Dreams Come Alive

Now that I have had a few days to get over the daze of post-Gobi March, I shall get back to blogging. Many people want to find out how the Gobi March (GM) compared with the Sahara Race (SR). As you may know, I am working on a book to be published upon completion of the 4 Deserts (after the Sahara Race last year and Gobi March last week, I have Antarctica this Nov and Atacama next March to go) so I will be relatively brief with my lessons and discoveries here and begin with some factual experiences as per the following categories:

Blisters

SR: Rather fortunate to have gotten away with a mere 5 blisters.

GM: Ended with 3 teeny weeny itsy bitsy little blisters that are enough to be an annoyance but not sufficient to be a serious impediment to progress. Various muscle groups on both legs and parts of soles were sore, pulled and aching but early detection and appropriate TLC made sure that they did not threaten to balloon into anything major.

Weight Loss

SR: Only 3.5kg

GM: A negligible half kg, which I attribute to better food selection and moving at the right pace. What I brought gave me the appropriate levels of nutrition required for the task and I consumed just about everything bar a packet of miso soup and two muesli bars.

Pack Weight

SR: 11kg without water

GM: 9.5kg without water. Dispensed with powder electrolytes in favour of tablets for the Gobi, and in fact went the first 3 days without using any. I gather that my salt intake through food proved sufficient replacement for what I had lost through perspiration. Also left the packets of desserts at home.

Terrain and Difficulty

SR: Flatter with greater expanse of nothingness, which makes for easier running.

GM: More terrain variation and absolutely spectacular and stunning scenery, combined with river crossings and traipsing through villages. The temperature swings made things more challenging; I hardly slept the first two nights and the shivering just consumed precious calories.

That’s all for now. Will be back soon with more and with updates on my sponsorship and fundraising efforts for The Last Desert – Antarctica.