So after the long stage we heard about the earthquake in Japan.  We had a lot of Japanese racers in the race, and they were all able to contact their families and check in.  It sounded like their families were all safe, but I don't think any of us realized how bad the destruction was.  In this race you can easily forget that the outside world exists, so it kind of dragged us all back into the real world.

For stage 6, they broke us up into three groups based on speed.  So the lower 50 went first, followed by 26-50, and lastly 25th place and under.  We took a cool photo with everyone in the top 25 that I definitely need a copy of.  I ended up checking the leaderboard before stage 6 and noticed someone who (I thought) was 5 seconds behind me.  I didn't want to slip back a spot, so I raced stage 6 relatively quickly.  I later found out that this person had started an hour and 5 seconds back.  Oops.  I almost ended up catching the guy in front of me, but he still ended up beating me by 30 seconds over 250K.  I ended up in 17th place overall, and (more importantly) won my age group - 29 and under.

The finish line was packed with people from the town.  I ended up eating about 10 slices of pizza as soon as I crossed the finish line.  We hung out in the town square for a bit partying and taking photos.  Everyone then eventually made it back to the hotels for showers and some pregame celebrations.  The banquet was in an awesome open-aired restaurant where you just walked up to this massive grill and pointed to which animal you wanted to eat.  It was a fun award ceremony, and I got a nice award for winning my age group.     Sadly, I scraped it up a bit drinking in town after, but I think it only adds to its charm.  There were a few other awards in our tent as well, with Lucy and Dev getting their 4Deserts medals, Lucy winning her age group, and Nick winning the sportsmanship award.  We ended up staying out incredibly late despite all of us having early flights in the morning.  I will leave these details out, but I did end up losing one of my shoes and almost ended up on a bus to a midnight desert rave.

I was awoken by my shuttle in the morning, so after packing for 5 minutes I hopped on the shuttle to the airport.  Despite showing up for my flight incredibly early, George and I missed it waiting for Ham and Cheese sandwiches.  Luckily they found us another way to Santiago before our next flights took off.  We even had time in Santiago to have an amazing seafood/ steak feast with a few racers.  I made it back to the US in one piece with a lot of great memories and new friends.  I wanted to thank everyone who supported me throughout the race with their emails and comments.  It was great to get to read all of the support.  I also wanted to thank everyone who supported the National MS Society (linked below.)

Until the next race....

http://main.nationalmssociety.org/site/TR/Events/MAMChapter?pg=fund&fr_id=7402&pxfid=220557&JServSessionIdr004=tfe3ss5ep1.app330b

Sorry I did not send a blog out last night, but I was pretty dead after yesterday's madness.
 
I probably shouldn't have checked, but I saw that I was in the top 10 headed into the final day.  I kind of took a chance and really pushed it at the start hoping to hold my position.  Well, this kind of backfired as I was struggling from the second leg (ok, maybe the first.)  The first leg was more of the dreaded salt flats, followed by some more Jurassic Park style tall grass (yes Dewey, all I could think about were Raptors.)  The second leg was all sand, with a bunch of random brush/ trees.  The third leg was just random rocky sand dunes.  Sorry to not be more descriptive about these first few legs, but they all kind of blur together.
 
I was hurting pretty badly after the first three legs, and was in a pretty bad mood headed into the fourth stage.  As I was hitting an even lower low I saw a massive sand dune we had to climb over (think 20 story building high.)  I decided to try to change my attitude by pulling out my camera, taking some photos, and trying to enjoy the last 4 legs.  Well, I couldn't find my camera, so I literally emptied out my entire bag at the foot of the sand dune (sleeping bag, all my food, clothes, etc.)  I'm pretty sure the racers behind me thought I lost my mind.  I couldn't find my camera in my bag, which only put me in a worse mood.  I made it over the sand dune, but was pretty wrecked at that point.
 
Stage 5 and 6 were just long sandy roads.  My Ipod died right at the beginning of stage 5, which was the only think I had left timing my electrolites and water.  I made it through stage 5 alright, but really messed up my timing on stage 6.  I ended up finishing my water about an hour before I hit the checkpoint.  This was probably my lowest point on the race.  When I finally got to the 6th checkpoint, I sat down for a bit and completely stiffened up.  When I started going, I thought my right hip and knees were going to explode.  The last leg was a long hill, followed by a massive sand dune and some slot canyons.  This last part took me forever, as I felt like the last leg was never going to end.  Luckily I made it to the end in 35th place and (after popping some advil) went straight to bed.
 
