Marathon des Sables 2008 - Post event

Ouarzazate Morocco/Freiburg, April 2008. Well, some things just don’t turn out exactly as we planned them. You can plan things to the last detail, and bang! Something completely unexpected happens and throws spokes in your wheels.

At the end of 2007 I started to plan a challenging and interesting running event program for myself for the first quarter of 2008. I definitely wanted to have new terrain in my events – what a better challenge than the Jungle Marathon in Costa Rica from January 27 to February 2? To prepare myself for the heat of Central America and as an absolute India fan, I decided to start with the Mumbai Marathon on January 20, i.e. one week before the start of the jungle marathon.

Both events proved indeed to be excellent preparation for the Marathon des Sables, March 30 to April 5. I could get used to the heat in Mumbai and was very challenged in Costa Rica by the very difficult, diverse terrain and relatively extreme weather conditions, everything from tropical rain falls to a desert-like dry heat.

Following the jungle marathon, I took a 2-week break from running and in the 4 remaining weeks before the Marathon des Sables, I concentrated on 2 long runs a week (of about 40 km each) for (mental and physical) endurance purposes. I was also able to reduce the weight in my knapsack for the MdS (the experience of the last two years was very helpful…)

I was really very much looking forward the MdS. I had trained hard all winter, watched my nutrition and everything was going well on all levels of my life. I actually thought, with all factors on my side, that I’d have a good chance of finishing in the desert among the first 20 women, as I had also learned how not to let blisters get the upper hand. I had not one blister after Costa Rica!

Standing at the start of the MdS is an unbelievable feeling. Just the thought of what one has accomplished and organized to be able to stand at that start line. And finally, it’s 3 – 2 – 1 – go…! The MdS is in full course and starts off hard as hell – 14 km in the biggest dunes of Morocco, the Merzouga dunes. Breathtakingly beautiful dunes, but running in them means very hard work on the thighs. After that the much easier stone fields.

Then a steep climb on a sort of stone cliff. What a view from up there, time to take out the camera for some shots. Just at that moment a Brit shot out of nowhere, reached the top and slipped on the rocks behind me with his right leg, shoving my right foot hard between 2 rocks, over-bending it to the outside.

I was of course shocked but could finish the stage without great pain. Where I stopped running however after reaching the second camp, it really started to hurt. I had good hopes it would be better for the start the next day. I hurt quite a bit during the 2nd stage, could quiet the pain though with a good portion of Paracetemol. Between Checkpoint 2 and Checkpoint 3 the pain got so strong that I could only finish this stage limping.

It was only then that I started to actually consider pulling out of the race, although I still didn’t want to believe I was actually considering it. I didn’t want to have to think about pulling out of the Marathon des Sables. No, you are going to start the next stage tomorrow morning. Which is what I did – but with a lump in my throat. I had an inkling I would not be finishing this stage…

Fifteen minutes after the start, 3 km before the next long dune section of 9 km, I thought I must be pretty far in the back of the pack, but it didn’t matter to me. I just wanted to keep going and make tracks. Not one minute later, I heard something that sounded like a cow. I turned around and was shocked to discover that the camels, the sweepers with their berbers, were less than a meter from my back. I had my mp3 on and had not heard them catching up with me.

That was the point where it became crystal clear: I was going (limping) so slow that even the camels were being considerate of me. My ankle hurt so much and I was only able to limp slowly, so I made the very difficult decision to pull out of the race at the next checkpoint, meaning I’d have to give up my bib.

After the following 9 km of dunes, I did just that – but not without putting up a big inner fight with myself. The doctors made great efforts to convince me that I would be able to continue “without great pain” if I would just let them pump me with painkillers. Something inside me said though, you’ll make the injury much worse, you have a lot of other things plans for this year, pull out here. You have 2 MdS Finisher medals in the shelf at home. As hard as it might be for you, pull out of the race here.

With tears in my eyes, I gave the doctor my bib. I couldn’t believe it. It was as if I has been on a wonderful train ride and out of a clear blue sky, I had to get off this beautiful ride and simply stand there, watching the train drive on – without me.

It was then very hard - instead of going to the start to run the course of the day – to be driven in one of the jeeps to the next camp. It was very good for me though to be in the Sahara, to be able to soak up these extraordinarily desert landscapes, natural forces (sandstorms, wind, heat) and the remoteness, things I came to the desert for as well. It also gave me the opportunity to experience the Marathon des Sables from a completely different side. As an example, it was incredibly inspiring to be able to see Mohammad Ahansal appear on the horizon and sprint into the Finish after the long stage, completing this 75,5 kilometre stage in just under an incredible 7 hours.

The pain in my ankle and my limping continued to strengthen my decision to pull out, as I knew that my foot would start to heal starting at that very point. The fantastic people I had around me, my tent mates, other runners and MdS crew members, who consoled me throughout the week let all disappointment and sullenness disappear, which allowed me be jovial and supportive of the others throughout the race.

The biggest payoff for having showed my goodwill came at the very Finish of the MdS in Tazzarine. A great number of runners I welcomed there told me how nice it was to see me at the Finish after finishing this week-long, unfathomably difficult race. That felt so good!

My decision of whether or not I will do the MdS next year will come in the course of the summer. There are many interesting and challenging races waiting out there. One thing is already making me very euphoric for whatever comes: I have already started to run again – without any pain! I hope to reach my normal level of training by week-after-next. After all, the 24-hour Run for Children’s Rights (July), the Taj Mahal Marathon in India (September), the Polar Circle Marathon in Greenland (October) and the Boa Vista Ultra-Marathon on Cape Verde off the African coast (December) are challenges awaiting me as well…