Stage 3 - 32km - The desert is not so flat...

We had the worst night ever. A sand storm started around 10pm and only finished before the sunrise when we had to get up. I only slept a couple of hours maximum. During the storm, we could not even close our eyes due to the wind, the sand and the fear of having our stuff fly away. We also had to hold the tent from inside so it did not fly away. One of our tent mates quit in the morning as he did not get any sleep.






Today's stage (32km ~ 19 miles) is a bit shorter than the day before but rumors say it is going to be a lot harder and take longer due to the altitude change as we will climb 4 Jebels, and the dunes. We will also be climbing Jebel El Otfal again in the other way today.



Given the circumstances and also what is coming tomorrow with the so called "long stage", I start the day slowly in the dunes. At km7, as I am running down the first Jebel I meet with Seb and we walk up the second mountain together. The view is just fantastic and we get the chance to walk for 1km on the edge of the mountain enjoying a 360 view of the desert before going down in dunes (again!).






There is now a straight line of 7 kg before CP2 at Km 19 and I manage to run despite the heat.
After CP2, the climb of the famous Jebel El Otfal in the other way starts. It is harder than yesterday as we climb in the sand. We have to use our hands and a rope that has been put here to help runners. Once at the top, I run down passing 50+ people in what is a very technical descent. I am not surprised to hear that someone broke his knee going down today.






At the bottom of the Jebel, we have more dunes! Walking a field of  3km of dunes (~ 2 miles) does not get easier on day 3, especially as the heat is at its highest with 45 degres C (113 F). At the end of the dunes, there is yet another endless straight line of 6km (4 miles) that I manage to run slowly for the most part. I witness a desert tornado or dust devil just before crossing the finish line. That is fascinating but also a bit scary to see it come my way. It actually disappears after 10 min.

Today is the birthday of my eldest daughter Josephine. She turned 5 and thinking about her helped me get to the start line and gave me some courage especially towards the end. I miss her. I crossed the finish line in 5 hours and 13 min, exhausted but still feeling I kept some energy for tomorrow for the big day. Biggest surprise for me is probably that I finished in position 354, which is going to be my best performance on a stage.









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