Awoke at 5:30 am to shrieks and shouts as the Bedouins responsible for the �tents� (coffee sacks stitched together and held up by two branches) started to dismantle and pack them up whilst we were still asleep inside them. At 07:30 we each lined up and collected our ration of 1.5 litres of mineral water. This water had to last us until the 8km mark, where the first checkpoint was located. These early morning water collections were considered official checkpoints, and you had to collect your water and get the card around your neck stamped to prove that you had been. For those unfortunate runners who turned up late for the water, they were given a time penalty of 30 mins.
At 08:30, most of the competitors were milling around near the start, eager to get underway.
Patrick Bauer however, had other ideas. To a background of dance music (meant to inspire), he droned on and on about the same things as the day before. All I wanted to do was start running and find out what the pack on my back and terrain felt like.
At 08:55 the helicopter appeared and started making low-level swoops over us in order to get some good tv footage. This helicopter was to become a familiar friend over the next 6 days, with it�s buzz becoming a reassuring sound in the emptiness of the desert.
With ten seconds to go, Patrick started a countdown in French and before I knew it we were off � this was it, the start of the toughest footrace in the world. The terrain over the first stage was reasonably good - most of the ground was hard packed earth covered with stones apart from a small section of dunes about 5 km into the race which although small, really sapped the energy out of you.
This was probably the easiest stage of the race, as everyone was fresh, the distance was reasonable and the checkpoints were only 8km apart. Upon arrival at a checkpoint, you had to go through the correct funnel according to your number, have the control card around your neck stamped and pick up the allocated ration of water. As soon as you were through the funnel and were desperately trying to fill up your water bottles without losing too much time, the doctors and medics would swoop down on you, asking if you were alright. I started to think I must be looking pretty awful to warrant concern from them, but soon realised that every competitor was asked the same questions.
As the morning wore on, although the pace was fast and I felt good, you could feel the heat from the sun increasing. We were running on reasonably flat ground in between mountains and the scenery reminded me of the old western films, with large table-top formations rising from the flat desert � a bit like you�d expect to find in Utah or Colorado.
With 5km to go, I started passing people who had slowed down considerably - obviously having gone off too fast. As I looked around me I saw that four of Heinz 57 were within about 200 metres of each other: Richard and Sean were running together up ahead, followed by myself and only 50 metres or so behind me was Russ. As we passed between two sections of high ground on either side, we veered off slightly to the right and crested some stony ground, and there before us lay a large shallow basin with the finish gantry just about visible in the distance. 10 minutes later, the finish hadn�t come any closer and my legs were becoming more and more like lead. By now, my pack had also started to hurt from the constant rubbing and all I wanted to do was cross the line and inspect the damage done during the day.
Once I had crossed the line, I turned around to see Russell coming in a couple of places after me, and Richard and Sean had finished a couple of minutes in front of us. This was a great result for the tent, especially as we then found out that the four of us from Heinz 57 had finished in the top 5 Brits. As soon as we had arrived at the finish, our control cards were stamped and we each received 4 and a half litres of water. This lasts until the next morning where you pick up the first ration for that day.
Back in the tent, the four of us made ourselves comfortable and waited for the rest of our tentmates to finish. Next in was Ele, who had put in the first of what were to be several stunning performances, followed by Innes, Adam and Frank at various intervals. Talk then turned to how people had felt during the day. I wasn�t the only one in thinking I had pushed it a wee bit too hard on the first stage. Richard had come in with the all too clear symptoms of having run a hard stage: headache, fuzzy thoughts, nausea and dehydration. Sean, like me had suffered with his back, although Russell looked in pretty good shape.
For some competitors, the first stage proved too much. One Brit had to pull out after his heels literally came away from his feet - there was no way on earth you could carry on for another 200km in that condition and we all felt for him. For all of our fitness and determination none of us could prevent the types of injury and sickness that may force us to abandon. The only thing you could do was keep your body in the best shape possible in the conditions and pray that you weren�t struck down.
The remainder of the day was then spent preparing whatever food we had, repairing any damage done to our bodies during the stage and simply resting and drinking. There was no option but to go to sleep as soon as it got dark, which was just after 7pm, and even if we had been able to somehow stay up beyond dark, I doubt whether any of us would have had the energy. The one nice surprise to the day was receiving a number of messages of support via e-mail. This really made the day for everyone, as it was comforting to think that people back home were keeping us in their thoughts.
Summary of Stage 1
Distance 26km
Position 47th
Time 1 hr 38 minutes