ROAD RUNNING
On this stage , there was a cut-off point at the 50km mark , and you had to reach this point by 8pm , or else you would be diverted to a “ short course ” cutting out most of the last 15km . That would also meant that you would not get a finishing time . I really dislike these types of ‘ pressure points ,’ but understood why it was required in these types of conditions . Thankfully , Robin and I made the 50km mark at around 7:15pm , 13.5 hours after we started , and we were in good spirits having made the cut-off .
Cordi ’ s Marathon Des Sables kit had definitely seen warmer climes …
Cordi and friends tackle another stage .
Images : Mikkel Beisner / Beyond The Ultimate , Muderspack / Beyond The Ultimate & courtesy Cordi van Niekerk
DAY 4 : SAMI 65km with 260m Ascent
The beast ! The first few days we had started at 7:30am , with the race briefing at 7:15 , but this day we started at 6:30am , following a race briefing at 6am . That meant getting up at 4:15am to have breakfast , gear up and get ready . This was going to be one hell of a day ! The terrain covered forests and lakes , and because my feet were taking a beating , while the rest of my body was doing okay , I decided that I would not wear the snowshoes that day . They really were torture devices !
Welcome signs of civilisation included some dogsleds .
Kyle Evans had to overcome the airline losing his baggage – and all his race gear !
Most of the climbing for the day came after the 50km mark . It was dark and windy , and with snow coming down , those last 15km took over three hours to complete . We finally made it to camp at 11:07pm , having been out there for 17 hours and seven minutes ! By the time we had had dinner , laid out our clothes to dry , and found a very thin mattress on the floor to sleep on , it was after 1am . The last person to finish the day was Emilian , who lives in Vienna , Austria , and has completed events such as the Ultra Trail du Mont-Blanc and the Jungle Ultra in the Amazon , so a real adventurer ! He pulled in at 2:45am , in a time of 21 hours 16 minutes , with the craziest blisters on both feet .
A highlight of the day was seeing some signs of life . We saw a couple of dog sleds , which was amazing . One of them stopped when they got to us and the dogs immediately started rolling and digging into the snow to cool down ! Later on , we saw our first reindeer camp , and later at night saw many more roaming around .
DAY 5 : SAMI 15km with 100m Ascent
The sun was out , there was no wind , and it was a glorious morning ! After a group picture , the last stage started at 10am , a 15km stretch heading towards the town of Jokkmokk . Getting back into civilisation was interesting , including passing an old couple having a braai in the snow , which was really unexpected ! Months of preparation and tough days were coming to an end , and as we ran onto the red carpet and towards the finish line , there was a combination of emotions : Happiness at finishing this gruelling event , sadness that the adventure was coming to an end .
Tarryn won the women ’ s event and finished sixth overall ! Andre , our racing snake , ran with Tarryn for five days , the best wingman you could ask for , and finished seventh . Nick got stronger and stronger throughout the event and finished 10th , while Paul , Robin and I covered the rear , finishing 26th , 24th and 22nd .
Kyle , the other South African , finished 11th overall . He is one strong guy ! The airline lost his bag on the way to the race , which was both devastating and expensive , and caused a lot of stress before we reached the start line ! Kyle ’ s words were , “ If tough means anything , it ’ s the capacity to pursue a goal despite discouragement , distraction and setbacks . It ’ s not giving up .”
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