Re: Go, Suze!!

On Thu, 13 Apr 2006 09:18:06 +0100, Champ <news@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

I've got a couple of messages from Suze at home, forwarded from her UK
contact (they have a limited ability to send messages to one nominated
person at the bivouacs - this person is then forwarding them to a
group of us on a mailing list). I'll post them up here when I get
home tonight.

OK, so here they are:

Day 1

ok well just finished day 1. it was pretty tough so i walked quite a
bit. finished in 4hrs 5mins. combination of rocks and sand plus some
high dunes made running difficult. legs feel ok but i do have a few
blisters which i will sort out in a minute. We have had bad sand
storms for 2 days now with 40 mile winds which keep blowing down the
tents. inside the tent we have at least an inch of sand and
everything has sand in or on it including me. just as well i cant see
what i look like ! my hair feels like straw and i am literally brown
from sand not sun. right best give someone else a chance to send a
message. Apologies for typos, etc this is the weirdest keyboard i hve
ever used. keys are not where you expect them to be and keybard is
covered in layers of clingfilm. off to go and try to light my stove
in high winds and sand.
best wishes to you all, Suze xxx Ps mum gaitors are holding up
well...roll on day 2!

Day 2

Last 24hrs has seen 12 retire. In our tent, 3 needed medical
attention but not me. The temp hit 41C and the organisers gave us an
extra 1.5L water. Several people drank their entire 4.5L water
immediately after finishing; not a good strategy. Today I finished in
5hrs 26mins. A very tough course; started with a high hill and then it
was mostly very flat relentless terrain, rocky with some sandy
sections. Because of the flat course we could see the checkpoints for
miles ahead and knew it could take us at least 40 to reach it! After
checkpoint 2 the beginning of the sand dune stage saw yet another
sandstorm blow up. At times I could just see the person in front so
had to make sure I kept him in sight. From this checkpoint I mostly
walked the 7 miles to the finish. Have a few more blisters; 4 on
each foot. As only female in tent I am learning about male pack
behaviour!
Gaitors still good mum! Best wishes from the desert. Suze xxx

Day 3


Firstly a huge thank you for the messages, they give such a boost.
Today i ran almost all the way to the 1st checkpoint. Then we went up
a very, very long sandy incline which ended with a vertical sandy
climb up about 20metres which finished most of us of completely. The
2nd checkpoint was at the top where they had airlifted in water.
Thereafter I walked the rest of the way as it was too hot to do any
running. We are all struggling with water allocations, I saw a few
runners run out between checkpoints; not good! This is the first day
that I have drunk my full quota of water. Todays highlight was a well
just 2 miles from the finish where a few locals pulling up water and
pouring it over our heads. It felt ice cold really revitalising. My
blisters are all getting slightly bigger but still 4 on each foot.
The outside of my calf muscles are sore as I keep going over on my
ankles in the sand and rocks. Also a bit of sunburn as I was not
careful applying sunscreen. Suze xxx

Day 4


We started at 10am as the temp was rising, managed to get 2hrs good
progress in before it got too hot to run. I got a bit scared when I
found I had just 1 mouthful of water left before Checkpoint 2 so from
then on took all the extra water ofered even if it made my pack
heavier. There have been some serious casulties this year, one coma &
stroke. The top runners are saying this is the hardest ever, trust me
to get this year! Saw a man that tied a flag to himself to act as a
sail so he would be blown along by tail wind, too much time in the sun
me thinks! Finished with just 1hr in the dark in 9hrs51. Rest of our
tent arrived by 5am. Today is rest day tending our wounds, have a
bonus blister after yesterday! Some great scenery, fantastic dunes,
full moon, fab! Gaitors still good. General conversations tend to
relate to bodily functions and feet or how good that shower is going
to be when we finish, 2 days to go! best wishes, Suze xxx

----------

This is the last chance to write to Suze (I didn't know you could,
actually). The instructions are

1) Go to the website at
http://www.darbaroud.com/fr/html/mds/general/uk_ecrire.php

2) Click on the box 'WRITE TO A COMPETITOR' located on the right hand
side of the screen

3) Then on the box that opens click on the down arrow and slide down
until you see Number '579 - LIDBURY'

4) Then type your message and click on send.





--
Champ
.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: house is sinking
    ... Below the sand, the grade went downhill toward our house. ... So, when it rained, the water that seeped through the grass and the dirt was carried by the sand toward our house. ...
    (alt.home.repair)
  • Re: A Really Long Joke (nbc)
    ... there?s a man crawling through the desert. ... He stayed with the car for a day or so, but his one bottle of water ran ... and his mouth and nose feel like they?re full of sand. ...
    (rec.music.artists.springsteen)
  • Re: A Really Long Joke (nbc)
    ... there?s a man crawling through the desert. ... He stayed with the car for a day or so, but his one bottle of water ran ... and his mouth and nose feel like they?re full of sand. ...
    (rec.music.artists.springsteen)
  • Re: A Really Long Joke (nbc)
    ... there?s a man crawling through the desert. ... He stayed with the car for a day or so, but his one bottle of water ran ... gummy and his mouth and nose feel like they?re full of sand. ...
    (rec.music.artists.springsteen)
  • Birthday ride round the reservoir - with pictures
    ... a more relaxing ride awaits me at Alton Water ... from people parking in this tiny, well hidden car park by checkpoint 2. ...
    (rec.sport.unicycling)