Jo4hospice’s Weblog

Hi …

Jo is enjoying himself in Benoni with my Dad, where he is taking daily trips to his favourite South African restaurant for coffee.  He tells me that he is not sleeping well, due largely to the effects of jet lag.  Unfortunately, when he does wake up in the night, his brain goes into overdrive, worrying about whether he has done enough training (YES, you have Jo!), whether he will have enough food to sustain his energy requirements (I would think so Jo: you have put a lot of time into planning  your menu) and of course, what the race itself might throw at him in terms of running conditions.

A clue about the race conditions arrived by email today from Racing The Planet:

Dear Competitors,

Our course director, Dave Annandale, is currently in Southern Namibia putting the final touches on the course.  He is reporting that it gets down to almost 0 C (32 F) at night and reaches between 35 and 40 C (95 – 104 F) during the day.  He is also now reporting very light winds in the early stages of the course.  Remember that it is likely to be very windy on Stages 5 and 6.  We have updated the website with a brief description of each stage.  A complete Course Book will be provided to you in Namibia. 

We also wanted to clarify two Mandatory Equipment List questions that we have been receiving.  1.  You must bring a pair of tights (or long pants) to wear, and you must bring a lightweight jacket with lining (or a lightweight jacket with base layering underneath).  It gets chilly at night, and since it gets dark before 6 pm each day, some of you may end up spending part of every stage in the dark.”

You can see that it is going to be tough.  The organisers are very strict about compulsory gear and a thorough check is made of the backpacks to ensure that every runner is carrying the required items.   Jo has an excellent jacket for those temperatures, and I hope his tights make the grade.

Having lived in Namibia in the early 80′s, we are familiar with those windy conditions.  One is literally “sand blasted” by the wind.  It hurts!  Not to mention the danger to one’s eyes.  So here’s hoping it isn’t too bad for the competitors, although the email indicates that stages 5 and 6 are going to be a challenge.

I went on to the Racing the Planet website and looked at the Google Earth map of the route.  It is very interesting and definitely worth a look.  The canyons and sand dunes and hilly bits look very scary to someone like me. 

For anyone reading this for the first time, please be aware that this race has been dedicated to Hospice Eastern Bay of Plenty.  Hospice fulfils such an important role for people facing terminal illness and Jo is very keen to help them as much as he can.  He is appealing to you to contribute to his fundraising effort.  It’s really easy … just go to the Hospice website to make your donation:

http://www.hospiceebop.org.nz/donations/  There is no pressure for large sums of money – every little bit is welcomed.

Until next time,

Ann

PS  In case Jo reads this …

"Hey, Shadow, if we keep our eyes averted, Ann won't know we are on the bed."

“I bought 5 individually wrapped portions of Parmesan cheese (average weight 20g)–the lady at the cheese counter was very helpful (if somewhat bemused by my strange request!). She had to cut a huge cheese (about 10cm in diameter) in half to get these tiny portions for me.  I’ve bought a few Sparkles lollies to take too and I purchased two packets of crisps (salt and vinegar and tomato-flavoured) which I have crushed and divided into 5 small portions. 

There was a biltong shop in the Mall — the lady there was equally helpful and she vacuumed-packed 5 x 20g portions for me.   I now only need to get some peanuts and then my food requirements are completed.”

“RacingThePlanet:  Namibia 2009 gets underway in just two weeks with two hundred and fourteen (214) competitors from 38 countries expected to participate including a record number of past champions who will be vying for top places

  

(9 May 2009, Hong Kong) — RacingThePlanet is set to stage its next endurance event in Namibia on 17 May 2009.  Traversing some of the most spectacular dunes and stunning landscapes of the oldest desert in the world – the Namib Desert,  RacingThePlanet’s six stage, seven day, 250 kilometer self-supported footrace, features a field of 214 from 38 countries.  The event kicks off with a steep descent into the Fish River Canyon, the second deepest canyon in the world, an area rich with local wildlife such as Mountain Zebra, Giraffe, Oryx, Steenbok, Springbok and even leopard. Competitors will make their way through the African bush traversing lunar landscapes and over some of the most demanding and challenging sand dunes in the world to finish at the Skeleton Coast in the charming town of Lüderitz. 

 

The field of 214 features a record seventeen (17) former champions including 27-year-old Ryan N. Sandes of South Africa, who has won two previous RacingThePlanet events and 60-year-old Marco Olmo of Italy, a recent champion of many top ultramarathons. 

 

Seven teams will be competing including a four-person team from Israel, a Spanish team, a father/son/daughter team, a Japanese team, an HSBC bank team, an American/Danish team and an all female team.  A record number of women will be competing with 54 on the roster. The largest contingent of competitors hails from the United Kingdom with 58, and a record 63 competitors are coming from Hong Kong.”

It brings home the fact that the race is just around the corner and that each one of the competitors will be experiencing the same sense of anticipation and anxiety as Jo.  For first timers, it will be even more intimidating, as they prepare to face the unknown.  

It goes without saying that we wish every entrant the best of luck.

Thank you to the many friends and others who have made donations to Hospice.  I can’t stress enough how much we appreciate your generosity.  If you haven’t yet done so, you can go to this link to add a few dollars to Jo’s fundraising effort.  Please record his name as your reason for donating :

Hi,

I need to convey my thanks to all those sponsors who have made my fundraising events possible.  A list of these is on the Hospice EBOP website.  Also, the significant contributions made by members of my Supporter’s Club must be acknowledged – they have been particularly generous. 

A special thanks to Glenn Smith and Radio1XX , for the ongoing support and encouragement given to this project. 

Jan Morgan (of Hospice EBOP) has done an amazing job of organising publicity for my efforts.  She has been so positive and encouraging throughout this venture, and much credit must go to her for the funds raised.  I will be proud to carry the Hospice banner across the finish line …

Don't forget that every cent of your donation will go to a very worthy cause.

I have now packed all my foods into portions and the combined weight at this stage is 4.0kg.  This means that my gear must weigh in at less than 4 kg if I want to keep my total weight to 8kg.

Each day's rations will be packed into a plastic bag to ensure that I don't consume more than I should on any one day.

I have combined both the dehydrated meals and the soups with powdered potato to make those meals more substantial.  The Oxo cubes are a new addition to meet the craving I developed last time for strong flavours.  I have also added coffee with milk powder and sugar for my breakfast menu.  The extra energy required on the long day (80km) will be provided by both Perpetuem Powder and Peak gels. 

These Injinji socks are great for preventing blisters.

I will add more photos as my packing progresses.  My sunblock and anti-chafing cream needs to be dispensed into small plastic bottles.  I also need to dispense the Olive Oil into smaller containers.  

It is very time consuming doing all of this and there is the niggling anxiety that I will forget something vital.  Needless to say, it requires list after list and constant review!

Cheers

Jo