feels good to have left that comfort zone on several levels, to have survived and to have come through pretty well. It seems that my mind is pretty good at using the objective of finishing as the overriding emotion, ignoring the pain and boredom for hours on end. I guess, in Churchill-speak I am a KBO kind of person. (Keep Buggering On). As ultramarathon runner Dean Kanarzes said in his book, Most things worthwhile in life come with a measure of pain. And in the case of the Atacama Crossing 2011 medal, that is definitely true.


Encore une foi?

You’ve got to know when to hold em 
Know when to fold em
Know when to walk away 
Know when to run 
You never count your money 
When you’re sitting at the table 
They’ll be time enough for counting 
When the dealing’s done
Kenny Rogers

And finally, the question I´ve been asked most often in the last week and one I will no doubt be asked again a lot in the next week: ´Will you do one of these events again?´ And the answer, to paraphrase Sir Steve Redgrave: If you ever see me on the start line for a multi-day self-supported footrace again, shoot me. And, unlike Sir Steve, I will not be backtracking on this.

The main reason why I do not want to do a race like this again is that I am passionate about running and, in the Atacama, I ended up walking a huge amount of the course, albeit very fast walking. Both the terrain and carrying a pack, as well as my Achilles injury pre-race meant that I was not as fit as I would have liked, thus limiting the amount of time I was able to run. I am also clearly turning pretty soft in my late 30s, as I found the camp life quite difficult – sharing a tent with smelly, snoring, noisy strangers, trying to sleep on an uncomfortable surface, waking up shivering with cold every night, eating tasteless food, sharing communal unflushable portaloos with over 100 other people – all these issues made the camping side of the event really hard work for me. I have nothing but respect for people who complete lots of these events. Good luck to them. But it´s not for me again anytime soon.

Of course time is a great healer and fortunately the positive memories seem to last a long time, whereas the human mind and body is amazing at forgetting the pain and trauma quickly, sometimes almost as soon as you cross the finish line, as the euphoria of completing such a mammoth event sinks in. Even last night, as the three of us sat round discussing the event for the umpteenth time, I was starting to soften my complete and utter ´never again´ from earlier in the week. Under certain circumstances I might consider entering again I guess: maybe as a team, which would add a very different dynamic and challenge. Or if I wanted to raise money for a charity especially close to my heart. 


Thanks

Lastly, I´d really like to thank a few people.

Firstly, of course Lizzi for all her support, help and encouragement. All three of us mentioned on several occasions how great our wives had been during the build up to the event and how they were so incredibly patient with us, despite our being absent training so much. Lizzi is such a huge support to me, my crutch (which could prove useful right now) and I just love her so much. 

Secondly, my granny, who died in 2009 and left me some money which paid for this whole crazy adventure – thanks Granny! 

Thirdly, everyone who sent me any sort of message during the race. We were all flabbergasted by the interest and, as I´ve already said, the words of encouragement were more uplifting than you could ever perhaps realise – amazing! So thank you all. 

Fourthly, the volunteers who were always smiling and cheery and hugely encouraging at camp and out on the course at the checkpoints – great people who worked extremely hard and had to endure the same hardships as the competitors in terms of camp life – food, drink, loos, cold, shared tents etc etc. 

Fifthly, everyone who sponsored us - thanks. We met a couple just before the race in our hotel. They were retired teachers who were travelling round Chile. They were really interested in what we were doing and wished us luck. On returning from the desert I found out that they had gone to the effort of tracking us down online, finding our justgiving page and sponsoring us. Superb! It really was an event that seems to spark a huge amount of interest and bring people together. 

Lastly of course I´d like to thank my two buddies DIH and Gibbo. They were both amazing company, hugely supportive and encouraging, great fun, keeping my spirits up and real examples to me. Gibbo for his stoicism and incredible determination after picking up some awful blisters so early in the race, yet still battling to a very credible 30^th place. And Hollers for his amazing ability and never-say-die positive attitude. I was so pleased that he finished in the top 10, especially after the amount of time and effort he has invested into this event. He really deserved it and is a truly talented guy. Moreover, Desert Dave the Sandy Sage was right all along – it was all in the mind…..well nearly all. 


