Roasting in the Oven!
 
The prize for all the early finishers is a day of rest and leisure in The Oven! If you want to be really hard core, you can lie in the shade in your tent, the only cost being suffering a few extra degC!!! All the hot water you can stomach as usual!!!!
 
Stage 5:
 
Mantra: Finish
 
Reality: Finished!
 
Phil, Jacqueline and I spent most of the day together, when our cadence varied, we flip flopped on different sections. Unbelievably we all arrived at the last checkpoint within 30 mins of each other. Our different rest/sleep requirements meant that we all left at different times to tackle the last stage.
 
My rest consisted of coaxing my digestive system to actually start work on the reconstituted Spag Bol that I had eaten about 3hrs before! You would think that after about 18hours of exercise that it would be natural for the body to process food, but no, I took some sweets and started to feel like things were moving. Of course the only reason I wanted the process to start was so that I could take my next cocktail of Voltaren and Paracetamol to reduced the blister pain to a level where I could begin to walk!
 
Try to sleep, hobble over to pee, sleep, wiggle toes,...., wiggles toes, hang on!!! I cant feel the razor sharp pain anymore, it is only a dull pain, quick wake Jacqueline to see if she wants to get out there with me. "NO, I NEED MORE SLEEP", ok, I must launch as the window of reduced pain only lasts about 2 hours! Off I go, slow builds into medium pace and then I start motoring! Up ahead Phil and Jim have been stumped by the morning twilight and cannot find any markers, they are lying on the ground having a rest. I am totally wired and do an expanding square search for the next marker, spot it and call to the boys! I am off and finally into the dunes for the best 5% of the entire day. Timewise I hit the first dunes just as the sun is rising above the horizon, it is magical and I am hammering it! Finish just before 0700 local time, time to relax in The Oven in black Skins (thanks Blake!)!
 
So, tomorrow is the last stage and I have "ticked the box" on my Gobi experience. It is a lazy half-marathon in shoes with their roof cut off, feet with multiple blisters through the sand dunes of The Oven  to arrive near Shanshan, bus back to hotel in Urumqi and have a huge feed and some cold beer!
 
Mantra: Enjoy it while it lasts!
 
Thanks go out to all of you who have been checking in on my progress and
 
 

Mantra: March/march/hard uphill/downhill
 
Reality Bites!: First hour slow due feet/march/hammered it and overtook joggers again in the hills! I think I came in 48th.
 
Thanks to all of you for checking in and writing some comments, it is a highlight of the day to see the messages!
 
Stage 4 was about 24km of flat desolation and then 12 km of fantastic uphill dunes/canyons and narrow crevices followed by a long slalom ski down a powder sand lined chute canyon!
 
In my first blog I mentioned the 3 F's!
 
Food has been no factor as I did not choose to skimp too much as others have. I am convincing myself that this has put my body (ex-feet) in good shape throughout. Bit sick of my power brekkie but only 2 to go!
 
Feet are terrible, as feared! Thanks go to Gillian for the supply of Benzoin, which has been shared around! I have 2 new ones today on the heel, which completes the suite of having blisters on every part of my feet! Toes, web between toes, under nails, heels, BALL OF FOOT!!!!!!! The thing with them is that they only make you wince for about the first hour or so, then the pain morphs into a dull ache. So, the way to deal with it is firstly, just keep going and do not stop, as it will reset the one hour clock again! Second, to borrow a phrase "Pain is guaranteed, Suffering is optional!" It is the long day tomorrow (99km) which I aim to do in under 24hrs, so if I keep going then the wincing hour will only represent roughly 5% of my day! How is that for a positive spin!
 
Failure is now simply NOT AN OPTION! I will take a moderate pace and leave some in reserve to deal with the unexpected.
 
The Oven is now well and truly roasting! It is 3pm local as I write and about 45degC in the shade. Our sleeping area is now about 35degC. Some people are only just arriving and they must have weathered some pretty harsh temps!
 
