Hi All, Just wanted to sign off with one last post. It has been an amazing 24 hours and certainly one that I will never forget. After arriving into camp Friday morning all I needed to do was sleep and hydrate....never of which were easy! I was dehydrated a little and the temp at 9am was already really high- which made it almost impossible to sleep or more much. I spent a little time at the medic's tent because I felt like I was cooking from the inside!!! Ate a little food and ended up getting into bed early in the hope of trying to get a good nights sleep... At around midnight I was woken by yelling and screaming and a face full of sand. Turns out we were in a middle of a sand storm and the locals assisting us were trying to secure the tents and make sure we were not going to be blown away. I cannot describe the amount of wind and sand inside and outside of the tent and how much we were getting smashed by the wind. Having said that I was so extremely exhausted I was too tired to care at that point although I was a little annoyed with myself that I had left my tights outside (they have officially never been seen again).... Penny did ask the following ,owning if I had taken a sleeping pill though because I seemed to sleep though a lot of the fuss! By 7am the wind had dropped and left us with an overcast and cooler morning ready for our final 14km's to the finish line. I was feeling good and excited and ready to finally make it home. With about 11km's up and then a nice easy 3km cruise into the finish it seemed like an easy day....I wish... About 2 hours in and I was struggling...the canyon walls were making me dizzy and I got so sick that I couldn't keep my water or breakfast down. I got to a point where all I wanted was to lie down and have a quick nap. All I kept thinking was that I needed to get out of the canyon walls before they started to close in on me. Luckily the fear of not finishing held me together for another 2km's (plus I could find a comfy place to sit down) until I saw some volunteers on the top of the canyon peak. I spent the next 15 minutes up there just breathing and drinking and getting myself together.... And out of nowhere Natalia appeared!! She again was my saviour and helped me get to the finish line... From that point on it was an exhilarating trip drown 3km's and into the Buddhist village to end what was an amazing week. It is hard to explain over a blog what it felt like to run the last 100 meters and end such an amazing journey. I'm sure I will speak to you all over the next few weeks and show you some of the amazing photos. I want to thank everyone who commented and although I didn't get to read them all during the week I certainly appreciated the ones that I did. It is amazing how much it lifts you to know that people are thinking about you... I am so lucky to have such unbelievable family and friends.....

It should have been a long March but im just too tired to be doing anything that looks close to a march. :-)
 
 
What an amazing experience it was to be able to cross 80km's of the Turpan desert over 24 hours...and it did take 24 hours!!!!! 24 hours may seem like a long time...YES...it is!
 
Here is my recollections....
 
CP1...
Dunes...soft sand...hill after hill... I hate sand. :-) Enough said.
 
CP2
This was my favourite part physically! Wild camels along and endless dirt road in the middle of nowhere...and it starts to rain! Amazing...
 
CP3
Salt flat...temps as high as 55 are recorded. The shuffle begins. My pack- although at it lightest at maybe 6kg's...feels like im carrying bricks! Picked up a walking buddy (thank god) who got me through this...
 
REST...once we got to the checkpoint the sensible decision was made to wait out the midday sun! Smart samrt move. We stayed under a shelter drinking water and conserving energy.
 
CP4
Found 1 competitor sitting on the side of the road unable to get up with pins and needles in his hand..Eeeekk.
Waited with him as there is no way we could leave him alone there!! Sent people to get a medic and got up to start walking towards the CP and came across a competitor passed out under a bush off the side of the track. Scary... He was out of water and didnt know what was going on. Thankfully the medic we sent for was on her way and collected him (he is fine now)... Another two cometitiors withdrawn!
 
REST...at the 4th CP we came across Fleur who had been at the Med tent for the last 7 hours! Still looking out of it- but in good spirits (especially when a GIANT spider crawled under her)!!!!
 
CP5...from this stage the headlamp went on and we pushed though the rest of the stages one after another...as quick as we could go given the state of both Natalia and myself! Blistered swollen tired... :-)
 
We caught up with Dean (another Aussie) at the overnight camp, who inspired me with some Melissa Ethridge tunes, to push through with no sleep and complete the rest of the course! Thanks Deano and Mark for the Beef Jerky!!
 
Hard to say what happened between CP5 and CP7 as im pretty sure i did it alseep. Might have to read Natalia's blog to find out! Rhi/Scully/BB- you would have laughed at the below conversation that took place.
"I just need to sit down...just for a minute...i need a nap...just a quick one...please...just leave me...i'll be fine...promise...just for a sec..i'll catch up...i just want to rest my eyes.."
Natalia- "NO...Keep walking."
 