Eric and Dev both had really strong days today and looked pretty good when I got back to camp.  Dev finally got his first blisters (after 1000 km of desert racing.)  Emma and Lucy came in a few hours after me.  They did the last section with May (also completing her last desert race.)  Katrien blew everyone away by showing up in a really good time.  She ended up pushing it straight through the night and ended up having a really strong final stage.  Nick was the last one in for our tent this morning (he came in with Diego.)  Though a little delirious, he also seems to be doing really well.
 
Today is our rest day.  Most people are spending it lounging around and eating.  I will be doing a lot of blister repair work, as a lot of my blisters got infected (time to hit the docs up for some meds to fix the problem.)   We still have 9 miles left to run into town tomorrow, but then we will have pizza and beer waiting for us at the finish.  The plan is to take it very, very slow.  It looks like I ended up in 17th place after the long day, which is still way better than I had hoped.  The next time I send out a blog will be from my hotel.  Thank you all for the emails and support as it was greatly appreciated on the course. 

An update from last night:  The rest of our tent came in well before the cutoff times.  Everyone seems to be in great spirits.  Jan has stuck around and has given awesome support to our whole tent.
 
I started off today as a complete mess.  The lack of sleep has really caught up to me, and I actually almost missed the start today.  I was literally applying sunscreen while running the first mile.  Today started off pretty fun, but it didn't last very long.  The first stage was up and over a sand mountain.  The descent down was ridiculous, something I probably wouldn't have even done in skis.  This led to a river that we ran through for awhile.  Once again, it started off as much less running and much more adventure racing (four points of contact at most times while you scale down the mountains.)
 
The second leg brought us through a small town.  I was saved from another detour by one of the Chilean racers who has done this course before (he saw me wandering an abandoned road.)  Erik wasn't as lucky, and ended up on a 10 minute detour to who knows where.  After leaving the town, we went into the sand for about 7 miles.  This was pretty miserable to say the least.  I was already getting pretty tired/ frustrated when my GPS watch died completely.  Apparently it isn't made to go 100 miles without being charged.  After that, my new plan was to time my water/ electrolites by my Ipod.  I guess it worked ok, so hopefully my last shuffle makes it through the long stage tomorrow.
 
I have decided that stage 3 was the worst place ever created on earth.  I guess it was called the salt flats, and it was like running across a dry coral reef.  The salt would crack and break every footstep you take.  There wasn't even anything great to look at, just miles of dried up salt (This is the stage that gave me a million blisters.)
 
Stage 4 was shorter (4 miles) along a sand road.  Nothing very exciting there, but I really should have stopped to tape up my blisters.  I'm pretty sure all of them ripped open, and now I'm hobbling around camp like a handicapped man.
 
Right now we are just resting up before we hit the long stage.  Erik ended up coming in about 10 minutes behind the leaders, so he is continuing his attack on the leaderboard.  Emma, Lucy and Dev all arrived in v3ery high spirits and look ready to attack the long stage.  Katreen and Nick are still on the course, but it sounds like they were still moving very strongly and should have plenty of time before the cutoffs.
 
Until tomorrow

A quick update on last night…  Nick and Katren made it in last night with plenty of time before the cutoff.  Chris was pulled off the course right after completing the toughest stage.  I still am not sure how he was even able to get through the first two stages with a 40 pound pack, but it was an incredible effort.  I think 90 percent of the people out here would have dropped out on day 1 with that weight.
 
The first stage today was some of the strangest terrain I have ever seen.  We started going through shoulder length grass with this loose coral rock underneath your steps.  Every time you took a step the clay/coral would crack and you’d sink in about half a foot.  This pretty much  handicapped all of the real runners and helped those with long legs.  My plan was to start off quickly while it was still cool, take it easy in the middle 8 miles, then push it at the end.  I got to run with Anders (winner of the Sahara race) for the first 7 miles or so, which was really fun.
 
The second part started on a dirt road, and quickly all of the fast runners smoked past me (as usual.)  The second half of the stage was back into the tall grass.  It was pretty difficult to find your way, as the grass was getting taller and taller as you went through.  My sunburned legs are now scraped to pieces from this leg.
 
