Cranston Watts
Cranston is running 6 marathons...in 6 days...across the Sahara...carrying all his kit
Fundraising for Scottish Love In Action
Story
I did it! It was great fun despite it being so tough. Many thanks to all those who sponsored me.
Below is a short report of how my race went.
Cranston
Cranston’s Marathon des Sables 2010 At the start of April I competed in the Marathon des Sables, an event that has been described as "the Toughest Race on Earth". Competitors battle across a 250km course on foot covering 6 stages over 6 days in the Sahara Desert including one 82km stage. In addition to running over the sand and dunes of the Sahara, competitors have to carry their own food, water, and kit for the race and endure temperatures as high as 50°C and so it was with more than a few nerves that I flew to Morocco. When we arrived, we had one night in a hotel before taking a 6 hour bus ride out to the desert. At the first camp we had a day and two nights of acclimatisation and kit checks. It was at this point that our electrocardiograms (ECG)and medical forms were inspected by the doctors and the course directors ensured that we had a minimum of 2000 calories of food per day and all the required safety kit. The first day of racing was relatively short at only 30km but there were many nerves on the start line. Fortunately the day was not too hot (that’s relative - it was 37°C!) and was run over mostly dry river beds and small hills so this was not too tough. Day 2 was a 35km stage but was much hotter and hillier and many people found this very difficult, including myself. This was not nearly as bad as day 3 (40km) though, which was significantly harder than the first two as although it was a very flat course, over a dried river bed, there was no breeze and James Cracknell’s film crew recorded the temperature at 48°C at one point. James was staying a couple of tents down from my tent and he came by that evening and said that although rowing across the Atlantic was a far harder overall, that was the hardest single day he had ever experienced in his life, which speaks volume about how difficult it was!However, as bad as day’s 1-3 were, all runners knew that the race was going to be made or broken on the infamous day 4 (“the long day”), which was 82km (c51miles) long. Setting off I did not feel well and struggled for the first 6 hours as I was sick. My problems were made worse by dehydration. Water is rationed - some is given out each morning and then you get more at each check point, which are usually 10-12km apart. Because I was ill I was getting to check points and drinking half a bottle just to quench my thirst, leaving me with only half a bottle for the next 12km which meant that I was arriving at each checkpoint seeing stars and feeling awful due to dehydration. This continued throughout the day but at the fourth checkpoint we were given two bottles and I finally felt okay for the first time all day. By this point is was also beginning to get dark and therefore was cooler thankfully, so I had some food, a couple of painkillers and set off into the last 30km, which were all over large sand dunes. After such a bad day I got a second wind from somewhere and had a amazing last 30km overtaking over 100 people and finishing in my highest place of the entire race, arriving at just after 1am and coming 227th out of c1000, which I was very happy about although too tired to get excited! The next part of the race was a marathon and there was a real buzz in camp because despite everyone having bad blisters (some people’s feet – mine included – were in such a state that in the UK they might have meant a trip to hospital) and being very tired, most people knew that with the long day over, they would probably complete the race. I didn’t do quite as well in this stage as I had “emptied myself” on the long day and was just glad to finish. The final day was only a half marathon (albeit over some very big dunes!) and again everyone was buzzing at the start line as everyone knew that after over a year’s training, and 5 gruelling days of running in some of the harshest conditions in the world, that they would almost certainly complete the race. Again, I didn’t do very well on this stage as I was still tired from day 4 but I didn’t care as I was so glad to finish the race. Coming across the finish line I was interviewed by James Cracknell’s film crew and all I could say was that I wanted a hot shower and cold beer, which although not a very insightful comment, was pretty much what I was feeling after running all that way without washing once! We then had 7 hour bus ride back to the hotel where we were staying for another two nights. This time was mostly spent eating nice food (we had only been eating “boil in the bag” food), having a few beers and relaxing by the pool, which we were not allowed into as we all had infected feet. We then flew back to the UK and received a very warm welcome from friends and family at Gatwick. On reflection, it was an amazing experience and one I would recommend to anyone, although given the amount of time training for it mtakes up and also knowing what you have to go through to complete it, it’s definitely a once in a life time experience for me!
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On 2 April 2010, after 18 months of training, I will be flying out to Morocco to compete in the Marathon des Sables, an event that has been described as "the Toughest Race on Earth". Competitors battle across a 250km course on foot covering 6 stages over 6 days in the Sahara Desert including a 71 km stage. In addition to running over the sand and dunes of the Sahara, competitors have to carry their own food, water, and kit for the race and endure temperatures as high as 50°C . The rules, which require runners to carry a distress flare, an anti-venom pump and signalling mirror as well as stating that if a competitor requires an IV drip more than once they are automatically disqualified, give you an idea of how tough the race is!
If you have never heard of the race, this short video gives you a good idea of what it's all about: www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRmRHXOuaJM I am running to raise money for SLA, a charity that I have been involved in since its inception in 1999 when I travelled to India to help build a small orphanage. Originally supporting just one orphanage, SLA now feeds, clothes, houses, educates and provides medical care and a safe environment for over 560 “untouchable” children who are mainly orphans. They do this by funding two Home/Schools in Tuni and Hyderabad, both in the State of Andhra Pradesh, south-east India. Each child has had a difficult start to life often having only survived by scavenging in the rubbish tips, begging in the streets and trains, being lead into child trafficking or held in bonded labour. For more information about the work of the charity please see www.sla-india.org I would be very grateful if you could support my efforts (some may say idiocy!) to complete this amazing venture by making a contribution to the ongoing essential work of SLA . Many thanks Cranston