No sympathy...no option! Hahaha...reminded me of you guys! :-)
 
I do remember the feeling of crossing the line though...INCREDIBLE... Happy. Relieved. Thankful.
 
Only another 13km's...
 
Very excited... :-)
 
Just before i go...sadly now JB had been pulled from the race. Her and Fleur both had isssued with dehydration and we have all been told that if you require a drip then you will be medically withdrawn. JB and Daz both headed back on a 3 hour trip to the hotel this morning- as well as the other competitors who are dehydrated.
 
On an amazing note- Penny and Ben are both still smashing it! They have by far been the most strongest and resilliant competitors i have seen!! I hope that when im Penny's age that i will be half as tough!
 
Another great day by other fellow tentee's! Gene...Bei...Twist...Pauly! Truely great people... AND Jennifer and Damon...WHAT IS THE SECRET??  Whatever they are on- i want some!! :-)
 
 
Vikki

That pretty much sums it up.
 
Had a horrible day today and saw one of our tent have to withdraw due to dehydration.
 
I was out on course today for 12 hours and almost missed a cut-off at the last checkpoint.
 
It was super HOT! And not in a bikini and pool kinda way. It was scary to think that we are out in a desert with no shade and no help nearby if something goes wrong.
 
Today i spent the day helping out a friend who tried so hard to push through the heat and the conditions and did such an amazing job getting 20ish km's done when he could barely walk...amazing strength (and a little stupidity!!)
 
The scenery today was amazing and the sand dunes were huge (amazing to look at- but SO horrible to run through).
 
The temp today was around 45ish and is only going to get hotter tomorrow when we attempt to get through 80km's!
 
i now have to go and try and stomach some food because i know that i need to...then im going to try and not throw it up!!! ;-)
 
I hope im feeling better tomorrow and able to write a little more.
 
Today we havent been able to read any blog comments so i look forward to hearing from everyone tomorrow.
 
Vikki

Firstly…I hide my VPL constantly because I know it is bad!

Secondly…today was hard but good. Three water crossings and a 15km hill climb was a great way to start the day! Scully- you will be pleased to know that as I was powering up the hill I had two comments about how fast my legs were going. My response…It is my Hockey Thighs! J

I am completely going to brag that at Check Point 2 I was in 58^th place!!!!! So happy but exhausted… From then on I took it very easy and only jogged downhill when the ground was solid.

Again the Aussies are in great form, and no BB I am not counting myself in that category! Jennifer and Damon are smashing it out in front and there are so many others having a real crack.

My feet are a little bit worse today and the blister count it up to 3- and I am certainly one of the lucky ones.

FYI:
Rhi- I am walking like an Egyptian!
Sculley- Two things… 1. How is the Helpdesk?? 2. This may be a strange and random coincidence….but…I was really struggling on a hill today at about the 41km mark, I was hot, there were no clouds, no wind, nothing around but me and a desert… THEN…this big gust of wind came and moved the gift you gave me on to my shoulder where I could see it. I took this to mean that I needed to get my tired legs moving…helped me p the last 20 metres! 
Amy- I think id almost rather be out here than doing that drive!! Sad but true! J
BFF- pain is my friend…but doesn’t have the extra BF!!!!!!! 
Casey- stay away from all high fives!

The big red shoes are VERY distracting… and I almost lost them after a run in with the fire place yesterday! J McClumsy!!

Now I’m off for some dehydrated food and a lie down on my piece of concrete! No tents tonight- instead we are lucky enough to be staying in Peach Village with a host family! J

Hopefully I can keep in the top 100 tomorrow and I plan on taking it very easy… J

Vikki

Yesterday = Pain
Today = Fun

Waking up this morning was like waking up at home…it was cold and wet and visibility was so bad the start of the race was delayed until 12pm.

While the delay meant that we were able to get an extra couple of hours sleep it also meant that the course had to be shortened to avoid running up the mountains. I think in the end it was about 20kms…and mostly consisted of gradual hill climbs and lots of downhill! I was able to run all downhill sections and then try and keep a good pace up them. I had a slight delay off the start and stopped to help another competitor who split her knee open (3 stitches required- and she still finished today). I ended up running back to the start line to get a medic which meant that I was dead last by about 15 minutes. So for the rest of the race I went as fast as I could possibly go. Stupid for Day 2 (I know!!)…!

The weather was pretty bad the whole way…raining and cold. But as I said to some of my tent mates- this is the kind of weather that I had been training in!! It stopped raining just after half way but stayed overcast the entire way!!

