MDS Fuerteventura Race Report
The Event
The Marathon Des Sables Half Marathon is billed as three self-sufficient marathons (120 km) over four days in the deserts and “mountains” of Fuerteventura (Canary Islands) with racers seeking stage wins and an overall cumulative time ranking in the General Classification. There were about 275 participants on the start list. Racers carry everything themselves (including food for the four days) except water and a tent. The course was shortened slightly to 110 km consisting of stages of 25km, 65km and 20km but no one complained!
Training, Preparation and Expectations
I have spent the year focused on the bike and so have done little running apart from some early in the season and then three weeks in the build up to the event including a long run of 30km. I therefore felt the least prepared that I have ever been for an event of this magnitude and had very low expectations and a reasonable degree of fear and aprehension. I planned to use the event to test my kit ahead of the full MDS in Morocco in April next year (250 km over 7 days) and I did have some doubts about my ability to complete – especially the long stage as I never ran more than 42km before. If I completed I thought if I made the top half I would be doing well and that I might do some stages with Catie which, with all due respect, would mean probably a comfortable pace for me. Like everyone I was terrified about the prospects of race ending blisters as these events are known for turning feet into mincemeat.
Kit and Food
The race rules require that your rucksack must meet a minimum weight requirement of 5kg and that you carry a minimum of 2,000 calories per day in freeze dried rations. Some people had massive rucksacks – heaven knows what was in there and probably weighed 20 to 30kgs. I had gone for minimal, top of the range, super light, titanium this, carbon that kit and 2,500 calories per day. My total kit weighed in at 5.7kg which I was happy with. Next time I will probably not bother with the stove, cup and fuel tablets and eat my freeze-dried rations cold out of a cut off water bottle. My kit worked really well but I did have to buy three pairs of different trainers and five different sets of shorts, shirts and socks to find the perfect combination. I will take more loo paper though – I was terrified of running out!
Camp Life
The event was based in a bivouac in the sand dunes with “pods” of six crap tents built around an open fire. Catie and I were in a pod with an old university friend of hers who she had not seen for over 20 years and just happened to have entered the same race by coincidence. He was there with three mates and they were hilarious, full of banter and we laughed so much during much of the week. They say that a key to success in Morocco is making sure you have good tent mates (you share an open Berber tent in the Sahara) and so one of my biggest worries about Morocco is organizing good tent mates beforehand. The rest of the camp was an eclectic mix of ages and nationalities who largely aligned with national stereotypes. The French were surly, arrogant and aloof; the Germans organized and efficient and the Spanish never stopped talking and laughing and enjoying themselves.
Living conditions were generally crap though. I hate sand and you could never escape it – it got everywhere. The tent pegs would not stay in the sand so the tents would regularly collapse in the middle of the night and litres of condensation would form on the inside of the tents. As the winds were high the tents would flap causing the condensation to fall on you during the night as rain and you woke with wet sleeping bags and soaked kit. I started to get a little used to it by the end of the four days but it was not nice.
Stage 1 – 25km with 600m of Ascent over Technical Mountains, Sand Dunes and Beaches
I planned to work to a very conservative zone 2 heart rate of not more than 140 bpm as it is impossible to work to speed / pace as this varies so much with the terrain. As soon as we started my heart rate rocketed to over 155bpm largely due to the 40 degree plus heat and high humidity. Much of the time my heart rate was over 160bpm which is my usual threshold so I had no real sense of how hard I was working but I felt ok.
We started running on a sandy beach which saps your energy immediately before climbing up a rocky and quite technical dried river bed which you could not run, only climb – this was tough and hot. There was then a relatively easy descent to a 10km stretch of sandy beach – at this point I felt a little bit of energy coming back. It was cool running alongside the ocean. I got my head down and settled into a steady pace as this is what us triathletes like – long, steady, dull and boring.
I then started to overtake people which encouraged me to push on and by the end of the 10km I could count the other footsteps of those that had gone before me. I reckoned I could only count 25 to 30 footsteps ahead of me and started to think I might be doing quite well but then the waves may have washed the other footsteps away. At the end of the beach we started climbing again and with less wind and the middle of the day it was hard. I could feel my energy flowing away with five tough kilometers still to go and a major bonk coming on. I had saved my final gel and the sugar immediately kicked in and I was revived and finished strongly but it had been really, really, really hard.
Total time 3 hours 27 minutes, average heart rate of 157bpm and 2,300 calories burnt. Based on my footstep count I hoped I had done reasonably well but was amazed to find I was 27th overall out of 271 and 12 withdrawals – I could not believe it, way ahead of my expectations. No blisters!
I did not see Catie finish but she came in having had a brilliant day and really enjoyed the race. She was the only one – everyone else thought it had been horrendous and those that had completed the Morocco event said it was tougher than any stage on the “real thing”. Her feet had paid the price though and she spent the evening tending to her blisters.
Stage 2 – 65km and 1,800m of ascent of mainly technical mountain trails, no real sand
This is the big one and I was nervous on the start line. Yesterday I raced the event like an Ironman event and went too hard from the start which is why I came close to running out of food. I planned to start much more slowly. But, motivated by yesterday’s ranking, I could not help myself and went off quite hard. I cannot really remember the terrain but there was less of the energy sapping sand and more flat sections but with a big long climb in the middle – it looked really scary on the road book. I think the 21 days of the Tour de France cycling meant that I had recovered well overnight – I felt good and pushed on. I had very little food with me – I was basically eating half of what I would normally eat per hour for an Ironman and so I was rationing my food carefully.
