Next stop, Morocco!
It’s been an eventful outbound journey to the start of the Marathon Des Sables (MDS) race in the Sahara desert. My usual packing jitters got the best or me and I swear I’ve packed an extra week’s worth of calories! Plus also sorts of outfit changes for before and after the big race.
Hopefully the excess kit will pay off: I have a full day in Morocco before we get transported by bus then truck into the desert. Five or so hours, and I’ve heard it’s just a hot bus. Let’s mark that down as final heat acclimatisation before the big race.
Let’s talk about my kit. And to give you an idea how far down the proverbial rabbit hole I’ve gone, this entire post is written from memory whilst flying out of the UK.
So here is my kit selection:
Hoka Speedgoat 7’s, sized up a full UK size, with velcro glued and stitched on by a cobbler in Lavender Hill (though I spoke with him and ended up doing a training run with the shoes in my pack to his house).
Raidlight desert gaiters. They were literally the only brand that had availability in the UK in my clown feet size.
Injinji socks, which should reduce chafing between my toes. Plus ‘normal’ socks, because if the Injinjis don’t work and I need to tape my toes, I won’t be able to squeeze them into the Injinjis every morning.
Raidlight 24-30l pack, plus extra front pouch. I don’t *love* it, mainly because the shoulder padding is non-existent, and it’s wafer-thin and has already ripped at the seams during an early training run. But it’s ridiculously light, and the front pouch will let me keep my food and electrolytes for the whole day right in front of me so I’m more likely to eat.
OMM water bottles. The Raidlight soft flasks which came with the pack would have been a faff getting them out at every checkpoint. Solid bottles means I can just unscrew the tops as I come in and refill them in situ.
Lululemon running short tights. Tights over shorts to reduce chafing.
Saxx boxer shorts. It’s seven days, running in tights without them may be too unhygienic. Two pairs.
UPF50 long sleeved white top from a slightly obscure UK brand. The material is a little thicker than I’d like, but I’ve sized it a size bigger so it’s loose and billowy. I’m going long sleeve to reduce the amount of sunblock I’ll need every day.
Merino buff. A present from a friend.
Oakley sunglasses with a pink trail lens that will be good for improving contrast of sand dunes. I was originally going to take a cheap pair, but the desert sun is formidable so I don’t want to cut corners.
Wiley X desert goggles. Not strictly necessary, but if I find myself moving in the middle of a sand storm, these have a seal all the way round. Better than relying on the Buff entirely to prevent sand getting into my eyes. Worth it for about 80 grams, though I hope I won’t need to use it.
New Raidlight blue sun hat. I have a white sun hat that has served me well in many continents over the last fifteen years or so, but the blue hat will make it easier to spot myself in photos after the event, and the Raidligjt hat specifically has sides that extend the length of the cap, greatly reducing side glare.
Rab Mythos Ultra 180 sleeping bag. About 440 grams and should keep me comfortable even if temperatures dip towards zero at night.
PHD down gilet. This has followed me round the world for 15 years or longer. Packed with the sleeping bag.
Sleeping mat, short, with 2 out of 10 panels removed. My research told me this provided marginally improved thermal insulation for its weight.
Klymit X inflatable pillow. I’ve never taken a pillow on a run or expedition before, but my theory is a good night’s sleep will be worth the 70 gram penalty.
Carbon poles. On loan from a friend, they were cheaper than mine… Fun fact I had pmbought a pair of 100 gram Raidlight ones, BUT they weren’t collapsible. Whoops. That’s a no-go
Wow, after months of kit purchasing and checking, the above it basically what I’ll have.
In addition:
Camp shoes (technically gym/ballet flats), at just over 100 grams for a pair with some sort of sole. Lighter solutions exist such as super light flip flops where you the add your trainers’ insoles, but that’s added faff.
Montane windproof. Something ridiculous like 50 grams. Hopefully not needed, possibly on the long stage when I’m moving through the night. I’ll probably keep this in my sleeping bag stuff sack till the long stage.
Raid light ultralight long sleeve (100 grams) to wear round the bivouac.
Very lightweight running shorts for camp and overnight. Raidlight does trousers that are even lighter, but costs were getting ridiculous, and I prefer sleeping in shorts.
Esbit Titanium stove, 14 grams. Obscenely light. Supplemented with tin foil wind break (addd another 5 or so grams.
Titanium mug. I had originally purchased a Toaks one that holds a maximum of 350ml but some meals require more. So at the time of writing I’m leaning towards a 500ml pot which weighs about 40 grams more. This will only be used to heat water. All meals and coffee will be eaten and drunk out of Ziplock bags.
Titanium long spoon.
Lighter. I’ve packed a storm lighter and an electric plasma lighter. If both survive both flights I’ll take the storm lighter.
Random essentials:
Sunblock P20.
Leukotape and blade.
Antiseptic drops (bought from a Boots pharmacy and decanted into anm new eye dropper bottle).
The world’s tiniest tub of Seudocreme (10g). It’s good for so many things including chafed or sore skin.
Disposable scalpels. For blister lancing (my planned technique is a ‘pitta pocket’ approach rather than just stabbing them. Hopefully the antiseptic will be good enough (iodine would have been ideal). Then using leukotape to cover it up.
Safety pins.
Gorilla tape (taped round a pencil)
Mandatory kit that I’m unlikely to need:
Compass
Foil blanket
Toiletries:
Toothbrush
Toothpaste tablets in a cut-down ziplock bag, about 7 grams (thanks to Stewart B for the suggestion).
Pits and bits wash.
Face cloth pucks (one per day, they expand with water, good for a clean). Weigh next to nothing.
Toilet paper.
Wet wipes.
Floss.
Soap leaves for washing of clothes… I’m not a heathen, and the desert sun can work it’s miracles to dry kit for the next day.
Electricals:
Petzl head torch, USB C chargeable.
Nitecore 10000mah USB C power bank (super light weight at about 144 grams, plus stubbyUSB C cable. Don’t cut corners here, random unknown brand power banks may catch fire or explode in the desert heat.
Mighty music player. It’s basically inspired by the iPod shuffle, but slightly larger and plastic, with Spotify Connect. I hope I’ll be in the zone and ideally only use a few songs a day that will just replay in my head.
Wired Bose sports earphones (I had to procure new old stock from eBay!)
Mobile phone – to stay off except for a ration of photos each day.
Garmin Fenix 6 and charging adaptor (USB C to Garmin).
My charging priority is my head torch, then my Mighty. Then my phone.
Comfort/luxury items:
Small pad and pencil. There will be some downtime. I like journalling. Plus it will help me organise my thoughts, for what’s working and not working, plus reminders for certain days (like charging the head torch the evening before the long stage). I am opting against a pen in case the ink leaks in the heat.
Laminated photos of the family (about 8 grams) and a huge boost if I hit dark places.
The aforementioned inflatable pillow.
And that’s it. From my feet to my head, and my various little bags. All that’s left is nutrition, but oh my goodness that’s a whole other topic!
All this kit checking reminds me of mountaineering, but with mountaineering there’s a lot of downtime and slow movement. At least thought s about kit will keep me preoccupied whilst I’m running.
Keep charging forward
GeekintheHills
PS: proud to say this has been entirely written the old-fashioned way without an AI assistance.
Geek in the Hills 