Kim and Jan's MdS Adventure

So ... Two weeks ago we were at home in London, stressing about the MDS and what still needed to get done/ sorted/ organised/ weighed and established whether it was really a completely necessary item of kit to take along, together with the ever present niggle at the back of our minds on whether we had trained enough (is it ever enough) and what we should have/ could have done differently.... One week ago we were in about the middle of the long stage, at 5pm "camp time" (one hour behind Moroccan time) through the worst heat of the day, Jan soldiering on with shmangled feet - unbeknownst to us at the time, he had amassed and was walking on 15 blisters in total - 10 on one foot, five on the other. We were yet to hit the remnants of a sandstorm in the dunes - for us not as debilitating as the sandstorm that had hit the runners at the front of the pack (ie we didn't have to stop and/or huddle, merely lift the buffs to become face protectors), which would take us into su...

Above the view from our tent. Yesterday was another long day (distance wise a "mere" marathon) but we took it easy with a run before the heat built up and then walked (or hobbled) the rest of the course. They snuck in some jebels, dunes, and gorges to make it the most scenic day... to end on a high or perhaps encourage people to sign up again..?! Not for us (we agreed on that remarkably quickly!). As for us, we are looking forward to relatively easy double digit distance runs in the future - and being able to say "we shaved 5 hours off our last marathon time!" Now gearing up for the last little push for 6km to the finish finish line, where a bus (or maybe a taxi) awaits. Then a 6h bus ride back to a shower to start some recuperation until our girls arrive on Monday.  Thanks for all your support and donations. The daily printed out emails which were brought to our tent were such a wonderful treat - the joy reminded us of the excitement felt ...

We are very happy that we finished the final stage today. Feeling great having figured out the desert heat a bit better. Started early at 7am and ran (probably more like a shuffle...) for first hours and then settle into a walk once the heat built up.  Tomorrow morning is a short charity stage and back to civilisation where we'll have better reception to post a fuller update and some more photos.  Thank you all for the support.  K & J 

So here we are on the rest day after the long stage and man, it was LOOOONG! Jan is accumulating blisters like sand on the beach so walking (never mind running) is somewhat painful to put it mildly. Kim, it transpires, is a mutant: not a blister in sight. But we soldiered on and decided to do the long stage using the "walk of Shane" (= quick and effective shuffle-walk taught to us by our coach Shane) and took it check point by check point and on and on (and beautiful starry sky and a camel spider spotting and beginnings of sunrise later) we made it - EXHAUSTED! - in 21.5 hours. We are out of battery (so no photos this time) and also don't know when next we'll have reception but base case (Fabi, if you are reading this) should be Saturday. Tomorrow the marathon stage (LAST ONE!) which is apparently fairly tough but beautiful and again we are planning on Shan-walking the whole thing. Exhausted but happy to knock it off step by step, check point by check point, stage by...

The big challenge today. 76k in one go. Walking slowly  Wish us luck 

Day 3 is the longest for far with 37km. Thankfully not as many dunes but still some smaller sandy stretches. Slow and steady is the mantra for today to keep some energy in the tank for the 'long day'.  K & J

Sunrise in the desert is quite spectacular as it completely changes its character. Instantly it becomes warmer and a bit more hospitable (before the sun really settles in the sky...we all know too well by now how that feels!).  We have adopted the sleeping rhythm of our children. Asleep at 8 and up at 6ish. We have adapted remarkably well to sleeping on a rocky floor in the open.  Waking with a stiff back always raises the first question of "was that thanks to my backpack and yesterday's carrying or the ultra hard and rocky surface?" K & J 

There's T'ai Chi mornings and evening in the centre of camp for those of us with extra time and energy. We'll look to join on rest day. 

