My Pre-MDS gear choices and opinion ……
What to take ……
A lot of what you wonder about at first is what kind of equipment to take with you , it has to be light and you must be able to get in a 30 litre pack or less , any bigger and its either too heavy or too unwieldy to run with …I have done a fair bit of expedition and I’m used to living in the wilds with some pretty far flung trips under my belt… but even I had to think about this one so I’m including this section to help people out with my views on gear choice for the normal runner …
Rucksack
Im a great lover of Inov8 , both their shoes and packs so I was super pleased to get my hands on one of their new Racepac 25s and the new chest pack to test in the desert , these are due in the UK end of March but the guys from Inov8 gave me one early in return for my feedback , it looks amazing , I have ran with it now and I am well impressed with it and will continue to use it over the next few weeks in preparation for the big event.
Sleeping system …….
Marmot Atom
Im 6 foot but I didnt see the need for the long length version of the atom , this is a superb down sack , ultra light and very small when packed .. Ideal for racing and in the desert the 4 degrees C. minimum rating will be fine as although it does get colder at night its nothing that sleeping in your smelly clothes cant fix …
Therma-rest Neo ….
Despite opinion that its like sleeping on a crisp poke I decided to go with it as it was the lightest and smallest option short of sleeping uncomfortably on some thin foam … Im too old for that , a good nights sleep will repay the weight of a therma-rest a million times over .
Shoes ….
If there is one thing that will stop you dead in your tracks it is your feet , they are your means of getting across the desert , if you do not look after them you will fail , no matter how fit you are!!
After a lot of deliberation I have decided to take my Mizuno Nirvanas , these are my marathon shoes and I have clocked up 1000s of miles over the past year and never had a blister , they fit me like a glove and breath fantastically , I will be covering these in a full foot Lycra gaiter to keep the sand out as this is the main problem ….
Underneath I will be using an Injini performance sock , these toe socks help guard against blister between our toes etc … they really work and I now swear by them
Cooking …..
I will be travelling super light so an Esbit titanium stove with my optimus 0.6L cook pot will boil the water ..Unless I can catch a few scorpions and Camelbak spiders I will be eating mainly dehydrated meals so 500 ml of water doesnt take long to heat up in the desert heat .
EMERGENCY KIT list to include ..
Venom pump
Flare
Nuun electrolyte tablets
head torch
Gaffer tape
spare batteries long life extra set
Zince oxide tape
Whistle
Signal Mirror
Light Stick
Second skin
Scalpel
Savlon
2 x Knee bandage
Knife
Survival blanket
MEDICAL KIT to include:
Antacid tablets
Ibuprofen 200mg
Imodium
Anti nausea
Factor 50 sun block
Lip Balm SPF 20
