Well, what a dramatic end to a most unpredictable week of weather in the Gobi. We were just enjoying our "free day" relaxing with other competitors after The Long March when a sandstorm blew in and totally wrecked the camp. It blew for over 3 hours. Calm was resumed at around 9.30pm. A decision was made to camp out under the stars which worked until around 3am when it began to rain. With no protection from the elements we were told to abandon camp. Buses had been ordered

Nailed the 80kms in around 14 hours 20 minutes, getting back into camp at about 10.20pm after a long hot day in the sun. Sam and I stayed together throughout the day and basically marched through the Black Gobi desert at full speed for the first 50kms, averaging around 6kms per hour. We then tired a bit in the afternoon sun with temperatures reaching a reported 47 degrees! But we stuck to the task and ground it out, arriving in camp in 41^st

Mes loulous,

Merci pr tous vos messages, tout va bien! On a fait la longue marche hier et yesterday in 45 degrees of heat, we made it after 24 h, all went well ! today it is very windy in the desert, our camp is in a canyon, sand is flying everywhere ! I will be back at the hotel tomorrow Saturday and will call u then ! maxime, no problem for baking waffles, we will do it together ! victoria, I hope u have fun with saskia tonight, do not forget that she is on a gluten free diet ! didouche, I love you very much too ! I will be back very soon to hug you all ! I cannot writelong since there is so much wind that the tent is flying

Finally the gods were smiling and we had some decent weather! Good long downhill 10kms run to CP1 in 75 minutes, following the mountain range. Then we headed south into true Gobi conditions - lots of rocks and hard sand with a few dry river beds thrown in for good measure. But quite a bit of it was runnable so we were through CP2 in around 3 hours 15 minutes. Met up with Sam there who had a bit of an inflamed ankle so we walked all the way together for the rest of the day, putting in a bit of a burst at the end to finish in a shade over 7 hours. I think we're both pretty happy with that. The training is over and The Long March awaits tomorrow - 80kms across the Black Gobi. Lots more sand and rocks I suspect!

Good crowd at camp. Really hot now as I type - must be in the early 30s which is a great change from the wintry conditions encountered earlier. We are now well away from the mountains and at a much lower altitude.

Thanks again for all the comments. The skis came in very handy on days 1 and 2 and yes, I did bring some food with me, but I have to say I'm beginning to get a bit fed up with my macadamia and sweet walnut mix! But it does the job at 700 calories per 100 grams.

We seem to be camped in an abandoned village. Time to do a little exploring. Both in good shape and looking forward to the long grind tomorrow. No blisters yet!

Sam and I are both in safely to Camp 3 - we seem to have taken over a local village! Interesting start to the day - more snow during the course briefing! Then a tough 10km first stage up to the top of a mountain in the snow. It must have been 6 inches deep in parts at the top! That was followed by a long run down off the mountain to CP2. Lots of time on jeep tracks today to make up our 40kms.

Thanks for all your comments. They really do keep us going!

Another good time for Sam today - around 6 hours 45 minutes. I came in about an hour later, just like yesterday!

It's nice and sunny now so fingers crossed for the rest of the race. We're at a much lower altitude now so hopefully we'll get some kinder weather. With all the snow the good news is that we won't need to sign up for Antarctica!

Next blog will probably come from Sam.

Time for dinner now - spicy noodles!

Chris and Sam.

Relaxing day in Hami yesterday. It's remarkably green for a desert town. Sam and I took advantage of priority bag check last night so we have a relaxing morning today. Bags all checked and passed with flying colours! Very happy with my bag weight of 7.5kgs! Heading off for competitor briefing. At 3pm we get bussed out to camp 1 at 3,200 metres.

Finally made it to Hami at around 8pm after 4 hour flight and 8 hour car journey.

Interesting drive. Mountains on one side and desert-like conditions on the other but every now and then we came across fruit farms and vineyards! Lush green oases amongst the dry arrid rocky desert. Must check out the wine from the vineyards!

Rest day tomorrow. Time to have final food and kit check and just wander round town.

Sam and I arrived in Beijing within an hour of each other and made our way to the airport hotel. A quick lunch and then into town to the Forbidden City and Imperial Palace. Then a traditional roast duck meal at Da Dong restaurant which was excellent. Early night for us both as we have a 7.30am flight to Urumqi. Then the 8 hour car journey to Hami. The adventure continues!

With training completed (?) and bags packed it's time to set up the blog.

Training has been a bit sporadic because of a busy first quarter at work so I'll be relying on residual fitness to get me through this one!

I'll be competing with my son Sam, but we've agreed to do our own thing each day so that I don't slow him down.