Salt flats are, in actual fact, anything but flat. 
Desert Dave The Sandy Sage

Just a quick message to let everyone know that:

a. it´s over - hooray
b. we survived the final 9.3km, but we don´t yet know the results
c. we are very tired indeed
d. we have already eaten a lot of pizza and steak, as well as refreshed ourselves with some beers
e. we will all post long blogs in the next day or so when we have more energy and time - we now have to go to the post-race awards ceremony

Tom
x

I think that when you are woken up in the morning by one of your best friends sobbing with his hands over his face, lying next to you in his sleeping bag, the reality of what we are doing hits home! Poor old Hollers was in complete agony with an infected blister. A few minutes later a girl started wailing in pain in the camp. Suffice to say that Day 5 was hard work!
 
It looks like most people got through the day which is great and there are now 87 people left in the race, of 111 starters. However, as I write this, there are still two more finishers to cross the line 26.5 hours after we set off.
 
I managed to complete the course in 17th place in just under 12 hours, which was particularly pleasing as I reached camp before it got dark - I really felt sorry for those guys trying to negotiate the course in the dark, especially the final section which included twisting and turning through a dry river bed with rock walls towering high above. There was some stunning scenery during the day and it really lifted my spirits  - I was actually on quite a high by the halfway point. The highlight (in terms of scenery rather than effort!) was climbing a huge sand dune, immediately crossing a plateau of craters that would not have looked out of place on the moon and then traversing down another large dune. In fact I decided to run down most of this which was pretty hairy, but certainly got the adrenaline pumping as I reached CP4.
 
The day passed much more quickly than I had imagined as I was plugged into my ipod. I listened to two episodes of Desert Island Discs, including the legend Lawrence Dallaglio, and then launched into Jonathan Agnew's latest book about his life as a cricket journalist, which focuses on Brian Johnston quite a lot, which was very entertaining. (Thanks for that Ned). I must have looked pretty deranged as I shuffle/walked/ran along a dry river bed laughing out aloud. Still, there was no one within miles to see or hear me. The highlight was obviously the 'Leg Over / Stop it Aggers' clip which is enough to lift anyone's spirits, whatever their pain. I also had the boost of delving into the snack bag I had saved for the long day - crushed Pringles, chunks of parmesan and jerky - lovely!
 
As I trudged down the final stretch, hobble-running I couldn't see the camp anywhere. Suddenly it pooped out from behind a dune and once again I managed to run fast into camp listening to the uplifting M People and then went straight to the medical tent. Hollers was lying on the floor looking ill having his feet tended to. The doc took out a large bowl into which he drained a huge blood blister on my heel and then got to work on the three blisters on my little toe, which were such agony that I was lying on the floor whining. (But at least I didn't cry this time round!).
 
This morning we have heard about the earthquake in Japan which has put a slight dampener on our tent, with our three Japanese tent mates. One of these guys is a renowned Japanese trail runner so has had a film crew following him round all week - to the loo, eating, cleaning his feet etc etc - which has been a little trying when we have a 4-man film crew crammed into the small tent. We have christened another of our Japanese tent mates 'Jangly Bell' as he runs with a bell on his backpack, which can become very grating on your ears if you run near him for too long. Our final Japanese tent mate is quite a character - he runs in a kimono, smokes along the route and has bought kites with him to fly in camp each evening!
 
The last competitor, a small Japanese lady, just reached camp - over 27 hours after the start. It was pretty emotional as she came in with most of the camp gathered round to clap and cheer. She was followed by the 'sweepers' who do a great job, following the race bringing in the last competitors - they are volunteers who have very little sleep and who work pretty hard. The atmosphere in camp today is great with everyone relaxed after the long day - the sun is shining, the medic tent still looks like a scene from MASH and there are lots of impressive blisters being photographed. (The pink, custard-like, finger-sized pus oozing from one ankle was particularly popular!).
 
