Friday 14th April 2006 Stage 5 42.2km (marathon)


Yet another sleepless night ,due to throbbing feet and a splitting headache, and dawn rises with once again a sandstorm. I wonder how people can live in this habitat. Immediately the Berbers haul down the tents. Its too windy to cook so it’s cold porridge again. It’s bloody freezing and I lie shivering in my sleeping bag with my buff over my face and my goggles on. Sand is blowing everywhere but at least there are no flies this morning. Everyone else seemed in great spirits but I feel really lousy like I have flu. My entire body was aching and I needed a jobby. A Mexican wave went round the camp and I even waved my hand out of my sleeping bag. I could only manage to go about ten yards to empty my bowels in front of everyone but was well beyond caring. I wondered if anyone ever been in a worse state at the start of a marathon?
Got my pack on and hobbled over to the start. By the time I got there I was feeling a lot better although my feet were screaming at me to get off them. The wind died down to a cool breeze and the temperature was a very pleasant 28C. Patrick Bauer announced at the briefing that water rations were to be doubled at the CPs. We may soon be in danger of drowning. An even bigger cheer went up when it was announced that the Irish lad flown to France was out of his coma and was making good progress. The rock music was boosting morale and the race started immediately into a spectacular dune section. The competitors broke into two separate trails of runners picking a route through the dunes. The helicopter was flying spectacularly low and everybody seemed to be on a buzz. Soon and amazingly, strength seemed to return to me. I longed to run. Must have been something in that porridge! I felt like I had a bit of energy and was able to get a fair pace up swinging my arms and poles like an exaggerated power walker. There was a tricky section through a deep crevice in an old river bed then I reached CP1 10.5km in well under 2 hours. I felt pleased and confident that I could do it all within the 12 hours. I met Phil and guy at CP1 and they said they wanted to go with me. Guy was struggling a bit with horrible feet but Phil looked fresh and was well capable of running. Despite persuasion he was adamant that he was going to stick with me. The terrain became very stony and it was agony on my feet but Phil just kept talking and boosted morale all the time convincing me that it was easy. It was a huge example of self sacrifice. He was capable of a good competitive time but refused to leave the pair of us. Guy mentioned that he was having problems with his legs and it was clear that his thighs had swollen significantly. As we continued we had to cut the sides of his lycra shorts to relieve the pressure. Eventually we reached the end of the stones and entered a huge dune area. The scenery was stunning and the sand a lot easier on my feet although I was now having problems with my calves having been walking on my heels and sides of my feet a great deal. By now Guys thighs were beginning to blister and a puss/ urine type liquid was bursting out all over them. ( He had a couple of boils in his groin lanced two nights previously and the medics had smothered his privates and bum in red iodine making him look like some sort of baboon.) He now looked like a cross between a leper and a zombie. The dunes finally ended and we reached CP 2 still in good time. Guy got medical help. Nobody knew what the problem was but suspected some sort of allergy. They poured iodine on his thighs and strapped them. Phil and I tried to make light of it but we were concerned for his well being, as was he. There was a 9 hour limit to reach CP 3 and with a lot of dunes to cross I slowed. My left shoulder was very painful and I had a searing pain up the front of my left leg. I was genuinely worried that I may have caused a stress fracture to one of the bones there. Eventually we arrived at CP3 just after 4.00pm meaning there were 5 hours to reach the bivvy only 11.5 k away. I even had time for some food.
The next section was a long painfully stony plain that seemed to go on for ever. The pain in my feet, leg and shoulder were almost unbearable but Phil never stopped his morale boosting comments. We reached the 4th and final check point just as it was getting dark. With only 2.5 km to go I knew I could crawl it but was in pretty bad shape. I persuaded Guy and Phil to go on as I needed to get some electrolytes in me and have a few minutes. With the darkness it got fairly cold and I was soon able to get going and got the arms swinging into a good pace. I finished only 4 minutes after Phil and Guy in 10 hours 5 minutes (6 hours 55minutes slower than my previous marathon)
On arrival a huge stage had been set up with a large screen showing highlights of the race. Members of the Paris opera and an Egyptian opera singer had been flown in to give a concert in the desert. An amazing logistical operation but I was just too exhausted to even appreciate it. I lay down in the tent totally exhausted, barely able to move. Ron helped me with my pack and then cooked a meal for me. I hardly had the energy to eat it but once again I was very grateful for my colleague’s help.