Today I didn’t stop to take many photo’s because I was on a mission to stay in the top 100…and coming into the finish line under 3 hours was such a great feeling after the previous day- that is for sure!

I know my email yesterday was short- and I was extremely exhausted so today I can fill you in on the more important details as promised!!

Firstly…due to the short day today the mood around camp has certainly improved. It stays light here until after 10.30pm so I’m sure there will be a few stories around the campfire today! The group is certainly getting looser as the time goes on which makes for some interesting conversations. As far as a top three (BB & Scully)- this is yet to be finalized.

I have some AWESOME people in my tent and I introduced them to some Aussie slang last night that was very amusing. Jodi (JB) is hilarious and we are having a lot of fun. She is killing it in the race and has the most amazing attitude and her energy is addictive!!

Penny and Ben are also inspirational! They are a mother and son team who get out there every day and stick together to get through each stage. Their relationship is so amazing and I have not heard a complaint out of either of them.

Daz…introduced me to his beaver on Day 1 and he has been just as amusing ever since. I think that he, JB and myself are trying hard to keep everyone amused and make sure there is never a dull moment.

Ollie…all I can think of when he speaks is Augustus Gloop for Charlie and the Chocolate factory… He German/Swiss/UK accent is hilarious (even when I can understand what he is saying)! ;-) He is pushing through some feet issues but I’m sure that he will be right to go tomorrow.

I don’t want to bore you with too much talk so I will tell you about the others in my next blog. 

Unfortunately we haven’t been able to get an emails from home today but I want to say a huge thank you for the ones I received yesterday. They were amazing to read and really do help to distract you from how hard it gets.

Hope everything is going well back home!!!

Vikki
xx

WOW!!
 
No worries...kidding myself! First day down. Most of my skin is accounted for- one small blister on my little toes that is now all strapped up.
 
Today started amazing...i was very tourist like and snapped lots of great photos. Just striding out over the first 15km`s with not any stress at all!
 
Then it happened....THE HILLS. Up and down  i cant even recall how many times. It hurt A LOT!
 
I came through checkpoint 3 in about 95th place- which i was very happy with!!
 
Then came a sequence of hills that really brough back the reality of what i am doing... I had to stopped every 10 metres because by body just wanted to stop. I was overtaken by so many people (shattering).
 
To end a long and completely heartbreaking story i made it to the finish line in 98!!! Overtook some people on the last hill to sneak in under 100.
 
Tomorrow is a new day and hopefully it will be easier!!!
 
FYI- the other Aussie guys and girls and doing an amazing job!! The 1st guy and girl are both from Sydney! Freaks! :-)

Volcanic ash and flight cancellations...seriously!! I have safely arrived at Sydney Airport! I knew this race was going to be difficult I really didn't think it was start quite so soon! Whilst I was blissfully unaware of my cancelled flight Scully, BB and little BB were strategically brainstorming ways to get me to China...no matter what the cost. Special mention to Darren who was immediately on the phone to every airline contact he had and came back with hourly updates. By the time I got back to the office I had 6 different plans of attack and was able to sit back and eat my pack of Smarties without any doubt that I would get to China. So at 11pm I headed off in my rental car for the 10 hour drive to Sydney airport I'm the hope of catching my connecting flight! Again, thank you to EVERYONE who called and messaged to help me stay awake all night and all morning. Again Emily Pilling and Gillian Martin I owe you both a huge THANK YOU! All my fingers are crossed that my delayed flight to Shanghai leaves at 2.15pm and I am finally on my way. Mc- take my shoes off!

With just under 24 hours til I attempt to leave Australia, it is now time to finally pack and tidy up all loose ends! I still need to pick up some socks and some more food- but other than that I think I have accounted for everything (at least I think I have).

 Although I'm sure that I haven’t done enough training or worn my shoes in thoroughly, there is very little I can do about this now. An old wise friend of mine once said if there is nothing that can be done...’no worries’; and I have a feeling this may be the only thing running around in my head for the next couple weeks. If someone can do it in crocs I can do it in the new shoes I hope will arrive today.

 I do think one of the biggest hurdles I will face while I'm away will be kicking my pack a day habit...of Smarties- but I'm up for this challenge too.

 Before I leave I wanted to say a big thanks to all the people who have helped me in the last 3 months get to this point and to all who have supported me in my attempt to be ready for the race. For all the people who have helped with training, preparation, gear, motivation, enthusiasm and positive energy- THANK YOU!

 I will post throughout the race and try to keep everyone informed of my pain levels and daily progress. Scully & BB I also hope to provide you with ongoing ‘race updates’ as promised.

 Mum- I will be fine!