After the long stage, it's obvious that everyone is really ready to get back to San Pedro, complete what has been a tough week, grab a much-need shower and have some decent food. So I think I am in 13th position and unless something goes horribly wrong tomorrow I will finish with a top-20 place, which will be very very satisfying. Again, thanks for the messages everyone - great stuff and much appreciated.
 
Tom
 
p.s. For those dog lovers amongst you, you might be interested to know that the dog who followed me a couple of days ago continued to follow the competitors yesterday and is right now sitting on the ground next to me shading from the sun. No idea how/if it will get home now?!?!

I did manage to take my foot off the gas today, thank goodness. The first stage was very sandy with plenty of dunes, followed by a long long section of shale and then a drop down into a river valley via a very steep and dangerous sandy slope. We crossed the small stream a few times (not getting wet feet this time thank goodness) and then climbed a steep hill up to CP1. Soon after we went through a very sleepy town where we met a black dog, who started following us.It ended up following me, right on my heals, for another 20km! I gave it some water when we reached a water station and it continued to follow me until CP3, 6km from the end of the stage - it looked pretty hot by then!
 
I spent the first few hours with Gibbo until his hip flexor started to cause him real pain and forced him to stop quite a lot. I pushed on, spending some time with a Canadian guy called Blaine who was running from flag to flag and then walking from flag to flag. The pink flags that mark the course are about 50 yards apart and this was a great tactic as it kept us moving pretty well even though I now walk like an old man with walking sticks. At the CP2 I lost some time as I had a blister popped, but was soon on my way hobbling towards the 'infamous salt flats'. The terrain was very difficult in places - like walking over the surface of a huge solid smashed up meringue, but it also had a quite well defined path in places where previous runners had trodden down the salty crust.
 
I had been feeling very lacking in energy all day so I decided to stick on my ipod for the first time to perk me up. I listened to the '12th Man' cricket comedy commentary which took my mind off the pain. On reaching CP3 I asked for the first time what place I was in. I was hoping for a top 30 position and found that I was 28th so that was fine. With only 6km to go into camp along a very easy dusty road surface I decided to try and run as much as possible and to play some uplifting tunes. As I approached the camp my ipod blared out 'Search for the hero' by M People which is what was played as I came into the Mall during the London Marathon in 2005. Very cheesy, but also very very inspiring as I crossed the line running faster than I had all week. I managed to overtake a few people and ended up crossing the line in 22nd place. We have just for the first time seen the results and that puts me in 14th place I think, which is much higher I had imagined. However....tomorrow is another ball game altogether. Tomorrow is about surviving and getting to the end in one piece. For me, positions don't matter tomorrow, it's all about finishing, before the rest day and then the shorter run on Saturday, and most importantly collecting the medal in San Pedro at the finish line.
 
I am feeling much better today than I did yesterday (no tears), but very tired, with sore ITB, quite a few blisters, a toenail that is going to come flying off when I take away the plaster holding it in place, and very very sore shoulders from carrying that bl**dy bag.
 
Thanks again for all your messages - some really nice things said and lots that bought a smile to my face, which is very welcome with the dread of tomorrow hanging over me. Loving the Churchill quotes from a few people and lovely messages from Emily, Florence, Daniel and Bea, amongst lots of other great support.
 
One more huge effort and then it's pretty much over.
 
Tom
x

A shorter blog today I think as some of my previous entries have been a little long!
 
Day three was absolutely brutal. Brutal, brutal, brutal. Horrible surfaces, hot hot sun, sand dunes and pain. So much pain. The finish was at the top of a 45 degree sandy slope and I got over the line, threw down my poles and felt like bursting into tears. I managed to keep it together until I got to the medical tent and then, as the doctor drained one of my many blisters of blood, I firstly felt faint and had to lie on the floor, and then starting blubbing in front of the three doctors who politely tried to ignore me! I felt so physically and emotionally drained that I could not hold it together. Embarrasing, but unavoidable as I had given every ounce of energy I had - easily the toughest physical test in my life......so far.
 
Anyway, I managed a very pleasing 10th place (so much for taking the foot of the gas!). Tomorrow is the salt flats day which will be pretty tough and I am determined to save as much energy as possible for the long day.
 
