Desert trekers running with cause
About 180 racers competed in the Gobi Desert March in June, including a couple millionaires and a German rock star.
By Andrea Lavigne
News staff - Saanich News
Aug 10 2007
Slideshow recaptures Gobi desert race’s high and low points for local runners Wednesday, Aug. 15
The aching muscles, blistered toes and mental fatigue may be all but a fading memory for three runners who recently crossed the Gobi desert, but local residents can help them recapture the moments of their trek at their upcoming slide show and fundraiser.
Team Gobi Canada is hosting a slide show presentation Surviving the Gobi March 2007 on Wednesday, Aug. 15 as a continuation of their efforts to raise money for breast cancer.
Donna Carrigan, Donald Peterson and Rob Mackay formed the three-person Team Gobi Canada, who competed in the 250-kilometre trek across the Gobi desert in China in June. The race consisted of six stages ranging from 20 to 80 kilometres to be completed over seven days.
It was a grueling multi-day marathon that Carrigan got through by breaking the race down into half-hour episodes punctuated by gummy bears.
“I’d think about how long it is until I get a gummy bear and what colour it will be. It sounds really silly, but it works.”
Competitors were required to carry all their own food, gear and clothing – adding up to about 25 pounds – on their backs for the entire adventure.
She lived off a food selection chosen for its high calorie, sugar content and low weight, mostly dried mangoes, beef jerky and potato chips – foods that Carrigan swears she’ll never eat again.
All of the 180 international competitors camped in tents that held 10 people each.
While Team Gobi Canada bunked down with other Canadian competitors, they hobnobbed with the other adventurists, including a couple of millionaires and one German rock star who brought his own entourage.
“He had his own film crew, which I think most people were really amused by. He was really intense,” Carrigan said, although she could not recall his name.
She also met a U.S. marine who asked her to drill through his toenail to pop a blister because he was too scared to do it himself.
“I’m not very good with needles, but I thought it would be an opportunity to see what it would be like,” she said.
Luckily, no one on Team Gobi Canada had severe foot problems, however, Carrigan did describe Mackay’s baby toe as looking like the white of a hard-boiled egg surrounding the yolk. “It was like a layer of skin was cracking off his baby toe.”
Carrigan says she vacillated between several basic feelings throughout the journey.
“I think every single day there were the same feelings only in a different order: I’m too hot, I’m tired, I’m hungry, repeat.”
She used a few mantras to help control her feelings of fatigue and of course, she had gummy bears to look forward too (of which green is her favourite).
But despite the will and determination, Carrigan and Peterson were sidelined on the fifth stage because of a virus that swept through the competitors’ camp. Mackay managed to avoid the gastrointestinal bug and plugged on, with Carrigan and Peterson rejoining him for the final stages.
“It was bittersweet,” Carrigan said of their finish. “We went as a team, but we didn’t officially complete it as a team.”
Race rules dictate that team members finish within 25 metres of each other. However, they did receive the Humanitarian Award from race organizers for their breast cancer fundraising and awareness efforts.
While Carrigan is off running for awhile, the team is continuing to receive donations on behalf of the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation. The cause is close to Carrigan’s heart, as she had a breast cancer scare at age 18. While it turned out to be benign, she remains committed to fundraising and raising breast cancer awareness.
The slide show event will be held Wednesday, Aug. 15 from 7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Frontrunners Westshore, #133-735 Goldstream Ave. Admission is by donation.
For more information go to www.teamgobi.com.
