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Journeys of Joy

Escaping Dubai’s Summer heat and embracing the cool, green, fresh … and sometimes wet and windy landscape of Europe is one of my many highlights of being self-employed. It’s my time to enjoy my family, catch up with loved ones and discover new places. Travel to me is a powerful magnet that draws me in and creates the perfect template to nurture creativity and innovative ideas.

And this Summer was no different. I joined dozens of other ‘working dads’ in Amsterdam to cycle the city with my 15-month old son, Koen, hooked to the steering bar. I explored the works of Anton Corbijn, a Dutch photographer with a great following in NYC, at FOAM, a fantastic photo museum followed by immersing myself in their awesome book store; utopia for those who love with a passion for photo books. Predictably, this resulted in hauling an entire suitcase brimming with books and magazines back to Dubai … and only added to my current pile of reading material, making my great intentions to reduce the pile over the summer months, a distant memory.

I have returned fully recharged and ready to embrace the autumn, and hectic season ahead. I have been reminded of my long absence a number of times, not least when embarking outside with sunglasses on only to find my vision being reduced to a thick fog … but all said and done, nothing beats coming ‘home’.

Wk.

Inspiration & direction from Remarkable Robin

A highlight of my summer was a Robin Sharma ‘Remarkable Entrepreneur’ conference in Toronto. A truly meaningful seminar, enjoyed by an international like-minded audience, eager for an injection of new energy and ideas, I left inspired, motivated and overloaded with mind-boggling material.

Toronto itself is a winning city. I enjoyed a stunning three-hour run on the banks of Lake Ontario which seemed effortless thanks to the crisp and lush greenery. I discovered Above Ground, a fabulous arts and crafts venue behind the equally worth visiting Art Gallery of Ontario and I plunged into the pages of a fantastic selection of books at Ben McNally’s bookstore. Purchased was Mike Powell’s ‘A Game to Love’, a beautifully thought-out book celebrating his love for tennis.

Staying at the family-run Rex Hotel, my days came to a perfect end with great nightly live jazz. When the mind is over-flowing with creative ideas and the tongue tired from incessant talking, few things beat kicking off your shoes and listening to the sweet soothing sounds of live jazz.

As for the conference itself, Robin Sharma simply cannot fail to inspire even the hardiest of individuals. The content was extensive which led me, post event, to creating a mind map to capture my best moments and top five learners. I was left with 18 new best practices, seven life questions, ten next steps and nine personal ideas to consider.

These include such considerations as …

• work on the business in the business
• allocate digital distraction free time to do creative work
• work with a weekly blueprint - rise early, have a game plan and stick to it
• things scheduled are things done
• write a 24 month significant obsession and put the word out
• be yourself in your own skin
• get a dream team and hire the best
• and join the 5am club ...

Going forward, these will guide me in the right direction, keeping me focused and determined. They will also act as a reminder of Robin Sharma himself, without whose great delivery, the inspirational rating would have been cut by half. Thank you for sharing your insights Robin, thank you for being a great source of inspiration.

Wk.

Fresh off the press; ADAC’s Souvenir Book

My fourth and as it transpires, the last Abu Dhabi Adventure Challenge souvenir book is fresh of the press and ready to conjure up memories for all who played a part. Printed in limited edition, with a print run of only 300, the book is an up close and personal collage of memories for all those who battled the six-day multi-discipline course.

Nearly everything in the book is handmade from the screen-printed fabric cover, the woven spine, with its real Beal 4mm climbing rope and the shiny precision Brunton compass gracing the cover. My designer Jerry Balloch has brought the images alive with a flush injection of creativity and Murali and the printing team demonstrated great patience in times of intense labour. Paul Rosenquist, a longtime friend and fellow avid adventurer, was himself in town for the Dubai Shamaal (the world’s richest surfski race) and kindly stayed on to create the book’s winning copy. Everyone who has played a role in creating the book has put so much effort in and shown resolute passion from start to finish … awesome and I thank every single one. Best book to date and always good to go with a bang!

Wk.