As expected today was a slog. After the first sandy and rocky stretch we entered Morocco's largest sand dunes. Any hopes of being able to run a bit were quickly shattered as we slowed to a crawl sinking deep as we made our way up and down the sand dunes. In case any of you were wondering: we ain't gonna win this thing..  A final 6k stretch we managed to muster some residual energy to run parts of it to finish in 6:30h today. The last two days have definitely taken their toll with four more blisters between us (three for Jan, one for Kim).  Legs are tired but aches and pains mostly in check and if how we felt this morning after a good enough night's sleep is anything to go by, we may not be exactly fresh as daisies tomorrow, but certainly cheerful and absolutely DELIGHTED that we never ever ever have to do 13km of dunes again. Ever. For us it's decided: MdS (provided we finish!) is definitely a ONCE in a lifetime thing!   T...

Today's route is split into 13k across 'stony plateau, followed by 13k of 'large dunes' followed by a 6k final stretch. The second part sounds scary. Will try to get there before it gets hot hot hot.  Yesterday we finished 363/364 out of 783 so just managed the reach first half. Let's see how we fare over today.  Dunes are shimmering a bit menacing in the distance.  K & J

Camp starts to stir around 5:30 with two hours filled with cooking breakfast and getting gear sorted for the day. Feeling pretty well rested. Night was a lot warmer which unfortunately means today will be a lot hotter.  Fingers crossed for the day.  K & J 

We made it! After 4:43h through sand dunes, rocky planes and dried river beds. One blister each that has been expertly self treated (with needles by ourselves...) we are relaxing with our feet up and re hydrating.  Tomorrow has a section of 13km sand dunes which sounds painful. Let's see how our stamina compares after the run today.  We are delighted with how today went, huffled and puffled alongside each other for the duration and are still thoroughly enjoying each other's company!  X K & J 

32.2km to get us started. A bit of dunes, some climbs but hopefully a good start to get us into desert racing. Packs full up at 8kg before we start eating our way through them.  N-n-n-nervous and exxxxxcited in equal measure!  K & J

Almost there. At the start line that is..  So today was spent mostly "free at leisure" but, significantly, gave us a chance for "final mental prep".  Without having to worry about mileage, we got to experience camp life, got a feel for the desert, really got the feel of the temperature changes throughout the day and back into the evening, got a thorough pre-race briefing... and, well, tomorrow morning is IT!  One little funny: so the "real" time in Morocco is the same time as British summer time....but "camp" (and therefore ALL start times etc) are one hour behind the real time so we are doing this event in a virtual time zone. Nope, nobody knows why, it's just the way it is.... means on the one hand we sleep an hour longer...but we also spend an hour more in the sun. Oh well. It's all pretty surreal so this is part of it. We've bumped into/ met some random people... so our good friend Tan...

Today is dedicated to getting ready for our race start tomorrow. Still being provided with breakfast, lunch and dinner before we become 'self sufficient' from tomorrow morning to Saturday mid day.  Lots of queuing to get registered and complete gear and medical checks. Our duffles get collected and get transported to the finish. The running packs weighed in at 7.8kg (yep, for each of us..) of which 4.1kg is food which we'll work through day by day.  Atmosphere is great, superb buzz in the air but without the familiarity which will inevitably develop over the course of the next couple of days as people bond over shared self-imposed pain.... loving the international-ness of it all. We breakfasted with a bunch of Frenchies, chatted to a German d-Phil student from Oxford after, gear check queue time was spent chatting to a guy from Durham who lives in Chiangmai (and is a very (!!) committed vegan), seeing lots of Japanese (great kit!) ...

Arrived at camp at 8pm after a 7h bus journey deep into the desert. We were welcomed with typical Berber hospitality for a buffet dinner.  Tent now all set and off to our first night sleep in the desert.  K & J 

Landed and now off on a 6h bus ride to our starting camp. As expected sunny sunny sunny.  Tonight is our first night in the desert and tomorrow focus is on registration and gear check before our Sunday morning start.  We found an airport WiFi. Let's see how much reception will find for the next days.  Off for an adventure.  K & J