As of this morning about 14 people had dropped out of the race including two of our tentmates. So at least our tent is more spacious! I think after today the drop outs will dramatically increase, it was such a difficult day.
 
A massive thank you to all of you for all your encouraging messages. They make a huge difference and are VERY MUCH appreciated. Keep them coming! Sorry I can't write back to you all, but time and energy are very limited.
 
Three days down, three (running) days to go.
 
Tom
x

After a relatively good night's sleep (went to bed at 8.30!) we headed out onto the course at 8am. Within five minutes we had our first of over river crossings. We then went uphill to a nasty rocky section where it was ankle-twisting territory if you tried to run. So Gibbo and I walked across it carefully. I tried to run but I tripped over and landed flat on my face cutting my hand and grazing my elbow. My big toe, which thumped into the rock now has a huge blister under the toe which the doctor has now drained by drilling a needle through the nail!
 
Pretty soon after this section Gibbo and I went our separate ways as his blisters were causing him a lot of pain. I soon entered a very long gorge which we ran along for quite a while crossing the river back and forth twenty plus times, sometimes up to my thighs. After Checkpoint 1 the climb started. A long steep climb through a canyon. After changing my wet socks I marched up the hill overtaking a few people along the way. At the top we went through a 100m tunnel and then had to climb an even steeper section. The view from the top of this ridge was amazing with 100s of cone-like orange formations in the foreground, the lush green river valley behind and then the snow-capped Andes in the far distance. Just before CP 2 we ran down a huge sand dune which was great fun, but then we had to walk/run across the sand which was horrible.
 
I had forgotten to ask my position at CP1 so I was shocked to find that I was in 10th place at CP1. The rest of the day was gruelling - flat, sandy, pebbly, gravely and very difficult to run on. So I marched (as advised by Ultra-running icon Ed Davies) fast, my poles really helping. I reached the next CP in 9th place and kept my position right to the end, which felt a long long way off. I was overjoyed to have reached the camp in 9th place (c. 6hrs 20mins), nab a good spot in the tent and use the loos before they got too disgusting! Hollers managed joint 6th place and Gibbo came in 43rd having had to stop at the last CP to have his blisters tended and in the process losing over 20 places - really bad luck.
 
So Day 2 has exceeded my expectations hugely. Strangely I think that I walked maybe 70% of the day, but my quick march seems to be paying off. I think I should take my foot off the gas tomorrow or I won't get through the really tough Days 4 and 5.
 
I have a few blisters and my Achilles is a little sore, but considering I could only run 20 minutes on a treadmill 6 weeks ago, it's great that I am here, let alone managing a top 10 finish. Huge thanks to Paul Bell, my osteo who has treated my brilliantly - if anyone needs an osteo in Singapore look Paul up - he's excellent.
 
Finally thanks to everyone for your messages, both by email and blog comments. Really nice to get lots of encouraging messages, sorry I can't respond to you all individually as there are queues for the computers.
 
Day 3 tomorrow, another marathon. Fingers crossed I haven't overdone it today!
 
Tom

Well I survived! It was unbelievably tough but I got through it, so that's a bonus.
 
I'll jump back 24 hours....
 
We left the race HQ hotel at 3pm and had a fairly tortuous, bumpy, hot ride in a minibus which involved a delay while the bus in front got stuck in a river bed and had to be pushed out by a group of competitors. The camp was set up in a stunning valley with towering cliffs on two sides. The 20-odd competitor tents were set up in an arc with a large fire in the centre with 8 huge kettles boiling up water.
 
We set ourselves up in Tent 4, laying out our sleeping mats and bags. Hollers then gave us a lesson in taping our feet and we sat for quite a while making sure we covered every possible area that might get a blister.
 
We then sat and ate the pizzas we had bought from San Pedro. Cold, but still a great source of carbs! Then we moved onto a hot rehydrated meal and sat chatting to other competitors round the fire. By now the temperature had dropped considerably and we all wore pretty much all the clothes we had with us and still shivered.
 
We piled into the tent pretty early - basically when it got dark at 8.30ish. Snoring, shivering and going to the loo in the distant portaloos stopped me getting a good pre-race sleep, but I guess it was the same for most people.
 