The new A6 lights up Yas

The new Audi 6, the car and the iconic Yas Marina Formula One Circuit, the venue; together, a winning combination! Both the car and the track are equally impressive, have global appeal and can’t fail to impress with their dynamic exteriors and super smooth interiors.

The shoot itself was hot with the relentless temperatures hovering around the 45c mark but for a photographer who adores the outdoors, that’s all part of the job. The Yas Hotel was the backdrop; an architectural treasure itself that sits proudly inside the track and hosts the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in November.

For boys who love their toys, this shoot was a dream not least because on the press days, I had the pleasure to work with my friend and fellow photographer Jorge Ferarri with whom it was a pleasure to share the track. I also managed to extend my knowledge of Formula One jargon with words once alien to me such as understeer, oversteer, apex, pit-lanes, g-force … the icing on the cake!

Wk.

WOW what a race.

Crossing the finish arch felt like heaven on earth. Awesome. Such a spectacular setting for a finish, in a Buddhist village with a strong Silk Route history. The whole last 14k trail run run through the Flamming Mountains was done on endorphins, feeling on a high and realizing how incredibly privileged I am to be doing this race. Yes, the last day felt soooo good. At the same time glad it's over, happy to kick my running shoes in the corner for a while and can't wait to go home and see my little boy Koen (and Kiki if it wasn't that she's in Paris for work...). In physical terms, how do I feel? Can describe it best as a Wiener Schnitzel....feel like cooked meat in a crust of sand, red dust and salt. Some might have had a wash-up from their drinking water supply during yesterday's rest day but last night's crazy sandstorm evened everyone out again. During the morning briefing everyone looked absolutely wrecked; red eyes, covered in red dust, exhausted. Can't wait for my long warm shower and crisp bed linnen at the Yin Du hotel in Urumqi.

I started the Gobi March strong, physically and mentally. I paced myself every day. Running when it felt like the right thing to do and walking when running didn't go. I never started the day over-doing it on the first legs yet still going out fast, otherwise the day would last forever. It's about finding that economy of speed to avoid burning/bonking/hitting the wall. Recovery time after a hard smack takes so much longer and really dents your race confidence. I think I covered the race at average 80% of my physical abilities. Could have run more and harder at times, significantly increasing pain levels. But why? Risk of burning out for the sake of a better placement? For me that was not my objective of this race. Completing and enjoying the journey was my aim.

Trying to give it a space as to how hard the race actually was. It's so difficult to compare, there are not many things out there that relate to the scale of this race. So I went back to Time Magazine who quoted the 4 deserts races in their top 10 toughest endurance events. Who shares that list? 24 Hours of Le Mans, Tour de France, Dakar Rally, Iditarod Dog Sled Race, Cannonball Run, Tevis Cup, Marathon de Sables, La Ruta de los Conquistadores, Vendee Globe. Some look interesting...

Got back in Dubai late last night. Zombied around the house this morning, jet lagged and knackered. Was looking for a new book to stare at and visited my huge pile of 'still to read's' which include; 4 hours work week, tipping point, the leader who had no tittle, lightroom 3 tutorial, art director annuals, vision mongers, Andre Agassi's Open, PDN mags, graphic design books, etc. The one that jumped at me was funnily enough 'Recettes pour bien vivres' a Dutch/French cook book I purchased last August for it's great food photography. Now finally unpacked it makes me hungry. I knew that I lost weight when I tried on three different pairs of trousers, all sliding down my hips. Climbed the scale which measured four kilo's less, yes finally in the sub 100's. Lets start with a few creme brulee's!

I'm so happy to be self employed. Would have found it a real struggle to walk into an open plan office space Monday morning, searching for my cubicle and find it at the same state I left it in. With a huge stack of boring paperwork waiting for you. That would make me want to take the first plane back to the Gobi and run back to the start.

So many valuable people have supported me in getting to the finish:
Love to thank my lovely wife Kiki for many reasons, allowing me to do the race, her support during the months of training and keeping the blog up and running during the race. You're the best!

