Story time

I've been thinking for a couple weeks now about how I'd tell this story - the story of a surreal desert adventure, of rising above self-imposed caps we place on our potential, of treasured comradeship, and of an immersion into the stunningly beautiful Moroccan Sahara. My motivation for telling the story is simple: for your entertainment, to inspire others, to relive and share the positive energy of a magical moment in time, and also to help anyone who considers entering the MDS or other endurance events in the future. Most importantly, I want to share this with you because you were all there with me in spirit -- pushing me through the tough parts and motivating me during some very intense solo running through the desert. I don't think you'll ever know how much you helped without learning a bit more about those tough parts!

As this was an adventure to savor and one with unexpected variety, I'll take the same approach with telling the story. I'll split it into segments (segmentation is a huge mental technique for endurance racing!) and use a mix of writing and multimedia to make it fun (mixing it up and keeping it fun is the ultimate Jedi mind trick to apply to these challenges!).

Here's your Road Book of stories to expect ...

• Jittering away the pre-race days in Morocco
• Stages 1-3: How could we have underestimated this challenge?
  
• Stretching of Limits --The Surreal Long Stage: How is this possible?
  
• The Relentless, Arduous Push to the Finish
• Crossing the hallowed MDS Finish Line
  

For the curious and those who are preparing for or considering a future MDS entry, I'll also include a Lessons Learned write-up, where I'll share more about gear and food selections, training, and modifications I'll consider for the future.


Stay tuned for each chapter!

Jeff

Media coverage, charity, and inspiration

Looks like MDS got bumped from ABC in the U.S. today, so plans are to air the special next week (and ESPN may pick up a segment as well). I'll update the blog when we have more details on the new airing date. My apologies for the false alarm today -- looks like something in the U.S. news cycle became more interesting (to some at least!) than a bunch of crazy people testing their mettle in the desert! Meanwhile, we're still receiving donations for UNICEF and ING Chances for Children (thank you!). ING is matching all donations, so your great support is now providing an education to nearly 350 children in India, Ethiopia, and Brazil. This is a wonderful level of support that makes a real difference in the world. We'll leave the donation site up for a few more weeks in an attempt to reach funding for 500 kids (that's nearly 2 for every kilometer I ran in the Sahara!). For your donations and spreading the word, I say thank you, thank you, thank you!

I'm hoping to ease out of my recovery phase this weekend. I seem to be having a much harder time being inactive for two weeks than completing 12-hour training weekends! I'm preparing to post more audio clips and stories (hopefully starting this weekend with a series of audio updates from each race stage). Also, new adventure projects are in the works, so stay tuned in the coming months to learn more.
For those of you who have written to say that I've inspired you in any way, I offer you my full support as you chase your dreams. I chased a dream 12 years ago that resulted in a major lifestyle transformation that's made an enormous difference in my daily happiness and the life I live today. I wish you the same happiness and only ask that you go for your dreams and aspirations in a way that helps you reach your own fulfillment and that also inspires others.

Cheers,
Jeff

MDS on TV in the U.S.

For our week in the desert an ABC News crew followed our group of U.S., Canadian, and Australian athletes through the highs, lows, and overall adventure. The cameras were around so much that it started to feel like a reality show -- and you just knew that when you were feeling your worst, you'd see a camera nearby to capture the moment! We saw so much of the news crew during the race (including out on the race course) that they started to feel like part of our team.

Today (Thursday, April 17th) ABC will air MDS segments on Good Morning America, ABC World News, and Nightline. If you're in the U.S. and want to catch this, please check ABC's website for viewing times. Don't count on seeing me featured, but some of my very good friends from the race will be, plus they shot a lot of video of our champ and top U.S. finisher Ted Archer from the tent we shared. They filmed some great stories and race course footage throughout the week, so I'm anxious to see what made the final cut. Please post a comment if you happen to catch any of the footage today. For friends outside the U.S., if I can get a hold of any video segments of the broadcast, I'll post it on the blog.

Best,
Jeff

R.I.C.E.

Believe it or not, I'm really itching to start running again -- actually, it's driving me nuts that my injuries aren't healing fast enough to allow me to return to the trail -- right now! I tried some very light running (as in about 10 steps!) this afternoon and my knee and ankle quickly protested, announcing their intention to stay on vacation a bit longer. Ok, fine -- I'll surrender and allow them to rest a bit longer. Actually, I recalled the R.I.C.E. method of dealing with injuries today while visiting friends in Lausanne, so I made sure to Rest while eating Ice Cream and enjoying the Elevation of the nearby mountains that tower over Lake Geneva. Hopefully this will do the trick and I'll be able to return to running very soon!

Meanwhile, I've uploaded lots of photos to my MDS photo gallery. Please feel free to have a look. I've also included a couple interesting photos below, as well as a video clip from the evening of the post-long day, marathon stage.