Finally, Mum, I will be on the trail all day tomorrow, so Happy Birthday to you! You are a great Mum and a shining light for many people around you! We are all better people for having you around. Enjoy your day, Love Mal.

Mantra: March/march/jog downhill
 
Reality: March/march(get overtaken by runners on this flat sect)/hammer uphill and run down!!!!!
 
This morning i noticed a subtely larger right ankle and an ocnltwinge in calf. Of course i did nnot pay this toomuch respect, but when we hit the riverbed, my ankle was a little unstable and i rolled it a few times,but thankfully not seriously! At the first roll, it all came together i had missed the subtle signs, but it suddenly dawned on me! So, lesson is that just like flying, your experience tells you to sit back and take note of the "whats different today" and then act upon it!!!! Lesson learnt!
 
Only one new blister, with a little blood, but i popped that sucker and all will be taped tonight for the early get up of 4am tomorrow. The foot pain ni camp is strangely more than that on the track, the numbness takes over quickly and is then shatterd even quicker by an occasional sharp rock etc.
 
So, i have been pacing with my tent buddy Phil (134) and we have been doing quite well, aiming for top 50 each day, but only 60thish today. May i explain that we hit it pretty hard again, but today was a runners paradise, hence the slightly worse position. We did however relish in hauling in some runners on the hilols/finish. Thanks Phil.
 
Today during the stage was cool and an odd drop of rain, bizarre! However, at 4pm it is now incredibly hot and dry, we have arrived at the oven! Tonights camp is in a Uigher village and we are sleeping in their dwellings, luxury!
 
Syd, gear/nutrition will HAVE to be covered over some cold beers soon!
 
JacqDomChris, trust all is fine at home, one day soon daddy will come home from his long run! Jacq, i forgot to resend the race link to mullet and Dunph, could you send some info to them please?
 
Off to eat/tape blisters and sleep now.
 
Cheers Mal in TheOven' finally!!!!!

Mantra: March/jog downhill/March (hope no blisters)
 
Reality: March, overtake others on uphill, then motor downhill/ March (and get overtaken by all that i overtook uphill!!!!!! BTW i love the hilly area!) AAArgHHHHH get 4 blisters!!!!
 
Hi everyone,
 
Firstly thanks for your interest and comments on the blog, it is comforting to see them out here in the desert.
 
A quick day today, came in 49th in about 4hr 15min.
 
Blisters have been threaded and i will probably take the roof off a couple tomorrow morning after they dry out. I have a large 3cmx2cm one on the ball of my foot which i will just second skin tomorrow after it has fully drained/dried o'nite.
 
I cannot believe it, but it has finally warmed up and it is good! Last night was possibly colder than the first night, however this afternoon it is quite warm and even the wind is warm. Did i mention that the Gobi is known as the windy desert? This claim to fame is true! "The Fridge" might finally turn into "The Oven" (yes, i know, be careful what you wish for!).
 
Jacq, sorry to leave you on your own on Sunday, i hope the boys are better next Sunday.
 
Thanks again for checking this blog. BTW you can look for the "features" tab on the rtp site for daily reports/photos etc (well so i am told!)
 
Love to all, Mal in the Gobi!

Mantra: march,march,march
 
Reality: march, jog occasionally down hill, march across finish line coz I could!
 
Great terrain, except for the flat bits! Everyone from hkg loves the hills and everyone else loves the flats.
 
I am overwhelmed that I actually got cold at one point on the stage. Sitting here now I am freezing with a breeze coming down from the snow covered mountains in the distance. Whilst I am elated that we have not endured 45degC ish yet,I am dreading tonight as we are on a high plain exposed to this biting cold breeze/wind!
 
For anyone interested, today was 32km, I came in around 47th in about 5hrs37mins.
 
I am now off to eat my warm rehydrated nosh!
 
Mum, thanks for the comments and support, btw the oldest competitor is 61! So, how about next year for you mum?
 
Cold (never thought I would be typing that), hungry and need to get horizontal, bye for now. Mal.
 