Mary Gadams and the team at 4 Deserts for bringing on these spectacular races. I would seriously encourage everyone to visit their site 4deserts.com with the intention to sign up, guaranteed they will take your live to a whole different level.
I would like to thank family and friends for the continuous flow of fresh competitor messages during the race. Was always something to look forward to after a hot day out in the field. Inspiring, humorous and touching.
Karin and the team at Audi, thanks so much for spreading the charity message around the Middle East. The coverage is already spectacular and still coming in. Our maid Luz ran in this morning holding the 7days with my 'final results' news story. Your input has made such a difference.
Tent Grasshoppers and in particular Chris, Richard and Marcello. Thanks for the great conversation, laughs and heeps of sarcasm.
Finally a true thank you for those many contributors who supported the ABC Children Aid in Uganda. We currently stand at US$ 6,487 and I know quite a few are still wanting to contribute. At the bottom of this post you can find a shortcut with easy credit card option. Quick and Simple. 100% towards a great course.

I hope to have inspired others to rock their own boat, looking at their own stretching Gobi equivalent that fits their chapter. It is great to have dreams and massively important to have excitement on the horizon. And trust me it's even better to live your dreams and tick off a few of these boxes. I truly believe in the power of words. Positive wording leads to great results, as long as it comes from the heart - deep from inside. The Gobi March has been on my books for a few years, now a huge medal richer it's actually the inner strength that has made be so proud to have completed this amazing race.

What's next?
Wk.

Note: All images by Dale de la Rey for Racing the Planet

The Long March

That was a long long long 15 hours and I was so happy when I crossed the finish! Second last stage is done with only 13km to the final Gobi March Finish! For sure one of the toughest things I’ve done. Extremely hard work. Little lost on writing this blog. Where to start. Enough to say but the words are not coming out. Tired, yes exhausted, fell asleep with my head torch still on. Says enough.

What made it so hard? To start, we entered the 80 km with already 150km under your belt, rough camp life and minimal food. Pacing yourself is so important, especially considering the heat, believe we reached the 50c. Managing the heat is crucial. You have to look after yourself, taking in the bars/gels/powers and the warm water at cp’s. It tastes disgusting but crucial to keep going. Another hard part is to keep the pace. From the start I set in a fast speed walk and pretty kept this for the first 35km; at times I was just as fast as some slow runners. Together with Paul we kept a great peace towards the end, hard but it worked.

Caught up with a fellow racer Paul somewhere between CP3 and CP4 and together we completed the second 40 or so kilometers. It clicked. It gelled. Both knowing we were going to finish and we pulled each other through. Thanks! Makes such a difference to be buddied up, going solo in 45c hell on endless long terrain and numb making terrain will do your head in. We kept our top 20 placement throughout all the CP’s, was so happy to be in and had absolutely no expectations to be ranked that high.

Following the long stage is rest time. How much depends on how long you take to do the 80km. The last ones came in at 12noon the second day. When typing this post we’re 4pm on the rest day. Flaming Mountains Camp has turned into weird bunch of tired, hungry, smelly competitors with pretty much everyone limping around camp. Medical crew is doing overtime. Little to do other than rest in the shade and fantasize about food. My craving goes towards a huge plate of Nasi Goreng at mOre cafe. Even if there would be a frizebee or football no one would have the slightest ambition to pick it up.

Can’t wait to finish off the last stage. Gotta wear my sunglasses I’m sure. Still amazed how well my legs have kept. No joints issues, just general tiredness and stiffness end of the day. Got a few blisters on both feet, nothing near as some of the war feet I’ve seen here. Auch. Blisters are funny things: they hurt when you put your shoes on, they are killing for the first 10 minutes you walk on them and than they thankfully go numb. Not looking forward to remove all the tape under the shower tomorrow…

Again I would like to thank everyone for their messages. It certainly helps to keep on going knowing that family and friends are sending their love and energy.

More to follow once finished this race off.

Wouter

Note: All images by Dale de la Rey for Racing the Planet

Raindrops keep falling on the dunes....

