Jordan Desert Cup 2001 by Chris Phillips

Have just got back after finishing the 2001 Desert Cup. I did it with quite a few people I did the MdS with earlier in the year and opinions were divided whether it was harder than that or not.

In my opinion it was quite a bit harder and this is supported by the higher drop out rate (20% vs 10% for the MdS).

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There were about 230 entrants from 20 countries, the vast majority being french with around 30 Brits. According to those that had been before this year was hotter than previous years (circa 30C during the day). Fortuntately though the nights were fairly mild and there were no strong winds.

Wadi Rum is a great place for the start with amazing mountain scenery. As the sun rose each morning the howling of the local bedouin dogs echoed of the rock walls creating an amazingly eerie sound.

The main problem with the Desert Cup is the soft sand which is much much worse than the Sahara. The first 104 km is like this and is just like walking along a sandy beach, the feet sinking in several centimetres with each step. This is obviously very energy sapping and by the second CP most people were starting to feel the effects.

After this it became a matter taking things one stage at a time and motivating yourself to get to the next checkpoint.

At CP 9 the desert finally gave way to mountain tracks. It was a great relief to be out of the sand and I found the going a lot easier.

Eventually I arrived in Petra which is a truly amazing place. Despite being utterly knackered I couldnt fail to be amazed by the combination of fantastic natural scenery and awesome architecture.

Most of us were pretty shot by the end of it although we did still manage to stay up virtually all night in the disco.

Predictably the initial concensus was "never again". Although a few days on the pain has faded and I'm now starting to think it would be good to go back and finish in under 48 hrs!! Which just goes to prove that the most important attribute to participating in these events is a deficient memory!!

Chris Phillips

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