Dead2Red - more like Dead2Dead

Hello all. I know it's been a while, and I actually have a a list of things I want to blog about, but until I reach that list I'll write a short post just to fill you in on what I did this weekend, namely Dead2Red. As you might be able to deduce from the name, Dead2Red is a relay marathon from the Dead Sea to the Red Sea, a distance of 242 km (approx. 150 miles) that took place from 4 pm on Thursday until whenever you finished. Basically, the race consists of ten people running through the desert all night. Our team was made up of 13 people - 10 runners and 3 alternates, which is what I was - and 2 people on support staff. Another CIEE team had around the same amount of participants and support staff. Each team had a bus and a car to transport people throughout the night. We ran in shifts, and it worked a bit like this: 3-4 people would get in the car and drive to wherever the current runner was. The car would follow behind the runner until his or her time/distance was up, then drive ahead and pull over to let out the next runner. The first runner would run up and pass off the baton (a glow stick) to the next runner, then hop in the car and wait. Once the last runner had begun running, the car would drive ahead to where the bus was parked a few kilometers away, and reload with fresh runners. Once the runners had passed the bus, the bus would start up and drive a good distance down the road, then park and wait until the whole process started over again. At first, the runners did shifts of 5-10 minute runs, but around 1 am that changed to 20 minute runs so that people would have enough time to try to sleep. At around 5:30, after the sun had risen, it switched again to 5-10 min. runs. I only ran a few shifts, subbing in for those who were too sore or whatever to go for a rotation, but I was one of the main sprinters for the last 9 kilometers into Aqaba.

In short, it was an amazing experience. There were around 20 teams running, I believe, but once we made it deep into the desert, we were spread out enough that we were essentially alone for the rest of the race. Running through the desert at 1 am with no one around is an unforgettable experience. When I was running, the car had driven up to get more runners and I was left alone in the dark with nothing but my glowstick and iPod. There were no other lights, and you could see more stars than I have ever seen in my life. The stretch of desert we were passing through during the night was completely flat, and thus I could see stars that reached all the way down to the horizon. It was absolutely breathtaking, and I wish pictures could convey just how beautiful and awe-inspiring everything was, but cameras simply wouldn't do it justice. How can you capture the feeling of watching the sun rise over the mountains in the middle of desert Jordan? The mountains themselves are incredible, but on film they just look like brown hills. The depth and breadth that they consist of simply doesn't translate into pixels. I did, however, take a few shots, mainly of the Dead Sea, and will be uploading those shortly, along with some Aqaba pictures from last weekend that I stole from my friends.

Oh, but don't let me forget the not-so-beautiful memories. Those of you who have ever been camping know the experience of having to find a suitable place to relieve yourself in the middle of the woods. If you think that's a problem, try attempting to find privacy in the desert. Do you know what's in the desert? Sand, a couple of thorn bushes, and nothing else. I have now peed behind more sand dunes than I care to admit to. It was a lot easier at night though: one simply had to walk off in any direction for a distance of about 50 feet, turn off the flashlight, and drop your pants. During the day, however, when you can see everything for miles in any given direction, the best you can hope for is a slightly raised hill of sand, or a scarce bush, and pray that no one turns around while you're attending to your business.

One of the girls who was support staff for the other team was kind enough to cook us all dinner at 1 am, so we had grilled chicken and vegetables in the middle of the desert. As well, our program director came with us but stayed the night and aqaba, and on Friday morning she drove out to our buses and brought us warm pita, cheese, and orange juice. By the time we all reached Aqaba, we were starving, exhausted, and covered in sand and sweat. We raced the other team the last 9 kilometers (hence the sprinting) but they eventually beat us out by about 2 minutes. Our entire team ran the last 50 feet or so to the finish line, and we all got medals when we finished. We were one of the last teams, or the last team, to finish, but it didn't really matter considering none of us had been training to run a desert marathon - we all just sort of signed up to go a couple weeks in advance. We were, however, the first and second fastest teams from CIEE to ever run, which was pretty cool. I also got to keep my running vest, which is bright yellow and says "Amman Road Runner" on the back. It's pretty awesome, and I don't know where or when but I will definitely be wearing it at some point at home. Maybe it would make a good Snitch uniform...

Oh, another thing: the team that placed first (and wins every year) did the entire race in 100 meter sprints. That's 100 meter sprints for 242 kilometers, between 10 people. I think they finished sometime before the sun rose in the morning (around 4 am, I think) and the team that came in second was all bedouin who ran barefoot. BAREFOOT. for 242 km of desert road. Jordanians are not big on public cleaning, so trash lined the road wherever we were, including a hefty amount of broken glass, not to mention of course the scattering of rocks and sand that covered everything. The moral of the story is that the bedouin are some of the most bad ass people ever.

I think that about covers my Dead2Red experience. Look for another blog post from me soon, covering other things from this week and additional observations that I think are worth sharing. I've been making a list of things I want to talk about, but I want to do them justice, which is why I've concentrated solely on my Dead2Red experience for now. Inshallah, I will talk to you all soon. Yellabye!

Beth