Had a rubbish night and think I slept more on the 3 hour bus ride than at Peach Village. Today is classified as difficult throughout. What the route book had to say 'Starts with some righteous sand dunes coming into dunnettes (small dunes), then continuing along through scrub bush type terrain to Camp 5'. Total of 37,3km

It's amazing how quick your body can recover. Had really stiff legs after all the downhill running from yesterday. We could put our feet in a little stream at the village. Just walking down to the stream was really comical, hobbling and walking around like old man. Everyone doing the same act... Was really worried how my legs would recover but this morning they felt good again, must be the magical Arnika Gel.

We were gifted with overcast skies on the first 10km of high dunes, with even a little drizzle. We've had such weird weather in the Gobi. The fast boys gunned into the high dunes with the others to follow in their footsteps. I felt very rough so took an easy start. Climbed some serious dunes, stunning views that reminds me of Liwa. I took little over 2 hours to finish the dunes. After that it was a long hot 28k slog to camp. Not particular scenic, so yes Louise: it does get tough out there. The medical tent at the checkpoints where busy, many struggled today. Few got pulled out, others exited volunteeringly. Damn hot.
For safety reasons we had to buddy up for the last 7km stretch to camp. I finished off the day with Joe, little conversations. Both had our iPods out and moving forward in our own zone. We had to dig deep for this one. Joe, thanks for your push.

Camp is at -87 metres, the Turpan Bassin is the second lowest place on the planet. Pretty cool and hot.

My goal today was to finish in good condition starting the long stage tomorrow in good spirit. Mission accompolished. Looking forward to the 80 km tomorrow heading into the Turpan Basin saltflats, Gao Chang Village and the Flaming Mountains. See how I feel and how the weather is doing and I might start running it, until the heat kicks in at least. Expected temperature is 45c...aaahh

For now...Eat, Sleep and Prep.

Next update will be at the end of the long one!
Wouter

Note: All images by Dale de la Rey for Racing the Planet

Stage 3 post

Day three started with a wild run down the Daheyan Canyon. "No overtaking for the first part" was the message so tried to keep up with the fast boys to avoid being stuck behind the slow down hillers. Once down in the river bed the heroes took off.

Breakfast discussion was all about shoes on or shoes off. Between start and the first CP their were a few river crossings, so wearing shoes was a strategic decision; take shoes off and keep dry feet to avoid foot problems or save time and gush through the water hoping you can run them dry during the day.I opted for the saver option and lost about 10 minutes. The following stage was a 10km uphill a long and beautifull long stretch. My tent mate Marcello caught up so we could share the climb together. Former boldybuilder and getting his grips about this kind of racing as well. Felt strong on the uphill and really strong on the downhill till cp 3. Dokter Sussie complimented my with my current top 40 placement and from cp 3 onwards the running became a mental mindgame. An Ozzie overtook me so now I was down to 41st place making it a top 50. I wanted to keep my top 40 so the remainder of the day was spend jojojing with fellow competitors. Over taking, being overtaken. During the last stages the sun was back and in full glory, must have been 40c ish. No wind and running on an endless windy track. Made some serious progress on the last kilometre overtaking five guys. Felt odd but had to keep on going.

In my pack are two iPod shuffles with a mix of music for when it get's though. So far they are nicely tucked away.

Seriously glad to get off my feet. Was a long hard run today. Ran pretty much everything. Tip from John Young, run the downhill and walk the uphill. Including every little downhill, even the 50 metres ones are run. So I did and managed to finish at a good placement.

Thanks Chris for the X2O hydration tea bags. Did wonders today for the recovery. My tent mates had to laugh about 'an electrolyte that makes water more watery...' Your veggie mix is scheduled for day 6.

No camping tonight but sleeping in Peach Village enjoying Uyghur hospitality.Still no luxury catering though...having a freeze dried Chicken Tikka bag tonight. And a piece of luxury 1 stroopwafel / caramel waffel with my instant coffee, you've gotta treat yourself. Tomorrow we're boarding a 4am bus for a 3 hours transfer to the start of the stage tittled 'Into the dunes'. So off to bed, ready for it!

