The Toughest Footrace on EarthMay 17, 2011, 9:21 am Gill Dear Yahoo!7
"Sandstorms, 51'c, blisters, cold cup-a-soup, 250kms...7 days. This is the Marathon des Sables, a self sufficient foot race across the Sahara Desert, Morocco."
This isn't everyone's idea of fun, but 38 year old Justin Gallagher from Cronulla, NSW, stepped up to the challenge to raise funds for the autism charity, Giant Steps. His experience in the desert was a far cry from his day job at the Royal Bank of Scotland. We caught up with him to find out more about the 'toughest foot race on Earth'.
First things first, why did you choose the Marathon des Sables to raise money? Isn’t there an easier way?
To encourage people to donate money and support you in an extraordinary way, I felt that I would have to do something extraordinary in return. In running the Comrades Marathon in 2008 which was 87kms, I knew that I would have to do something bigger and tougher to capture people's attention. It worked and so far we have raised $47,000.
When did you start training, and what type of training did you do to prepare?
I started training 8 months before the race and covered 2000kms during that time. Lots of 5 hour sessions loaded up with a 16kg backpack. I spent a lot of time in the sand hills at Cronulla and running through National Parks. I did a huge amount of core work to make sure I had the strength to get through the gruelling week that was the race and this helped a lot and I think prevented me from getting any back problems.
How did you fit all this training in around a full time job?
I do believe that there is always enough time to do what is important to you so whilst it was tough some days I still managed to get my training sessions in. I would run in my lunch break sometimes, or late in the evenings after the girls had gone to bed but my big sessions were on the weekends when I would do back to back 3 to 5 hour sessions. Obviously to do this you need to have a very understanding wife and I am certainly blessed there.
Did you feel you had prepared adequately for the race, both physically and mentally?
Physically I would say absolutely, I pushed myself to the limits on several occasions throughout my training and that's what allowed me to feel stronger as the event went on but mentally I just wasn't ready. I really don't know if you ever could be ready for this race but I found out in the first day that I was clearly not in the right frame of mind. It took me two days to get my head right.
What were the weather conditions like over in Morocco?
Volatile is the best way to describe the weather. We had sandstorms, and very strong winds with day time temperatures that ranged from 21C to 51C. The unpredictable nature of the weather just added another dimension to the whole experience.
What did a typical day involve during the race?
At 6am our tent was dismantled with us still laying underneath it. You would slowly pack your bags and eat your breakfast in the dust and sand before making your way to the starting line at 8.30am. We have varying distances to cover each day depending on the stage and they varied from 17.5km on the last day to 82km on day 4 so when I arrived back at camp , I received my 4.5L of water and shuffled back to my tent.
I would make up my dinner which would be a dehydrated meal and then attend to my feet to address blisters. Time went quick and before you knew it you were back up and doing it all over again.
What did you eat during the race? Did you have to carry and cook it all yourself?
It was a self sufficient race so you had to carry all the food you needed for the week. I chose freeze dried food for dinner and breakfast and as a treat I took a few cup-a-soups and two minute noodles. I didn't take anything to heat water (too heavy to carry) so all my food was rehydrated with warm to cool water, let me tell you that cold cup-a-soups aren't the tastiest dish but when you're exhausted and hungry it's amazing what you will happily eat.
What was the toughest part of the race? And your most memorable moment?
The toughest part of the race was Day 1 , it was like a slap in the face and it hurt. After 3 hours in I was dehydrated, had chest pains, muscle cramps, was unable to concentrate on simple tasks like reading a watch, and wanted to vomit. Mentally it took everything I had just to keep moving forward knowing I had 6 more days to go.
The 82km day and the bond I developed with another Aussie competitor Tim Calver and a runner from HK that spoke no English, we worked together pushing each other along and finished in 12hrs and 55mins.
Who are you fundraising for, and how can people donate?
I am rising money for Giant Steps and for a little boy Luc Nicholls, autism is a really tough condition for both those that have it but also for those families living and coping with it every day. These people helped inspire me to push through the tough times both in training and the race. You can donate by clicking here.
Finally, would you do it all over again?
No, I achieved my goal of going top 100 and finished in 96th position and feel there is nothing more for me to achieve in that race, there are so many other great races and countries to compete in that I really have little desire to do the same race twice.
Link to Justin's photo gallery
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