THE TOUGHEST FOOT RACE ON EARTH

Marathon Des Sables (MDS) is a self sustaining multi-stage ultra marathon in the Sahara desert that pushes your mental and physical abilities to the extreme

- GIRISH MALLYA

As I celebrate the 10th anniversary of my most memorable race, I heard news about the 12th Indian crossing the finish line in the 37th edition of Marathon Des Sables ( Marathon of the Sands). It brought back a flood of memories. The toughest foot race on earth is a title often associated with the MDS, which might be debatable as there are many ultra endurance events which make similar claims. There are a lot of things which make MDS unique, extremely difficult and special. It is one of the oldest ultra marathons in the world. It had successfully completed the 29th edition. But what makes it special is the terrain and climate, one of the harshest in the world. Sahara desert provides a mix of terrain, majority being sand dunes, it also has a good amount of stoney trails, hills and very dry shrub farm land. Temperatures here soar upwards of 40 degrees Celsius during the day, sometimes above 50 degrees and nights can be sub 10 degree Celsius. And this is coupled with relative humidity which is less than 15%. To put this in context, it’s like running in Delhi heat, during the peak summer at 10 am in the morning for six days in a row, for an average of 40 km a day, with a 10 kg backpack at all times (excluding water).

The race