Wk

Note: All images by Dale de la Rey for Racing the Planet

Stage 2 - update...!!

I so much love my new Mountain Hardware Phantom 45 sleeping bag. Stayed in it till 11.30am today... We had an overnight weather change with night temperatures dropping to 5c and complete white out conditions in the morning. Visited the little boys room at 5am and nearly couldn't find our tent in the thick mist. Race organizers kept on delaying the start in the hope that the mountain course would clear up to start day two. Outside was shivering cold so we all stayed in our tents and sleeping bags waiting for the new race start time. What I said, my bag was so cosy warm (and lightweight)!

Had an OK sleep, lots of noise in a camp of 200 people so woke up a few times. My legs feel better than expected. Can recall recovering from a training run up and down Wadi Bih with my legs killing the next day. Thanks to Lisa's great advice I added Arnika Gel to my pack, for a much needed leg rub at the end of the day. And it works.

Quick recap from yesterday; tough first day due to the heat. We ran thru stunning green valleys with a Chinese version of lavendel, smelled so nice.Top guys where expected in at 3hrs but it took Damon 4.01 hours to cross the finish line first, last guys came in at 8pm leaving them a blistering 12 hours on the course. Lots of hero stories around camp at night. Yesterday started with a great card from my lovely wife Kiki and I would like to share with you the cover:

live with intention
walk to the edge
listen hard
practice wellness
play with abandon
laugh
choose with no regret
continue to learn
appreciate your friends
do what you love
live life as if this all there is

This morning 12noon finally we were off, they reduced the distance and we ran straight to cp 3, then cp 4 with finally camp Kazak. Flat, Short and Sweet. Started raining towards the end, I'm so not used to running in 13c. BBBrrrr! As you can imagine the cold weather road runners excelled at this stage...lots of Brits in front of me. Coming straight out of the UK winter, how can you train for the desert heat? Today no desert heat but freezing cold, I'm wearing all my clothes and still shivering. I'm looking forward to tomorrow a nice long stage and leaving the mountains behind us. Mentally prepping for the sand dunes scheduled for day 4.



They've been struggeling to get connected to the satelite so no incoming messages to read. Missing it already.

With a shortish day everyone at camp is at good spirit. The sun showed herself the first time today at 8pm, many ran out to dry their clothes in the bushes. Looking forward to a good night sleep, in my super bag...

Cheers
Wk.

Note: All images by Dale de la Rey for Racing the Planet

Stage 2 - update to come

The stage 2 camp was not able to have satellite connection today. Therefore race results are not yet available and are we waiting for Wouter's update. Stay tuned!

Stage 1 - done

Wow what a start. "Find your own pace from the start" is a valuable lesson learned from shooting at previous races. No one wins a race on day 1. A very good call as I overtook so many racers who struggled by starting too fast from the beginning, keen to join the leading pack. Then really struggling between checkpoint 3 and camp, the last 10k a hilly home stretch. Final results have not been posted yet but came in at a shocking 23rd place, waaaaayyy better than anticipated. Granted some of the quick boys got lost so please manage expectation for the following days. There is still so much to go...214km.

The course started ok on a dirt track leading us parallel to the Tian Shan mountains, beautiful snow capped peaks at 5,400 plus meters. Very inviting to summit. Running slowly uphill towards checkpoint 2, from there the course took off skywards. We must have gained over 1,000 meters in elevation up and down. Runners consensus is that day 1 had a tough start, harder than expected. I felt strong pretty much most of the time. It was HOT, but Dubai training certainly helped to maintain the pace. Drinking lots of fluids.

Now resting at camp Kazak. Feet up, hydrate, take my recovery shakes and dinner later on. The more I eat the lighter the pack tomorrow. We're quite high up at 2,100 meters elevation; hopefully that's the reason for my headache, need to get that sorted before I go to sleep.

There is no bedtime till 8.30pm...going live for a radio interview on Virgin radio. Should be live daily for the next week, 4.15 Dubai time.

Day 1 in conclusion; feeling strong and really chuffed with today's result. Got my small usual blister but the docs have sorted that out for now, hopefully the only one.

