The Raid Mauritania
February 9, 2006
MAURITANIAI have just returned from a 5 stage, 220K running race in central Mauritania. This was my first real experience with running in the Sahara Desert for a significant distance. I could not have asked for a better classroom to teach me what we can expect to experience in September, when our expedition begins. For those of you that are not interested in my personal ramblings about the experience, I will summarize the important points. These points are in no particular order but probably reflect some perceived or actual level of discomfort on my part.
- I never want to see Cous Cous again.
- “Meat” is a very ambiguous word, but it probably means goat
- Cooking for 30 people ALWAYS takes longer than promised.
- There is no ice in the Sahara Desert.
- It is hot and windy in the Sahara Desert
- I now firmly believe that sunscreen must be reapplied on a regular basis
- Sunscreen is not an optional item-it will save you in the Sahara
- Flies and mosquitoes are in every corner of the world
- Hot Pepsi still tastes good
- I discovered a method of taking a “shower” that actually works AND conserves water.
- I WILL learn to speak some acceptable French before September
- “Par lay voo American?” This is not a proper greeting in France or Mauritania.
- No matter where one travels in Mauritania, someone will pop up to sell you something you don’t want or need.
- Personal connections are even more important in the Sahara than they are in Hollywood.
- People of Mauritania and the Sahara WANT to like Americans so it is important that we don’t screw that up
- Be respectful but not timid
- Our respect for their culture is far more important than our money
- EVERYTHING IS NEGOTIABLE, but it’s not necessarily about money
- In Islamic countries, the words “party” and “celebration” DO NOT imply alcohol. Personally, I don’t drink, but this was a revelation for some that did
- When one is invited to “have tea” this process will take at least 60 minutes and you will “share” a glass with many other people
- WATER IS LIFE
- WATER IS HEALTH
- WITHOUT WATER, THERE IS NO COMMERCE, NO EDUCATION, NO HOPE
I now have about 5 pounds of sand lodged in various cracks and crevices of my body. I will spare you the details. At least a couple of those pounds are slowly working their way thru my intestinal tract. I never saw any written food recipes in Mauritania, but apparently they all involve adding some sand to the mix. I NOW KNOW WHERE THE WORD “SANDWICH” REALLY CAME FROM. I will say that I got used to it.
I passed thru about a dozen or so communities during my week in Mauritania. A community is basically defined by one thing; WATER. Where there is accessible, clean water, there are people. Simple, right? Of course not. This is Africa.
First I flew to Paris Charles De Gaul airport from North Carolina. Then I transferred by bus to Paris Orly Sud Airport, about an hour away. Apparently, most flights to remote Africa leave from Orly Sud, not Charles de Gaul. I arrived at the Hotel Ibis to find a dozen or so racers in the lobby. I immediately became “the American”, a double edged sword, hero and villain, good and evil. You get the picture.
I decided to break the ice with the now famous words “par lay voo American?” (say this with a heavy southern accent). After a brief pause, explosive laughter could be heard throughout the lobby. Suffice it say I now have some tremendous lifelong friends in France.
The next day, we all boarded a flight to Marseilles and then on to Atar, Mauritania. Each passenger was limited to 13 kg (about 28 pounds) of luggage. The price was high for going over. I was just under weight but only because my carry-on bag was filled with all of the heaviest items. And I was wearing 3 pairs of pants, 3 shirts and four jackets.
After landing, we waited about 3 hours to get thru customs and then get everything loaded into trucks. All of the vehicles were 4 door pickups, some Toyotas and some Volkswagens. After being approached by no less than 25 vendors, I finally purchased a headscarf and wore it for the rest of the day. These vendors are very polite but incredibly persistent so the best defense turned out to be buying something.
After loading up the vehicles with 30 runners and 8 organizers, we headed out for the first camp, about a 3 hour drive. It is important to note that 3 hours actually means 6 hours. Once this concept is accepted, all things become less stressful. So after 6 hours we reached the first camp. The runners divided themselves up into the various tents. I ended up sharing with 4 other people. Cath Worth is a 47 year old British doctor who had done this race the previous year. She finished 2nd among the women. Tony was 34 from Slovenia, a liquor salesman and the ultimate winner of the race. Christian was 36 and a French businessman. He came in second overall. Clemen was a 26 year old photojournalist from Slovenia sent to cover Tony. Everyone spoke some English.
