My Adventure: by Shane Knowler
Although I have always enjoyed being in the outdoors – walking, boating, and travelling to different places; I don’t really see myself as a hard-core competitive sportsperson or adventurer. So I somewhat surprised myself in 2006 when some friends encouraged me to enter one of the Racing The Planet (RTP) events.
RTP organises a series of 250km (150 miles) self-supported ultra-marathons, holding usually four such events each year, usually in Namibia, China, Chile, and Antarctica, but often with an additional annual event in some other location. These events are billed as “a marathon a day for a week”, and are stage races, with participants making their way individually along a marked route from campsite to campsite. Participants carry all their own food, clothes, and basic safety items for the week, with the organisers providing water, and a place in a tent each night.
I was (perhaps subconsciously!) looking for something more adventurous to balance my busy professional working life in a big city, and so I immediately got into a self-developed training programme of lots of hiking over rugged terrain while carrying a heavy backpack.
My first event was the Gobi March, which takes place in the far West of China, in Xinjiang province. I flew into Urumqi to meet the other participants and receive the race briefing, and then we were all bussed for several hours to a very remote location near the Turpan basin – known as one of the hottest and driest regions on earth. Sure enough, it was an extremely tough week, with many times of sheer exhaustion, with daytime temperatures frequently in the 40s and a mix of rugged hill climbs and long flats, sandhills, and even some surprisingly lush mountain forests. But also good social times with tentmates and getting to know other participants around the nightly campfire.
Although at the time I couldn’t wait for the race to end, I knew immediately when I crossed the finish line that I would sign up for another, and sure enough I signed up for the Sahara race again the following year, and went on to complete other RTP events in Egypt, Chile, Namibia, Iceland, and Antarctica. Unless you’re a super-athlete, most of the participants do these events not to “win” but for the challenge and the experience.
Each event was a very different experience – not only in terms of landscape, but in terms of the other people, the local cultures, the weather, the gear requirements, and the adventures of getting to such remote locations.
There were many different challenges. One event had many river crossings resulting in wet shoes and feet and so getting severe blisters that made the last few days (and afterwards) extremely painful. Another time when we were caught in a cold rainstorm on a mountain ridge and getting soaked and cold. On another occasion I missed some of the trail markers and got lost for some time. Long days trudging through soft sand is very tiring – but walking in strong wind is surprisingly uncomfortable also. The yellow eyes of the wild jackals following us at night in Namibia was challenging in a psychological way!
Advice to Others:
For anyone looking for an opportunity to see less-travelled parts of the world, which pushing their personal limits, I can’t recommend events like these highly enough. Research RTP, but of course there are many, many similar types of adventure activities and travel which will offer the challenges you are seeking (maybe you don’t yet know you are seeking them!). If you’re not sure, try a much shorter event – perhaps a one-day event or a weekend adventure close to home.
Some basic advice to get you thinking more:
Good general physical fitness goes without saying. There are long days outside, covering long distances with a heavy backpack.
Good gear is critical. Comfortable shoes that suit the conditions and don’t give blisters. Adequate clothes for the conditions – heat, cold, sand, insects. Basic safety equipment in case of the unexpected.
See you on the trails!