See how I feel tomorrow morning, legs will be sore. We are starting with a steep 5 km climb straight from camp. After that it's downhill with a few mini climbs. Will check in from camp Deheyan Canyon.

Thanks for much for all these great messages being sent from the event website. Love reading them!!

Those who want to see pictures, videos and understand more about the race, please visit 4deserts.com/gobimarch

Checking out from sunny Tarpan Valley, remote Western China.

Wouter

Note: All images by Dale de la Rey for Racing the Planet

Pre-race day

Friends

Just gone through race briefing, gear check and collected race notes. When she looked at my food to check if I was carrying my mandatory 14,000 calories she shook her head. Judging from the big pile she didn't have to calculate....

Will go through race notes in the next 3 hour bus ride to camp but quickly noted lots of hills. 8am start tomorrow! So excited.

Please remember to visit the race website 4deserts.com where you can follow the race, they've got great multi media and you can leave much needed competitor messages there. Quick and easy to do.

We're 150 of us, all ready to finish on the 2nd July. Such a unique mix of people...a pastor, a father with his 2 sons, full time mums, quite a few entrepreneurs, army boys, a former Ozzie National rower, a pro boxer, mountaineers who have done 7 summits, students, my tent mate Jeahong who has done 70 marathons and 50 ultra's. Quite a few cancer survivors. Then a large group of novice and inexperienced. So many great conversations out there.

Tune into Virgin Radio 104.4 at 4.15pm for daily live interviews with Brent Black. Already enjoying the celeb status...

Next post will be from camp tomorrow night after the first stage. Posting from a satellite fed Cyber cafe.

Wk.

Note: All images by Dale de la Rey for Racing the Planet

Last days of preparation!

Thanks so much for all the great advice, tips & encouraging notes. Yes, I will be looking after myself. No I'm not going to do anything stupid. Off course I'm gonna drinks lots of water... Honestly! There is lots of greatness in the pipeline to come home for in 1 piece and enjoy.

As always the days before a big trip are hectic. Up early for the last few training runs. Low intensity & low mileage. Crazy to go fast anyway at the current Dubai temperatures. It's high 30's and steamingly hot by 8am. Mentally at least the Gobi temperatures will seem gentle compared to the oven back home.

Picked up some more work than expected, having to cramp in more in less time. No time to stress out too much about the race. Quick prepping, packing and departing.

Great news: Audi Middle East has come on board and in addition to making a serious donation towards the Uganda project they are bringing in the PR crew to make lot's of noise. Karin thanks so much for making this happen!! Spreading the charity message to an even greater audience. Check out Virgin radio with potential live daily interviews from Camp. Details to follow.

Only 4 days to race day and still it feels very distant. My pack now comes down to 10.5 kgs. 6.5 kgs of that is food with a total of 19,000 calories. That's 50% more than what and average male should be eating but far from what I'm expecting to be burning daily. I'm expecting to burn at least 5,000 calories a day. Why not bring more food? More food is more weight and I'm desperately trying to keep my pack under the 10 kgs. Any heavier gets really uncomfortable when running. It's a juggling and scaling act. Hope my strategy pays off. The pro guys will most likely carry 7 kgs, that's shivering & starvation from start to finish...

Nonsense really but the race still feels like it's gonna be a 'piece of cake'. A few long runs, lots of recovery time and a freeze dried meal for dinner. This is what I trained for and I feel mentally strong and committed. Surely arriving in Urumqi (far Western China) will kick start the adrenaline overdrive. The reality check! That's also when the comparing starts. Damn look at these tiny packs. Auchh lot's of amazingly fit guys and girls. Have I trained enough? Got enough food? Little doubt is good and helps to keep me focussed. The Reality check as I mentioned. Will most likely throw the spare 400 grams / 1,200 cal of food I wasn't planning to take with me. Just in case...

Checking out now. More to follow from Gobi.

Wk.

How to donate for ABC Children's Aid

Finally got this one sorted out. Those who like to make a valuable contribution towards ABC Children's Aid Uganda can do so by clicking on the below 'donate' button.