After settling down for the first sandy meal, we all went to bed around midnight. Wakeup was at 5:00 AM with a 6:30 AM start to a 42 K stage, basically a marathon. We took off promptly at 6:30 and I went to the front group with Tony and Christian and one of the Mauritanian runners. We ran the entire stage into a straight line wind of about 32 miles per hour. It was brutal. Tony was first, with Christian about 6 minutes behind and me about 12 minutes off the lead. The two Mauritanian runners followed next. I felt pretty good but the pace was brutally fast. We did not have to carry any supplies and the course was flat and fast. Not really good for me. The depth and quality of the runners was tremendous. There were a dozen runners with marathon PRs of less than 2:50. This was not going to be easy.
Stage 2 was more of the same. About 40K or so of running. I felt a painful twinge in my left hamstring almost immediately and knew it was going to be a tough day for me. I was right. I fell pretty far off the pace and finished 5th for the day. I was still 3rd overall but that turned out to be short lived. I headed to the doctor after the stage and managed to get a pretty good massage. I had some inflammation in the insertion area at the top of my left hamstring. This was not good news. It was very painful so I took an anti inflammatory and tried to rest.
Stage 3 brought about a change of strategy for me. Simply put, I switched from racing to running. At this point I just wanted to survive and learn without doing any serious damage. I ended up joining a French runner named Thierry, an IBM executive. We ran and talked and I ended up having a really pleasant day. Around dinner time, I picked up an orange and a couple of big rocks and started to juggle. I learned to juggle when I was about 10 years old. I have never been all that good, but I can entertain kids because they don’t know any better. As it turns out, these kids had never seen such a thing. Within about 5 minutes, I was surrounded by about 200 kids and quite a few adults. I received a standing ovation (actually they were already standing but they did clap and cheer). The only negative was the fight that broke out for the orange when I was finished (I wish I was kidding).
Next came a much needed day off for resting and touring around. I did my souvenir shopping and toured a 2000 year old city that was one of the first and oldest Islamic enclaves in all of Africa. It was truly fascinating. The ancient city backed up against the modern version of the city and it was strange to see how little difference there was between the two. Essentially, the new city had water and electricity.
Stage 4 was about 60K and I hoped that the length of the stage might help me. It didn’t. I ran a good steady pace with Thierry and Michel, a 40 year old Frenchman that loves really expensive bourbon. It was a really good day. I finished 4th and felt strong. I was still holding back some but it didn’t really matter.
Stage 5 was the final stage and it was a staggered start. And no, that doesn’t mean I tripped at the start. The organization started the lowest ranked runners first and then subsequent groups went off in 10 minute intervals. It was nice because it allowed the back-of-the-pack runners to see the leaders run by them and it allowed the fast runners the chance to give encouragement to the rest. I ran well on this day and finished 4th. The finish line was at the top of an enormous sand dune. It was breathtaking, literally.
Overall, the race was very well organized. It was clear that the relationship between the support team and the race organizers was very strong. As always, there were daily crises that had to be dealt with. That is daily life in Africa.
One final note, I ended up 5th overall in the race but I was actually given a special sportsmanship award by the Mauritanian runners and their interpreters. This was an incredible honor, especially for an American. I was truly speechless. (yes, even I can be speechless) I spent a lot of time with these two incredibly talented runners. Mohammed was 22 years old and Sherif was 26. These guys had more talent than any runners I have ever raced against. They were running in 15 year old shoes and ragged shorts and tank tops. I gave them every item of clothing I could spare. (Thank you Nike) I have agreed to help them with training plans in the future. Neither of them had ever run more than a marathon at one time and they had no real idea how to train. If they had some proper training and equipment, they could be incredible.
So I could not feel any better or more fulfilled by my experience. I ran more than 5 marathons in 5 days. I learned a lot about another culture and its people. I learned that sand is not an aphrodisiac. I learned that not all French people hate Americans. I learned that all French people really do hate George Bush. I have more confidence than ever about the success of our upcoming expedition.
Water is life.