The third stage was (again) more tall grass.  Every time you got a break from the tall grass, it was nothing but sand.  I was getting pretty frustrated and started having Sahara flashbacks nightmares.  The last leg was long.  I was moving quicker again at this point and managed to pass a few more people.  The first half was fun, climbing over rock hills.  The last part was incredible tough, with mountains of sand for the last 4 miles.  You could see the finish line the whole time, but they kept turning you off the course to climb yet another oversized sand dune.
 
Thanks again for the emails, and please take a chance to donate to the National MS Society (link below or on the first page of the blog.)  Thanks Pierre for sending me the entire Big East bracket.  I’m bummed I won’t get to watch every single game this year.
 
Erik had another great day, coming in third (and looking as though he’s only run a 5k.)  I wouldn’t be surprised to see him finish in the top 3 overall.  We are the only two in from our tent so far, but I will keep you updated in my next blog.  Time to go chug some recovery drinks and try to pull myself together.
 

Luckily, last night was not nearly as cold as the previous night.  I actually was comfortable while wearing every piece of gear I brought.)  Hopefully the first night will be the only unbearably cold night this week.
 
Today was great for about 20 of the 26 miles.  The first 7 miles were incredible, where we ran down a river for miles.  There were parts where you literally were in a 60 foot tall, 5 foot wide canyon with a river pouring through. I clearly was over-excited, as I finished stage 1 in 3rd place.  It was fun to spend some time with the front of the pack for awhile.  I still don't understand how people can move that quickly on loose rocks.
 
After check point 1, there was a long road where I got smoked by most of the top runners.  This was followed by one of the most ridiculous mountains I have ever seen, which of course we climbed over.  I think that is the highest I've ever climbed that wasn't followed by skiing down.  This was followed by a massive sand dune, which was awesome to run down at full speed.  I ended up checking in at the 2nd check point with places 8 and 9 (I think I was 10th at this point.)
 
The third part started off well, until I took a really dumb wrong turn.  After being lost in the desert for a little bit, I finally saw a group way off to the side of me.  I think only 5 or 6 people passed me while I was off on my unnecessary detour.
 
The last leg was pretty fun, as I got to spend some time going with the two female leaders.  When all was done, I think I ended up coming in 11th, which I was again thrilled with.
 
Our tent had a pretty good day so far, with Erik blazing all the way up to 4th place.  Dev and Lucy had great days as well, both moving way up the rankings.  Sadly Jan had to back out (from the father daughter team.)  Hopefully Katren can keep up the pace without her dad by her side.
 
I want to thank everyone for all the emails/ blog comments so far.  I'm sad to hear that Gtown ended the season on a 3 game losing streak, but hopefully Chris Wright will get back before our season is destroyed. I may have to stop liking Marquette if they put the final nail in our coffin.  I hope Mom and Dad haven't been too stressed out this time.  I promise I am only pushing it when I feel the need to.  Izzy, I'm glad to hear that you got your New Balance photo.  Hopefully I can get another awesome one with volcanoes or something.  I hope both Mikes and Johnna are prepping for the next one.  Your light hearted attitudes are definitely missed out here (although our tent is pretty awesome this time too.)  Billy, Tom, Sam and my sisters/ Matt better be getting ready to do one of these as well (I know you all want to.)  Maybe we can even trick Dewey into showing up as well.  Rosa, I really wish I had an Ascolani sister to get me into San Pedro.  Apparently I have picked up zero Spanish from hanging out with you guys.  Maybe I could have gotten in to San Pedro in less than 24 hours (and been more entertained.)  Also, I'm glad to hear team BRO survived a day with the high school students.  Clearly they were no match for the recycling knowledge.
 
Alright, here comes Emma (in crocs of course.)  I'm going to run over and cheer her in. Goodbye all!

Last night was one of my coldest camping experiences of my life.  I have no idea what the temperature was, but I was in my sleeping bag with  with my jacket, both shirts, gloves and winter hat.  Even with all that, I still was freezing and only got about an hour of sleep.
 
Today's course was supposed to be downhill (800 feet down from start to finish), but I completely disagree.  I've never climbed so many mountains while traveling "downhill." Luckily the altitude did not affect me as much as others, so I was able to cruise a bit at the beginning.  The toughest part of the day was definitely in the canyons.  Massive canyon walls completely blocked the wind during miles 14-20. On top of that, those miles were completely uphill. It also didn't help that the temperature soared up to 36 degrees Celsius (I think about 105+ F.)  Luckily I moved fast enough and got in at about 12:30 pm, so I avoided a lot of the heat.  I ended up coming in 9th today, but I gaurantee that I will not repeat that feat.
 