It's an automated system using PayPal. Quick and simple. Why PayPal because they accepts credit cards, debit cards, PayPal accounts AND you don't need a PayPal account to make their donations. Finally they accept 23 different currencies, all about great service. As I mentioned quick and simple.

Thanks so MUCH!

Wk.

Signed up for 250km desert race!

Yeap, it has been on the radar for a while and I’m now off to the Gobi Desert in remote western China competing in a 250km footrace. A magical mix of 6 marathons in 7 days. The full course is off road and I’m carrying a pack with all food and equipment. The Gobi March is listed by Time Magazine as #2 on its top 10 list of endurance competitions. Check out for full race details. www.4deserts.com/gobimarch

Yes the word competing is reality. In 2007 and 2008 I’ve covered a few the 4 Desert races as the official race photographer, see here my photo movie. So I’ve seen the inside of the race and now its time to experience the brutal other side. I’m so excited yet so intimidated at the same time.

In between jobs my time has been dedicated towards training, in particular long runs in the desert and wadi’s. Evenings are spent behind the computer reducing the weight of my pack. Everything (except water and shared tent) is carried therefore every gram I can save counts. I got excited when I found an alternative fleece top that weights 140 grams less and I just spend a fair sum of dollars on a sleeping bag saving me 475 grams. These kind of weird math exercises...I know it does sound bit childish.

I promised friends to share the ‘WHY’ question. So what is my reasoning?

- Because I can. I know it sounds cliché. There are those out there who would want to but can’t. Those who should but don’t know yet. And there is a group who talks about it but never sign up, always finding an excuse to not enter. I belonged to the last group for a while and had to shift mindset from should-do to have-done. This gives me strength.

- Racing bring life back to the basics. Eat – Sleep – Survive. Arguable racing is like a Ritz Carlton pamper holiday week, only with a different menu.

- I’m after the hidden experience. Besides the physical challenge, which will hurt, it’s about the uplifting mental thought process. Out in the field there are no digital distractions just a free flow of thoughts. What will cross my mind? What becomes important vs urgent? What inspiring conversation shall I have. I’m tempted to bring a voice recorder to trap some good thinking before it evaporates back to the wild. I know from experience that my best (strategic) thinking is done when completely relaxed. A 250km run might not sound relaxing but will certainly clear my head.

- To the outside world such a race might be considered a mad undertaking. Once inside the race bubble it is all relative and makes perfect sense. Shared. Everyone is equal, in it with the same goal – to cross the finish arch. There are no stripes, no suits. Only shorts and blisters. It is more open and honest. Run a bit and look after yourself and look after each other. The difficult task is how to share this experience with friends and family once you leave this bubble. Back into the, so called, real world.

- Because I am running this to raise money for a great charity in Uganda. More about this below.

- Finally what happens in the Gobi…stays in the Gobi. Some juicy details will remain a secret.

Let me bounce the ball back to you. What thoughts will cross your mind when you are out in the wild in the middle of the night? What will move you? Wanna join?

I’ve got two concerns that keep me busy. Firstly that the distance is going to be more painful than anticipated and secondly that I’ll get addicted to it, making Gobi only the start of more to come... I interviewed Mark Lattanzi at the end of a Primal Quest adventure race and he admitted racing is addictive. Let’s find out.

Charity. I’m running the race in support of a great charity. My criteria for a notable charity is that our money ends up on the dinner plate for those in real need. That it’s run by a small dedicated management team who prefer economy class over business, are hands on and passionate in what they believe in. I believe to have found the perfect match in ABC Children's Aid Uganda.

This charity has a 20 year track record of great work educating kids in the Northern and Central regions of Uganda. Anne, great friend of mine just got back from Uganda and has seen the founders and team in action and is very exciting about the awesome work that is being done. For me that is a comforting message knowing that all the funds will ends up where its really needed. The project I'm raising cash for is the construction and outfitting of a library at the Kitetika College. With all YOUR help I would like to raise US$ 15,600. This target is what they need to complete their project, allowing thousands of kids access to an incredible valuable source of education and knowledge. Who knows, the next US president might come from Uganda…

How can you help? Firstly by making a donation. A big one, small one, huge one. What works for you, they all add up and everything goes towards this charity project (note, my race is 100% self funded). I don't use my Paypal account and see this as the quickest and easiest way to centrally collect the donations (unless anyone has a better idea). Log into Paypal, click send money, put in my email address and add the amount. Short and sweet. At the end I'll report what has been donated.

