Marathon des Sables
The Marathon Des Sables (translated as 'The Marathon of the sands') is the most infamous ultra marathon in the world and is commonly spoken of as the 'toughest footrace on earth'. The event consists of a 6 day, 151 mile race across the Sahara Desert in Morocco, the equivalent to 5 ½ regular marathons.
The Marathon Des Sables (MDS) was created in 1986 by a Frenchman named Patrick Bauer. After completing a 200 mile trek across the Sahara desert, he found the experience so unbelievably painful yet utterly exhilarating, that he decided he wanted to share this with others.
Since then, the event has attracted interest throughout the world and the spectacle is now broadcast to over 150 countries. Next year's MDS will be the 27th race, running from 5th – 14th April 2012 with over 800 runners from all over the globe coming together to test their physical and mental limits.
The race itself
Participants arrive in the sleepy town of Ouarzazte in Southern Morocco, and from there are driven 6 hours deep into the Sahara Desert. The exact location of the start of the race, as well as the course itself is kept secret until the day before the event begins.
After extensive health (all participants are required to submit an up to date ECG scan) and kit checks, participants are given the course road-book and their first rations of water before the start. Runners must be fully self-sufficient during the race, carrying everything they need on their backs, from food to anti-venom snake bite kits. Water is the one exception and is handed out to participants at check-points along the course.
Once the race has started, participants will be running in temperatures up to 50 C across extremely diverse terrain including; sand dunes, small mountains and expansive desert. At night competitors huddle together under the stars in large open tents as temperatures fall as low 10 C.
The exact distances of the 6 stages varies each year, but typically sticks to the following format:
Day 1: 25 km
Day 2: 34 km
Day 3: 38 km
Day 4: 82 km (The long day)
Day 5: 42 km
Day 6: 22 km
The long day (45-50 miles) has a 32 hour time limit and the majority of competitors will be running continuously for a day and a night and often into a second night before catching a couple of hours sleep to recharge for the penultimate 26 mile marathon day.
The event requires significant mental strength as well as physical stamina, as competitors feet are gradually rubbed and grated by the desert sand, meaning the majority of people are painfully hobbling through the latter stages of the event, a problem brutally catered for by the 50 volunteer doctors, known as Doc Trotters, who prescribe little but a quick dose of a scalpel and iodine and give competitors a 2 hour time penalty for requiring a drip.
Those that manage to complete the distance are greeted over the line by Patrick Bauer himself, who presents each successful runner with a well earned medal.