What To Expect

You will need to be physically fit, sure. You will be running or walking. Yes, walking is a good option – in fact it’s positively encouraged if it gets you to the line.

You will be doing the equivalent of five and a half regular marathons in the space of just six days. And you will carry everything you need on your back.

Equipment

Forget fashion – it will do you no favours here. You need the right footwear. The extreme heat, distance and constant friction will test your shoes to the limit, so choose them carefully, ensuring their size will accommodate any swelling as the temperature soars. And try them in anger, alongside your clothes, rucksack (which must fit comfortably) and the rest of your equipment.

The contents of that rucksack will be precious and lifesaving: food, spare clothes, medical kit and your sleeping bag.

Food and Drink

You will carry, prepare and eat your own food throughout the race. Be ready. There are no handy shops to get extra supplies en route.

The solution? Concentrated / re-hydratable food, which can be made quickly and without fuss. Advice on how and where to source the best provisions is included with your registration details. Get a head start by visiting your local expert camping shop, contacting a previous entrant and reading the numerous Facebook posts on this subject on our runners group page. Don’t forget to include some small snacks as a tasty treat to offset the inevitable tedium of expedition-type food and keep your spirits high.

Water is rationed and handed out at checkpoints.

Lost?

You’ll be one of more than 900 other runners, so you’re unlikely to get lost. The route is clearly marked, and critical points are mostly manned by course marshals. Additionally, you will be supplied with a tracker, so if you move off-course, we get an alert and come down and put you back on track. You will also receive a detailed road book with a clear description of each day’s route at on the way into camp. Read it.

This book is your best friend. Look after it and it will look after you.

Markings

The course will be marked at approximately 500-metre intervals (subject to terrain). For the non-stop stage, which is around 80 kms long, luminous markers will be used during the night section. However, you may need to take certain compass bearings, especially in the dunes where marking out is impossible or if visibility gets compromised.

The road book will show where to take these compass bearings and to what degree. Still in the dark? Wait for others and work it out together. In all cases, listen carefully to the course director’s briefing at the start of each stage.

The Fourth Day

Day Four has become a legend in itself – for good reason. It is the toughest stage, taking the race around 50 miles across barren wilderness, and few competitors complete it before dark. Each person develops their own strategy for this unsparing stage – either racing for the line to cover the most miles in daylight or planning to sleep at one of the checkpoints where bivouacs are provided. The ‘brave’ just put their heads down and don’t stop until it’s over.

Your rest day is straight after the fourth day with the finishing line almost in sight.

What To Expect

Mental Fitness

Conditions

Equipment

Food and Drink

Lost?

Markings

The Fourth Day

Creepy Crawlies