This was it � the end of the road and the drawing to a close of an unbelievable adventure. Although having slept badly (my damaged feet had throbbed in time with my heartbeat all night long, despite having knocked back 4 nurofen plus in the evening), spirits were high in the morning. Once again, the weather was being kind to us for a change: instead of a pale yellow sky filled with sand, all of the colours around us were crisp and clean � the sky was a deep blue and the air felt fresh and invigorating. All I kept thinking about was that if I ran another 21km, I would have completed the race with the title of �toughest in the world�.
At the same time though, there was a feeling of sadness in the back of my mind that the adventure and camaraderie would be coming to an end in a couple of hours. Well, perhaps not actually ending, but entering a different phase as the race itself ended. Its funny how enduring the same hardships brings people closer together and for 7 days in the Sahara, Heinz 57 had developed a really close bond. Not once during those hot days full of pain and uncomfortable nights had there been even a hint of tension within the group � we had all got along famously.
In the hours before the stage start, most of the tent were preoccupied in taping up the assortment of injuries that we carried. Out of all of us, Innes had most definitely come off the worst. As I looked down at his feet, I was truly amazed that he had kept going - large chunks of skin had literally come away from his foot and he was running on bare flesh that was red raw. In addition to his feet, Innes had managed to almost cut off one of his fingers (done during the middle of Stage 5 as he tried, with his Swiss army knife, to cut off part of his shoe that was rubbing), was suffering from very serious diarrhoea and sickness and to top it all, also had the worry of his mother on his mind � in the middle of the race, a message had been got to him informing that his mum was seriously ill. I honestly don�t know how Innes coped with all of this and can say in all truth that if I�d have just had his finger injury I�d probably have pulled out of the race.
Having dosed myself up with worrying amounts of ibuprofen (both tablets and gel) we made our way to the start line, where there was a buzz of excitement. I knew this final 13 miles would be fast and so Russ and me tried to get as close to the front of the start as possible. When the gun went, the rhino made a charge for it and led the stage for a brief period. The mad dash soon settled down though and people settled into their pace, which as expected was quick. CP1 arrived in no time at 11km and here people filled up water bottles as fast as they could without losing too many places. I filled mine up at a slow trot and Russ was still with me as we left to cover the final 6 miles. The race was now heading to the base of some mountains that we had seen from our bivvy site the night before. It was here, in the small town of Foum Llanch that the race would finish, and as I could see our goal in the distance I again decided to up my pace a bit.
Of all the stages of the MDS, this was most closely suited to my running ability. The distance at 13 miles wasn�t exactly short, but was short enough for me to take advantage of my speed over the final few miles. As the town came into sight, I found myself passing people with virtually every step that I took. With about 2 miles to go, we left the desert sand for the first time in the race and joined a tarmac road that led us into the outskirts of the town. At this point, my mind was clouded with so many thoughts and emotions. The race was now only a mile or so way from completion and I had read so much about the finish from previous races that I knew it would be an emotional experience regardless of how much I had prepared for it.
The local population were lining the streets and the size of the crowds increased as we neared the finish line. Turning a corner, 400 metres in front of me was the finish line and as is normal for me, I decided to end the race in a mad sprint. Before I knew it I had crossed the line and had fallen into an official�s arms. They were shouting in my ear: �you ave made it, you ave made it!� and with the buzz of the crowd and the whirl of the helicopter filming overhead I was completely overcome with emotion. Patrick Bauer stepped forward and gave me a kiss on the cheek and I was then passed along the finishing funnel and given my medal in addition to the usual ration of water and some flat bread and an orange. Richard saw me and came over and we hugged each other. There were really no words that could describe what we were feeling; we both just stood there grinning like nutters and wiping the tears from our eyes. Just a couple of minutes later Russ crossed the line and we went through the same process again. Russ had run virtually the entire race alongside me and I felt a bit bad about leaving him on the final stage; it would have been nice to cross the line together at the very end. This was my only regret of the race.
I�m pleased to say that all of Heinz 57 completed the race, God bless �em.
Summary of Stage 6
Distance 20km
Position 47th
Time 1hr 38mins
Overall Race Classification
Distance 226km
Position 55th
Time 27hrs (approx)