Finally the real POWER is by forwarding this message. Twitter it. Blog about it. Facebook it. SMS or forward by email. What works for you to make more noise. Remember the power of raising money is talking to the wider audience. I hope to count on your participation.

Few weeks before the race kicks off. The last long runs, hope to knock off another 350 grams of my pack and looking forward to see how the donations for Urganda are coming in.

Finally putting together an Ipod with music and I’m keen to load it up with great running beats. Please send me your top 5 favorite running tunes and I”ll add it to the playlist.

If you have any questions or suggestions drop me a line at: wouterkingma@mac.com

More to come…

Wk.

Off to meet the Monk who sold his Ferrari

I’ve booked and I’m so excited. I am attending ‘The Remarkable Entrepreneur’, a 2,5 day super conference presented by Robin Sharma. One of Robin’s books ‘Discovery your Destiny with the Monk who sold his Ferrari’ has been a real driving force behind what I’m doing now. The content really got me going and supported me to make the changes I needed to make; free myself from the corporate world and life my own dream. This book was the first of many I read and can highly recommend his books, they are metal movers. It’s a preferred gift for those friends who hit a crossroad with more questions than answers.

The content and the timing for the conference is just perfect. My right hemispheric creative brain has been running overtime. Continuously spitting out new ideas, thoughts and spin offs. I tend to scribble them in a special booklet, now filled with sketches, one liners, inspiring quotes, mind maps and mini business plans. I don’t think attending this conference is going to create law & order but will certainly drive things forward. Plus the summer is a down time for me and I’ll be spending most of it in Europe – time and place to come back with a cohesive plan.

Having a great idea on paper is useless, unless it gets executed. Driving ideas through execution requires balls and determination. Time to get my act together.

Flight is booked and prepping as much as I can. Leaving in 4 weeks.

Wk.

Mystery & Industry in the Kingdom

The Magical Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; a kingdom shrouded in mystery, a secret from the outside world. As a kid I lived in Saudi, near Damman on the East Coast. From what I can recollect as a nine year old, we existed in a bubble where living in a compound, being chauffeur driven to school and spending hours splashing in the pool whilst the grown ups tended to their illegally brewed wine was the norm. Life was great!

Years later, during my days as a corporate employee, trips to Saudi featured regularly so recently, it was a pleasure to return, this time wearing a different hat. The purpose of my visit was an assignment from branding agency, S+G. I was to travel with Art Director, Rhode to shoot am image library for a power & desalination plant in Jeddah.

Beautiful artistic shots of an industrial site? A challenge of gigantic proportions for which I justifiably had concerns; the harsh reality of arriving on site can be a stark contrast to the images conjured on a moodboard. Dust covered concrete slabs generate little colour but thankfully, my expectations were realistic thanks to our local fixer, Abullah, making reference to the ‘very ugly site’ on collecting us at the airport!

Fast forward and a shooting plan was fast put together. The place indeed had potential and what followed were several very long days; 3am departures from the hotel to begin shooting at sunrise ended 14 hours later with some rest and respite before repeating the following day. When the light and weather are working, you take advantage. Sleep can wait.

The building of these plants is fascinating. I’m not an engineer nor do I have the desire to understand how it all works but I do value the brainpower that goes into building such complex spaghetti of pipes, wires, workflow and metal.

Abdullah proved to be a fantastic asset, sorting out permits, arranging models and clothing and driving us around safely. Every morning at 3am he was waiting downstairs. Thank you Abdullah! Indeed the shoot, as a whole, was a dream, very enjoyable and made all the more rewarding when the client was happy with the results. One, I hope, to be repeated.

Cheers

Wk.