I definitely was saved by some of my Christmas/ birthday presents today.  My coat kept me from freezing to death last night (and is ultra-light.)  Also, it was great having New Balance shoes that were meant for tail running.  Lastly, my GPS helped me actually keep a pace. 
 
So far most of our tent has come in.  We are just waiting for Nick (his first race back since breaking his back last year), Chris (Ironman guy from Las Vegas) and the father daughter team.  I'm sure all of them should be strolling in soon.  Emma already has a blister the size of a golf ball on the back of her foot, but knowing Emma she will only move faster tomorrow. 
 
I'm going to go grab a bit of rest and enjoy the view.  Thanks for all the emails/ blog comments already.  I do promise a much calmer pace tomorrow, as I don't want to blow up after having a good day.  Until tomorrow!

After driving up and up into the mountains, we finally arrived at our first camp site.  We are in the middle of a massive canyon at 10,000 + feet above sea level (or at least that's what I've been told.  Hopefully that means we can only go downhill from here, but I highly doubt that.  The weather is much colder here at night than I thought it would be.  Luckily, I have my new extra warm/ extra light jacket.
 
Our tent ordered a bunch of pizzas to bring up here for a pre-race feast.  I think I've already consumed more calories in the first night then I did all of the Sahara.  My plan tomorrow is to take it pretty slow, and give myself more time to get acclimated to the altitude.  Apparently arriving 24 hours before before a high altitude race is not optimal.
 
It's about time to head off to bed, but I will make sure to check in after day 1 tomorrow.

Just sending out a quick post to let everyone know I made it to Chile.  All of my flights were delayed and I ended up having to go standby on the last flight to Calama.  Luckily, I got on that flight and made it to San Pedro.  San Pedro is an awesome town, with a massive volcano off in the distance.  I haven´t noticed the altitude much, but I´m sure I will shortly.  I did weigh in with one of the lightest bags (not sure if that´s a good thing or a bad thing yet.)  I promise to actually write a real post next time, but I need to run to go catch the bus.  I believe it´s 26 miles tomorrow, so we shall see how it goes.

I know I promised at least a year before doing another one of these events, but somehow I find myself 48 hours away from another 155 mile race.  The rules are the same as the last one: 155 miles broken out over a week (really about 5 days  as the last two are mainly rest.) You carry all of your supplies from check point to check point except for your tent and water.  This time though, instead of endless sand dunes, I will be up at 8,00 feet above sea level.  

It's been a little over 4 months since the Sahara Race and I think I'm finally recovered.  The Sahara Race was really tough on me, as I packed terribly for that race.  Despite bringing 15,000 calories in my pack, about 8,000 ended up in the garbage (hence losing 25 pounds.)  I really struggled getting freeze dried food down after getting sick on the first day.  Also, I have scars on the back of my ankles from wearing shoes I hadn't been training in.  I actually still have sand in my ears canal from night 3 in the desert (I went to the doctor last week, and he asked me if I'd been to the beach recently.  Apparently I still have sand lodged in my ear canal from Egypt.)

So although I'm not in as good of shape as I was for the Sahara Race, I think I am way more prepared (record breaking snowfall makes it much harder to train, but what a great ski year!)  I made sure to pack foods that I could actually consume this time.  That means no freeze dried meals, no chocolate/ peanut butter Cliff bars, and no oatmeal.  These have been replaced by more Ramen noodles (12+ packs!), Nature's Valley bars, gels, nuts, chips, and then some comfort foods (yes, I packed Sour Patch Kids.)  I kind of gave up on trying to get healthy calories, and instead am focused on just actually bringing edible calories.  I also have way better shoes that I'm actually comfortable with (thanks Izzy!)  Hopefully this all contributes to a much better experience for me.

It will be fun to see some people from the Sahra Race again.  It looks like we will have another good tent for this race (although it will be tough to compete with my tent that kept me alive in the Sahara.)  

Once again, I am using this race to continue raising funds for the National MS Society.  If you are interested in donating, please follow the link below.  I guess that is it for now.   I'll check back in when I finally make it to Chile.

http://main.nationalmssociety.org/site/TR/Events/MAMChapter?pg=fund&fr_id=7402&pxfid=220557&JServSessionIdr004=tfe3ss5ep1.app330b