As I approached what I thought was the summit at around 30km I felt my energy begin to flow away. At this point I was overtaken by the leading elite female. I knew that if it had taken her 30km to pass me I had made a massive tactical error and had gone off way to hard. I later learned that at the penultimate check point I was lying in 21st position which is never where I should have been.
This mountain became a very dark place and I began to think about abandoning – whilst I was never really close to pulling out I was hoping that an injury might befall me and force me to withdraw with some degree of honour. But I remembered what Frank had said which was when the dark times come, know that they will pass and there will be highs as well.
I knew I was dangerously low on food and was feeling very feint and light headed. I started tripping more on the rocks which was dangerous, I left my water bottles at the penultimate check point and had to run back half a kilometer or so to get them which was a psychological punch to the stomach and I lost my way as I stopped concentrating on following the markers and had to retrace my steps. Other runners started to come past me in what felt like their hordes and I started to get really depressed and the fact it was now dark and I was shuffling along by my head torch did not help.
I had though at the check point eaten every bit of food that I had for the day and remembered I had a stash of 4 emergency gels. I piled in the sugar and the hit was not immediate but gradually I could feel some energy coming back. As the final kilometres ticked away I got stronger and actually managed to overhaul to other racers.
Total time 9 hours and 28 minutes, average heart rate 132 bpm and 3,700 total calories burnt. I still finished 32nd for the stage but could not help wonder what the result would have been if I had started more conservatively and had a better nutrition strategy. That stage ranked as one of the hardest things I have done and I collapsed into my tent. Still no blisters.
I woke about 3.30am and decided to go to the finish line to see a few racers come in – I also thought there was a slight chance that Catie might be finishing about now. Incredibly I heard her calling out to another racer in the night and was able to see her come across the finish line after 15 and half hours. She was in a bad way and I put her to bed as quickly as possible – she was not interested in hearing what an amazing thing she had achieved in finishing this stage.
Epilogue – during the rest day my fellow tent mates donated extra food so that I would have enough for the remainder of the race.
Stage 3 – 21km and 300m of ascent although mainly downhill with the kick at the finish
They do not reveal the route until just before the start so when we got the route map for the stage we were all relieved – it was mainly down hill with a kicker of a mere 140m of ascent at the finish before the final fast descent and sandy beach finish. Prior to seeing the route I had decided to basically follow the second leading female and to use her as a pacer to try and run a more conservative and sensibly paced race – the strong runners, it seems, succeed on maintaining a steady, consistent pace throughout.
When I saw the route map I upgraded my plan to follow the first leading female as I thought it might suit me. I was only able to stay with her for about 1km before I was in danger of blowing up so I dropped back to Kristina the second leading woman. Unfortunately, she was defending her second position in the GC from Yolanda the third placed Spaniard who was running hard to try and overhaul her in the rankings. We went off hard!
The terrain was lava rocks which were unbelievably hard to run on and my feet were not working and I kept tripping eventually falling hard and lacerating my forearm on the razor sharp rocks. However, I managed to stay with Kristina and we were joined by Iain from Ireland. We two boys just obediently ran along behind Kristina who thankfully lessened her pace after the first 5km when she knew her ranking was secure. I probably could have run a bit harder on the flats but I was determined to pace myself.
I had to run in second place as if I was last I felt psychologically like I was clinging on and it made it mentally tougher. It was really hot. I stayed with them both to the final check point but I did not have the desire to try and catch as they left the checkpoint a little earlier than me to cross the sandy beach which led to the last climb which was tougher and longer than I had imagined. However, there were not too many people around me so I knew it would not make a big difference to my overall ranking.
I crested the final summit and you can see the finish at the bottom of the hill. I was working hard to try and catch a couple of people ahead but as we hit the sand a French guy tried to come past me to steal an extra place. I ended up having to contend a sprint finish on sand for about 400m (try it!) but he broke with 150m to go and I was able to savour the finish line. It was not as sweet as finishing the long stage but I was happy to be able to call myself an ultra marathon runner.
Total time 2 hours and 22 minutes, average heart rate 151 bpm and 1,500 calories burned. I finished 40th overall. Still no blisters!
I was craving food after the finish so after climbing out of the ice filled plunge pool on the finish line I had melon and jamon (it is Spain after all) and a hamburger and chips (probably the 3rd burger in the last 10 years!). I then headed back to the finish line and cheered on the other finishers until I finally saw Catie reach the sand and heading towards the finish. The finish was much less emotional for her but there were tears (hers, not mine) and I was hugely proud of her but she was not ready to process what an incredible thing she had achieved.
Reflections
Overall, I finished in 29th place with a total time of 15 hours and 18 minutes and was the second fastest GB male and the male winner was 10 hours and 38 minutes – a third faster! The fastest female was Brit Anne Marie Watson in 13:51 who has some form 2nd female in the MDS in 2015. I think the field was quite soft as this is the first time the event has been run and so I do not want to get ahead of myself but I did massively exceed my expectations and I hope this bodes well for Oman and Morocco and I learnt a huge amount. Whilst it was challenging I don’t think I was really tested and I am yet to have to really ask myself some really tough questions – how strange that we seek to explore these really dark places.
The thing that is most important to me about this event is that Catie and I now have an incredible shared experience. She is still too traumatised this morning to absorb how proud of her I am but her story will be well worth reading!
Expeditions 