A 6am start and a quick breakfast (chilli con carne, energy shake and noddles), packing up and then onto the start line for an 8am start. We had a quick photo of the three of us on the start line with the Laureus flag, wished each other the best of British and then off we went....
 
Hollers was quickly off in the distance with his banana yellow gaiters easy to spot from a distance. Gibbo and I settled into a steady but not hectic pace, passing a few runners along the way. We quickly came to a steep incline which we walked up at a decent pace, but I had to stop at the top to remove a stone from my shoe. We quickly got on our way again and we were soon walking and puffing up steep, rocky inclines and leaping like mountain goats down the down slopes. We reached Checkpoint 1 in 1 hour 15 minutes and found out we were in the low 20's which was a very nice surprise. We had a quick fill up of water, took off our extra shirts as we were feeling pretty toasty and then we were on our way again. We could both feel our breakfasts swilling round in our stomachs and several times thought we might be sick, but we kept them down!
 
The scenery was stunning with huge cliffs towering over us and the snow-capped Andes always over to our left in the distance. We passed through narrow canyons and lots of river beds (who knows when there was enough water here to have flowing rivers?) covering the distance with a mixture of running and walking the uphills. At Checkpoint 2, 10k after CP1 we found out we were still in the low 20's so made a quick turnaround and headed off across the longest plain ever. It went on for ever and the footing was very uneven and tricky. Again we walked quite a lot, on the way passing one Lebanese guy who looked like he was in real trouble trying to be sick. Aftre that we turned left into a canyon. And then came the hill from hell. The slope wasn't steep but it went on for over 5k. My walking poles came into their own and the walking gave my very sore hip flexors a break. Finally we reached CP3 at the top of this never-ending hill. With only 3.5k to go I filled up with a small amount of water. Gibbo decided to have his blisters seen to at this CP as they were very sore and making him run and walk with a limp. I pushed on the to the finish line determined to maintain my 23rd place and run the whole distance. Pretty soon I stopped, my legs not functioning very well at all and my breathing very laboured. I overtook one guy and then walked until I saw saw the finish line - a lovey site. I shuffled in to the line with a Chilean drum welcoming me back to camp.
 
22nd place was well above my expectations so I was pretty pleased, if totally exshausted. Hollers greeted me on the line, having come in a long time before in 5th place (an awesome effort). A quick change into my compression gear and then back to the finish line to welcome in Gibbo who was in 33rd place.
 
It was very tough and I found it harder than I had expected. If it had been a one-day race then fine, but the thought of doing this for 5 more days is pretty scary. It's going to be very difficult, but the good news is that my pack will get lighter as I'll eat some of my food tonight! Marathon tomorrow - hope I haven't overdone it on Day One. Love to all.
 
Tom
 
p.s. sorry for spelling mistakes etc - I wrote this on a a computer that is a little like a child's toy.

The last couple of days have been a mixture of eating, packing and repacking, a bit of running and a lot of nerves.

We managed to head out for another run yesterday, this time for 45 minutes. The altitude makes it feel like someone is standing on your chest and you struggle for breath. We all felt pretty tired after a 45 minute gentle jog without backpacks, which has added to the trepidation of having to run at 1000m higher on Sunday....tomorrow...arghhhh!

What with Gibbo´s relentless snoring and the three of us continually going to the loo due to the amount of water we drink each in an attempt to start the race fully hydrated, we have not slept well at all. I doubt that tonight, at 3500m with the altitude and cold and lying in a sleeping bag on a 4 inch sleeping mat, we will fare any better before the big start at 8am tomorrow morning.

We have just come from the competitor briefing where we were told all the rules, had our kit and food checked pretty thoroughly and where we were issued with "poo bags" !!! Although these bags are only for paper, I still felt like a dog. Hollers (aka Desert Dave the Sandy Sage) obviously had to ask whether we actually had to poo in the bag to the amusement of all the British runners (well me and Gibbo) and the bewilderment of everyone else. I´m not sure if it was due to this comic moment but Hollers was then picked out to be interviewed by the Japanese film crew who will be following the race. I´m not convinced they will understand his Leek humour or accent in Tokyo.