Our first taste of steep dunes on Day 1.

Fortunately, this guy never camped out in my shoes or sleeping bag overnight.

I have more audio clips for the first few stages that I'll share over the next week or two. I can't close without thanking you again for your great support before, during, and after the race!

Cheers,
Jeff

Recovery Time!

I'm safely back home in Zürich, working on my next challenge: recovering from the MDS! I've got a nice collection of blisters and overuse injuries to heal, plus I need to work through the all-common post-race blues that always seems to greet the end to a big event that is such a huge focus for months and months, yet has suddenly come and gone. What thrills me to no end (and shakes off "da bluz") is the awesome support offered by so many people around the world to my charity initiative. I'm also touched by the wonderful emails of support and congratulations I've received (during and after the race). I didn't run this thing alone -- I ran it with hundreds of you at my side and I sincerely thank you for this. That said, I'm sure that we're all glad that only one of us has to deal with the battered feet and legs picked up along the way! In the coming days and weeks I'll be sharing lots about the race with writing, photos, and audio clips. To give you a bit of a teaser, I've included in this message an audio clip that I recorded from the bivouac after the epic long day. Just make sure your speakers are on and click the play button below to hear the description and emotion of an unexpected high placement finish after a nearly 50-mile run through the desert.

By the way, major thanks to Becky, who did a marvelous job updating the blog during the race!!

More great stories coming soon ...

All the best from Zuri,
Jeff

What a finish!

Jeff has completed the Marathon des Sables, placing in the Top 50 at #48!!! And second American!!!! Yahooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!We are so excited. Still celebrating here, more details to come...

Stage 5 in the Desert

After a marathon-day (literally) with scorching heat, it looks like Jeff is still in the Top 50!

Here's an update directly from Jeff...


Rest day was great, although my knee hurts more at rest than in motion! A great thrill to cheer on the people finishing the long day in 30 hours -- brave people!

I went into the marathon today in awe at what the body can handle. I hobbled to the start line but my legs came alive and I was stunned to run just under a 4:30 in these conditions after the week and my epic run on the long day.

I dedicated my run today to my grandmothers and wife's grandmother and my family -- I certainly felt their strength push me through the long distance and extreme heat - it topped 46C!

Toward the end of the stage I saw my best friend Sean, Becky, and other friends and family beside and in front of me pulling me through the most grueling part. My Atl cycling friends then pace-lined me through the headwind during the final two miles... A bit crazy, but I felt this and it really helped.

One stage to go... The Paris opera will perform a concert in the desert for us tonite - no kidding!

My sincere thanks to all!!!
Jeff

Stage 4 results are in!

Unbelievable! The Stage 4 results are finally in, and Jeff placed 24th!!
That brings him up to 45th overall, wow.

He didn't just survive the longest-distance day, he led it! Here's the account from Jeff himself:

I am writing you tonight in utter amazement with the MdS, the severity of the challenge of the course and conditions, and the perseverance of those who tackle this epic event.

I approached today's stage (the long one - 47 miles) with the special dedication that I mentioned last night -- to my supporters, and with the mindset that I would race the stage hard (based on my coach's advice -- advice that I thought was crazy when I first heard it two weeks ago).

With the elite 50 males and 5 females starting (later) at noon, I found myself alone at the front of a pack of the 750 non-elite runners within minutes of the start, with the helicopter making passes overhead. I've never led a race of any distance, much less at the MdS. I held on within half a mile (one km) of the top five runners and finished a stunning second place.

The course was brutal, with three climbs that would nearly qualify as mountain climbing, dunes, very rocky sections, off-pitch sand, and scorching salt flats. It was very lonely at the front -- something I have never ever experienced in a race. It made route finding much more challenging and added a new level of mental challenge. In one particularly hallucinogenic moment I saw all of you running with me in one wide line, pushing me forward... A bit crazy, but that's how strongly I felt your support.

I passed the second place runner with 12k to go and pushed myself harder than I ever had to finish a strong second (of the main field). I beat the elite runners in so I had the true experience of being very early to cross the line (at just over 9 hours of a stage with a 32 hour cutoff).

I'm very sore, but healthy and immensely happy at how today went. This should help me move up a bit in the overall standings; moreover, it was a joyous day in a spectacular setting and a small way for me to thank you for your awesome support! And now I get a rest day!

To Coach Lisa: Thanks for pushing me!

Jeff

Stage 4... still going...

...and going and going and going...

This stage is the 47-miler, and they have two days to complete it, so there are no (full) results available yet, and no personal message from Jeff...

But we do have a picture!:

You can view the larger version on the Darbaroud site - It's the 13th picture (at least right now).

He must have something caught in his eye - Why else would he need to pour water on his face like that??! Maybe he just missed his mouth ;-)

More updates to be posted as soon as I get 'em... Run, Jeff, Run!!!