October 2, 2019.

Think of a beach. Make it the size of Switzerland, add in some rocks, tip the mercury to mid thirties, add some wind, or have zero wind, then run 100km across it. Freshpak Salt Pans Ultra Marathon, Botswana’s inaugural ultra marathon stage race across the Makgadikgadi Salt Pans, was a blast. Every step was felt, it was thirst on another level, mental strength exhausted the brain, and the feeling of humbleness, anger, love and satisfaction was unparalleled. Nature is a beast, and we looked it straight in the eye. Altie Clark thank you a million for mentioning this race to me!! Dale Ter Haar and Stefan Ortwein, you showed us your playground on a level so intimate, and taught to scratch around for courage and willpower I don’t think we even knew we had. A Voltaren injection in my bum after the first stage; a passive 12 km night run, was a bit of a surprise, but it’s needs wants and it worked, and my knee did stop bleeding the next morning. What a cool bunch of athletes and ever grafting crew behind the scenes it was, to spend a few days with on a salty place in the middle of Africa that looks a bit like the moon, with a star studded sky and baobab trees. What a treat. **More words to come soon.** 👣

https://www.saltpansultra.com/