The 108 competitors are incredibly varied in size and shape as are their bags with some carring huge packs and others with around 6 or 7 kg. Lots of them knew each other from previous races and there was a good atmosphere with competitors from 40-odd countries.

It´s onto the bus in a couple of hours, an hour´s drive to camp and then settle down to our first camp meal - pizza! After that the food will go badly downhill.

Unfortunately the first leg of the first day is rated "Difficult". It´s 10.8km to the first checkpoint which they estimate will take the leaders 1 hour 20 minutes and the slowest competitors 4 hours 30 minutes. The next three legs are "moderate" and we will end up 27m lower than when we started! The total distance of tomorrow´s stage, "Navigation by Rock" is 21.9 miles and will take between 3 hours 55 minutes and 14 hours. I hope we will be somewhere in the middle and not at the back!

So, it´s into the breach tomorrow morning at 8am. I can´t wait to get going, cross that sart line and get into the race. Not long to go now.....

Miraculously I arrived in San Pedro de Atacama last night at midnight having experienced no major problems during my 43.5 hour, 4-flight journey. I left Singapore at 8pm on Tuesday on a BA flight to Sydney. The quality of the plane, entertainment and especially food showed why BA continues to slip down the airline rankings. In contrast, LAN (Chile´s national carrier) was pretty good.

It felt odd not accepting the offered alcolhol on the flights, but I am sure it was one of the reasons why I felt pretty good on arrival in Atacama. I managed to grab about 8 hours sleep during the journey, which wasn´t enough as I travelled through two Singapore night times, but I really didn´t feel too bad.

LAN flew me from Sydney to Santiago with a 90 minute stop over in Auckland. In Sydney I bumped into another competitor, Mark, a Brit living in Chang Mai and in Aukland we met up with another 5 competitors. Most of them seem to have taken part in at least one Racing the Planet event before so it was good to speak to them.

I only had to wait for 15 minutes for Hollers and Gibbo to arrive in Santiago. (Not surprisingly I heard Hollers before I saw him!). I was great to see them as I´ve not seem them since our wedding weekend back in July and there was a lot to chat about.

Chile are very strict about bringing animal products into the country so I had to devise a cunning strategy to protect the jerky and parmesan I had for the race I declared a few peperamis and hoped that the customs officials would not look through the rest of my bag. Fortunately it paid off - they confiscated the sacrificial peperamis and I was able to leave with the rest of my food hidden in my bag - a big relief as the food would have been tricky to replace.

We had an 8 hour wait in Santiago´s small airport for our flight north to Calama. There was plenty of news to catch up on and we discussed the upcoming race a lot, so the time passed pretty quickly.

On arrival in Calama I really noticed the cold. It was definitely the coldest wetaher I have felt for over 8 months. Our luggage eventually arrived on the small and slow conveyor belt and we made our way to the minibus that would take us the last hour into San Pedro de Atacama. As we drove through the dark night we chatted to two other competitors from Australia, I dozed a little and looked out of the window at the incredibly clear and starry night. We arrived at the pleasant hotel at midnight and crashed into our beds, exhausted.

After a fairly unsettled night´s sleep we had a quick breakfast this morning and then set about the task of reorganising our bags. We decanted all the food into smaller ziplock bags and made ration bags for each day. We then packed our bags up and weighed them. Mine came in at 9.5kg which was ok, but tomorrow I will try and shave a few ounces off here and there. We had a lovely steak lunch and, after a short lie in the lovely sun by the pool, we headed out for a 30 minute jog. At 2300m San Pedro is not as high as the start of the race, but we all still noticed the effect the altitude had even on this short run. So who knows what it will be like on Sunday! We had a taste of the scenery to come with an expanse of bone-dry desert strecthing into the distance, beyond which some huge mountains rose up, most with snow-covered peaks. It was quite stunning.

San Pedro seems like a lovely little town. It´s streets would not look out of place in a western movie with dusty, bumpy roads, brown mud brick walls and dogs lying asleep on the shady street corners. The race ends in the town on Saturday week and I think it will be a great place to end and to celebrate in style!

