Physically this was the toughest day of my life. The terrain over 6 checkpoints was a mix of undulating moss and rock, across narrow horse trails, up one side of a moutain and down the other. Running along a black sand beach, and a slippery rock ledge as wind and rain pelted against you from the ocean, down country roads, along horse trails until I finished at 1am in the morning. There were times that I raised my fist to the sky and screamed at the wind and rain and asked if that’s all they could bring. All I can say is don’t tempt the gods. When they responded I was reduced to tears.

Yesterday morning I woke up in camp at 6 am after running and scrambling 175km through the mountains in Iceland over the previous four days. I could barely stand or walk to the start line. I started with one step and then another. Over 17 hours I completed 65km of the long stage of the race in high winds and pouring rain. I was one of the slowest on course and it was excruciatingly painful. The only reason I started and finished is because I had a deep BELIEF in myself that I could. I thought about my mom and many of my close friends along the way. Thank you for supporting me, giving me the strength to put one foot in front of the other and live with no regrets.

Lastly, without the support and positivity of competitors past (Sahara and Gobi) and present (tent 10 – Ash, Jess, Mark, Ted, George, Derek, Tom) Han, Jose, Nate, the Vikings, Chloe, Justiss, Icelanders the docs, volunteers and many others, a finish would not have been possible.

Final stage tomorrow and to the finish line at the Blue Lagoon. 10km. I will probably have to walk the whole thing. Good time to reflect on the past week.