Big day getting away from the hotel in Urumqi. An over cautios bus driver who wanted wing walkers at every marginal ramp/river crossing on the dirt road to Camp 1. We all got here in one piece, except our bus that had a cracked fender.
 
Scoffed much food/water, spent 20 mins of pre-taping to appease the blister gods and now i am off to bed. Did i mention that it is actually cold! Iam sure that this will change tomorrow.
 
Cheers Mal.

Greetings to all from a hot and humid summer in Hong Kong. At the subtle request of many interested friends and family i have submitted this blog on the RTP site and will place daily updates of my progress whilst in the Gobi. On Fri 25Jun, i fly out to Urumqi, Xinjiang province NW China to compete in the Gobi March 2010, a race in the 4Deserts series. The race starts on Sun 27Jun and finishes on Sat 03Jul. Basically it covers 250km over 6 stages, each varying in length from 20-90km. It is self supported for everything but water and tent. In preparation for this challenge i have been hitting the tracks and trails of Hong Kong and other layover destinations since the beginning of the year. In mid-May i ran the Great Wall Marathon just out of Beijing and was very happy with my performance there, which hopefully indicated that my training had been adequate. Since mid-May i have increased the weight of my pack to around 10-12kgs to condition the feet and body for the big one. I have to say that it is not at all pleasant trying to run with this weight and during one particular session monitoring my speed and heart rate i came to the conclusion that running versus "marching" was seemingly highly inefficient and soul destroying! So, "marching" and the occasional flat/downhill jog is the order of the day at least for the first few days of the race! I have almost put together my final gear selection, but in true Mal style i have squandered the time available in the past and will now operate under self-induced time pressure to influence my final choices! You would think by the age of 40 i would have corrected this habit? Gear selection has been a continual trial and error program and whilst i am driven by weight reduction i am also placing a premium on comfort and normality as well. I am not too concerned at this point about a few extra grams here and there (maybe my views will change on the daily updates!), but volume may be the limiting factor when i do a final race pack this week. "The Oven", as it is referred to, is the Turpan Basin, and i have been monitoring the weather there over the past few weeks. Whilst it has not actually peaked above 50degC YET, it shows an increasingly overwhelming trend in that direction! Sat 47 Sun 46 Mon 47. The humidity is running around 20%, i am conditioned to 80-90% in HKG, so i am actually looking forward to the dry air(perhaps the sweating mechanism will get a chance to work?), but not really the 40-50+ degC bit! Food, Feet and Failure are my main concerns for the race. Everyone will be in calorie deficit each day, but to what degree is the competitors choice based on weight/volume. I hope to get a minimum of 2600+kCal per day pending on my final pack! I have got my body weight down to around 86kg, which assists in performance, i know i will return somewhat less than this! Feet will be the most unpredictable variable. I am satisfied with my preparation and shoe/sock/ choice etc (although nothing is ever perfect) and throughout training i have had minimal blisters/problems. I am prepared for the absolute worst and hopefully it wont be worse than my predictions! One of the main reasons i was considering not writing a blog of my experiences is that i would look like such a plonker if i did not finish this race! However i have now come to realise that this is a tough event and many will not make it to the end. I am confident that i have prepared adequately and will put in all of my effort to get through the race. There are many conditions and variables that can not be encountered until entrenched in the race, i have confidence that i can overcome these challenges. If i do not complete the race then i am guaranteed to have reset my own personal limits of endurance and persistence way beyond what they are before this race has started. All of that aside, ever since i started flying from HKG to Europe VV i have flown over the exact region in which we will be racing. The Turpan basin is flanked on the north by a 10000'+ mountain range and to the south by a 15000'+ range which pose their own challenges for aviation. Spending many hours in the air flying over many and varied regions of the world, i spend more time wishing i was down on the ground i was overflying than being in the pressurised aluminium tube above! The Gobi March 2010 provides a unique opportunity for me to fulfill that wish. I am sure that when i am down there in the middle of the desert at 50+degC and in a world of hurt, sore, hungry, thirsty and exhausted i will be wishing that i was back in that Aluminium tube at altitude!!!!