That´s all the news from the Chilean desert. We arrived safe and sound, we have three days to go until the off and the nerves are really starting the kick in...

 

 

Well, in a week's time I'll hopefully be in a deep sleep in my sleeping bag in a tent in the desert after Day One of the Atacama Crossing. It will be a huge relief to get that first day out of the way. Not because it will be 21 miles completed (which will nonetheless be nice), but because all of this anticipation and nervous energy swirling around my brain will have been put to bed. It's a strange sensation in any event when your pre-race nerves suddenly disappear as soon as you start running - I guess we just naturally refocus on running and don't have time for being nervous. I really can't wait for next Sunday morning.

I've spent another hour today packing and repacking my bag, ticking off my spreadsheets to make sure I've got absolutely everything I need. I'll be heading for the airport this time tomorrow and then it's next stop San Pedro (via Sydney, Auckland, Santiago and Calama). I doubt I'll sleep much tonight, but then again I guess there's 36 hours on the plane to sleep...

Since I last had a look at the blog page a week or so ago it seems that there have been a lot of posts which is great. Reading through them certainly stirs the butterflies, but also makes me impatient to reach Chile, meet everyone and get running.

After a couple of months of Achilles issues I managed to put in some good mileage this last weekend. I'm way off where I wanted to be due to the Achilles, but I guess that's all just part of the challenge - making the most of the fitness you have on the start line.

I continue to dive into the lovely refreshing pool after every run, which is not great preparation for the desert, but impossible to resist when you're sweating buckets in the Singaporean humidity. I don't suppose RTP supply an in-camp pool do they?

One week till I leave for the airport. Then, four flights and 36 hours later I arrive in San Pedro. Can't wait. Hope I've got everything I need. Better go and unpack and repack my bag for the 100th time....

Over the last month or so I have cultivated a new, rather hairy, look. The bohemian beard has gone down very well with my wife, but not so well with the Singaporean heat. The longer the beard grew, the hotter my face became whilst running. Pretty logical I guess. But you do see some pretty serious runners looking very hirsute...in fact I saw the spit of a young Rasputin cruising along at a very good pace the other day with his long beard of red curls.

Anyway, I have now rid myself of this extra layer of insulation and I think it's better off gone, as it was heavily flecked in places with both ginger and grey - not a good look. Added to which my Dad described my beard as 'regal'! Frankly, if I looked like a Victorian monarch, albeit on a dodgy skype connection to my Dad's cheap computer in the UK, then the beard had to go. I did not want to disappoint my wife by shaving it off but I also didn't want to look like Edward VII running through the Atacama with a smouldering face. It will also be useful to have enough beardless-time to give my now-pasty white face a good blast of Singaporean sun before stepping into the desert.

So it seems that, as with most things recently the Atacama has taken precedence and other important day-to-day considerations, like keeping the wife happy, have been rather neglected. Lizzi has been very patient and supportive and I am sure will be hugely relieved when March 13th comes round. Note to self: buy expensive gift for wife at duty free on the way back from Chile.

For posterity I have put a photo of my beard on our fundraising page: www.justgiving.com/250kminthedesert

I'm not sure it's wise to change one's running shoes five weeks before a 250km race through the desert, but due to a strained Achilles, I have been forced to reconsider my options. So, I have made the hopeful change to a bright orange pair of Adidas, which if nothing else, will make sure I stand out from the crowd.

As well as a change of shoes I have also yesterday added a new gymnastic dimension to my training routine...namely somersaulting over the the handlebars of my bike and landing in the road with quite a bump. Well that's what you get for sticking your front wheel down a Singaporean drain I guess. Fortunately, the traffic was not flowing as fast as it can here and my injuries were no more than a grazed shoulder, bruised hand and dented ego.

So, 31 days to go till the race starts. Despite being a little bruised and battered, I am generally looking forward to the experience, but I would be lying if I said that I am not also fairly apprehensive.

Note to self - must keep wrapped up in cotton wool from now on to avoid accidents and injuries.