The count down was on. 6 months of training, packing my kit, repacking it and triple packing. Flights were booked, tickets in hand and a 2 day rest before the race was to start was the plan. Then the earth quake hit. Flights were still confirmed until the night before and then cancelled - all routes cancelled into Chile. We found a way through Peru which was then cancelled then confirmed a couple of times. Buses for a 12 hour ride from the edge of Peru to the race found and then confirmed full. Frustrated, emotionally spent and really finding my love for the race slipping away. I have raised money for my sons disease and felt I needed to be there to earn their donations. Sponsors have donated money for my travel and I was getting "credit" for future flights and no money to throw around to buy extra tickets. I was looking forward to meeting friends that I made in 2007 Sahara and 2009 Gobi and meeting new 2010 Atacama friends. However, it simply came down to not feeling right, so I have stepped out of the race. I simply could not afford to spend more money on different airlines to "maybe" get there. I know that many competitors are striving to get to SanPedro and I wish you all the best. I would assume that others have like me called it a day. There will be other races to run. I will be cheering you all on from the computer. Living to run another day. Blain

Hi all! Well, just a few weeks out from jumping on a plane for another adventure. I've just booked the plane tickets, the hotel room, and taking a look at some sights and sounds of San Pedro to check out before the race (I fly in Wednesday). Training is going OK. I feel this is the hardest race that I've had to prepare for due to the climate here in Canada at this point of the year. Trying to get in the mileage when it's minus 25 outside constantly isn't easy. I must confess that because of this excuse, I'm not running near what I need to be and have focused rather on going hard at the gym. I also seem to have a few tinges of pain in my knees and feet for some reason this time around. Nothing that stops me now but getting a little nervous to see what they might do on day 4 after 150 km. I've gone back to the shoes that proved to be a good match for me in the Gobi - Vasque "Blurs". They have good protection around the toes, a huge toe box and decent tread. Speaking of equipment - I'm keeping it pretty much the same, no need to mess around with what has proved to work for me. I use the Raidlight Evolution which I find fits me really well. It doesn't sway on my back as much as the others that I've tested. I also use the front pouch that you can purchase to put my electrolytes (hammer), snacks and camera in. I also have put the bottle holders on my straps - which I tape on because they tend to bounce around if you don't taped them on tight. The straws get a little getting used to because they are beside your face but I bend them down and hook them into the elastic bands that help keep the bottle in the sleeve. Hammer electrolyte pills work very well for me. I usually take 3 before each stage start, 3 at each check point and a couple on any extra hot stages between the check points. A couple of them at any sign of cramping usually does the trick. My routine is that as soon as I near a check point, I down what ever water I have left with my pills - get my water filled and I'm ready to go. My advice is to always use up your water, be aware of what your drinking through out the stage, get to know any signs of dehydration and electrolyte depletion - because this is what will make or break your experience. All said, I'm looking forward to seeing old friends, sitting around the fire and getting to know new friends and moaning about what craziness we willingly put ourselves through with all of you! Cheers and happy training! Blain

Hi Everyone, My name is Blain and I'm looking forward to another adventure in the desert! This will be my third 4 deserts race. I've had the opportunity to race in Egypt and China which were amazing experiences for different reasons. The Sahara Race was my first race, I had read an article about it and signed up thinking that this would be a great way to raise money for research for my youngest son's disease - Cystic Fibrosis. Not having run any marathons at the time of signing up, my learning curve was steep and painful. I had the time of my life meeting new friends (team silverbill) that I have since been able to keep in contact with almost 3 years after. Some of these mates will be in Atacama and it will be a bit of a reunion. With the Sahara Race and I had a fairly strong first couple of days but then the blisters and heat started to hit hard on my body. Adam and Giles (who will be in the Atacama) and I really struggled throughout the long stage of day 5 to finish the 93 km leg totally knackered. I literally had to crawl across the finish line at the end to finish with the help of Scott my tent mate and adventure seeker from Canada. The Gobi March was my second kick at the can with my brother in law Carson. I had learned many lessons from Egypt and had different goals and expectations for the China. 1. Run your own race - not the guy in front of you and not the guy behind you. 2. Stop to care for your feet. Actually this was my wife's words of wisdom. The 5 minutes it takes to check a blister or get a rock out will save you hours on day 4 & 5. 3. Prepare your feet for battle prior to the race. My goal for the Sahara was to finish. My mistake in the Egypt was to get caught up in where I was in relation to others. When they say "go" at that starting line, it's really hard not to get caught up in the competition and start sprinting though the desert. This hurt me on day 4 & 5 of the race because I had not stopped to care for my body in fear of losing time, which ultimately did just that - lost me time finishing 26th. My goal for the Gobi was to be in the best shape possible for the long day. Because I had run my own race up until day 5, I had stopped to care for my feet and had prepared them prior to the race (no blisters at all up to that point) I felt really strong on the long day. Not to say it was a cake walk because it was really hard but not nearly the mess that I found myself in Egypt. Instead of crawling across the finish line, I sprinted across in Kashgar shaving almost 13 hours off my Egypt time finishing 19th. My goals for the Atacama are much the same as for China. I want to finish strong but every race is different and you never know the wonderful things your body will face in these races. In Egypt it was the relentless sun and forever sand. In China it was the endless sea of riverbed rocks. However, like all these experiences - my goal is to raise money for my son's disease Cystic Fibrosis. I know that my son will suffer in his life because of CF. Running (which is something I don't particularly enjoy) 250 km's through harsh environments and suffering through them is my way of feeling I'm doing something to fight for my son's life. So with that said, here I go again.