On this second to last day we were all excited to have a relatively short 20 mile run, and have an ending on the beach. We started out early, although not as early as I had feared, and were served breakfast at 4:00 AM. Today's treat was some fantastic pancakes to go along with the usual eggs, beans and rice. We quickly broke down camp and patiently waited for the bus that was to take us from the camp ground we were at to the actual start of the days run. Bus showed up late, as we had expected, but overly so. As we piled on it was clear there was not enough room so several people were put on the volunteer buses that were traveling with us. I think they had the comfortable ride.

The bus dropped us all off in front of a closed restaurant and we shuffled around waiting for the start. Today we had a little more formal start, we had a line drawn in the dirt, and a real count down. The only thing missing was the gun. All morning, before the start, I felt remarkably fresh, with very little stiffness in my legs and I was hoping it would be an easy run for me. Within 10 paces after starting all the soreness I was missing rushed in and left me wanting a new set of legs. With the prospect of a difficult day ahead of me, off we went down a dusty dirt road, which was only one of many for the day. About 1 km after we started we saw a table being set up and the familiar orange coolers being filled with water. The first CP was supposed to be at 11 km, so it must be a loop. We followed a farm road that wound through the valley and crossed a dry river bed more times than I remember. After a little more than an hour of this, sure enough, we came right back to where they were setting up the aid station the first time we went by. I still had a mostly full water pack, so I grabbed a couple pieces of fruit and kept on going. There was a small group I had been running with and I figured I'd just get a little head start, they would catch up soon enough.

We ran right back to where we started the days run, and took off through town in the opposite direction. As the town passed behind us we got onto some gently rolling country roads that were much the same as the previous day. The main difference for me, was that since we started at 7:00 in the morning, we were feeling much more of the hot dry climate in the north west of the country. The whole day was hot, with a moderate amount of shade, but not enough to cool one off. The thermometer on my watch said it was 93 F, but it felt warmer than that. Every creek bed was dry, the grass was brown, and there was very little green on the trees. Each car that went by kicked up a plume dust that choked us, as the wind was much slower to clean the air for us today.

As we made a gradual incline and turned a corner about 14 km into trail we were treated to the first view of the ocean. It was a welcome sight, but I knew I still had half the day ahead of me yet to come. The remaining distance for the day wound us around the valley and over a few small hills. As time wore on I started to get very hot, and was trying not to run out of water. Even though the aid stations were close together, my thirst was getting the better of me. The whole time I was accompanied by 2 other runners, which made it slightly harder for me, as we were trying to stay together and work as a little team to get to the end. Each small incline we would all stop running and transition into a walk, and as we crested each small hill we would pick up the pace again. I felt like I was being pulled along and wanted to stay with them as long as I could, knowing that I would probably be the one that broke. Sure enough, about 4 km from the end my body said enough and I started walking and let them run off up the road. As I finished the run I tried to maintain a good pace, but I was starting to feel pretty miserable.

As I climbed what I hoped was the last little hill and came over the top I spied the ocean and knew I was close. I mustered what little energy I had left and made it out onto the beach. I saw lots of foot prints, but no trail markings, had I made another wrong turn? There weren't any turns. I figured if I made it to the water I would probably be able to see the end. Just before I made it there, I saw a head bobbing over the dune headed left which told me two things. The first was I had to go that way, and the second was that the guy I saw went the wrong direction. After a final 800 meters or so down the hard packed sand I was at the end.

The runner I had seen had gone the wrong way ended up losing about 10 minutes. He eventually asked some sun bathers if they had seen people with numbers, and to his relief and disappointment, was directed the other way. I would have been pretty pissed, but he took it well. The finish line and camp ground was at a beach front park which gave us a fantastic view of the sandy beach and cool blue water. Setting up the tent was again difficult because of the wind, and I hope I have enough rocks on the corners to keep it weighted down, I'm hoping I don't blow away in the night. Coming up tomorrow is our final run down the beach to the resort, a clean bed, and I hope a great shower. So far this has been a fantastic experience, and probably one of the most difficult races I've done in my life so far.

Peter