World Run II / Reports

The map shows the position of which the pictures for the day are taken (if any). The start and finish markers are placed at the first and last valid registered position. This is not nessesary the actual start and finish position, if GSM or GPS signals was not available.

Goto: 2011-07-13 2011-07-18 Peru

2011-07-17:

18
Distance today: 30.0 km (Accumulated: 26815.0 km)
Elapsed time: 02:42:41
Country: Peru

Start 14:58pm., 22c, clear and l.wind, at black & white km-stone "1246" on hwy.5, Peru. Finish 17:47pm., 13c and sunset, at bl.&white km-stone "1216" on hwy.5., Peru.

Finally back !!!

Its been more than two weeks; a funeral, organizing and participating in a marathon and waiting at the foot of a volcano in Arequipa for my team to arrive ..before things were in place to continue the run.

Its Great to after so many obstacles, sad occurences (the dead of my father) and minor problems, not to have given up but still insist in not letting the goal out of sight. But, to keep the motivation and the belief in continuing the run, that does rank among the highest challenges I have had the last 10years and 1½ time of running around the world. At first sight it may not seem obvious: Two weeks to rest the body after the first 6000km of running through South America - it must be wellcome ? Yet the problem is that the longer the run, the larger role the mental and motivational aspect plays. When running distances beyond marathon you can be in excellent physical shape (which you need to :-) and still not stand a chance if you are not mentally focused enough for the challenge. And having to go back to denmark for the funeral - which was both nessecary and important - I can best compare with if you during a marathon are taken to the finish line to sit down for a bit; and then taken back on the course again: almost impossible to continue. Physically you are fresher, but mentally, you are "out of it" and all focus is gone.

My task the next couple of weeks will be to build on the motivation and keep enhancing it untill it again feels like a possibility to overview 10-12 000km of running. The days ahead now, running and spending the evenings and nights in my expedition tent will be handy for that - a luxurious hotel or a bed at home is not the ideal setting for building firm motivation. But a small tent is. Just as sleeping on a blanket on the floor the last year before world run one and two has been. Not normal perhaps, and not the most comfortable method. But, it works :-)

Often all of our comforts and conveniences (which I also enjoy when at home) stands between us and the highest level of motivation or determination we can achieve.

Luckily though, its not all about the mental part of the run and obstacles or challenges to be overcome. Today was also a beautifull day to return to the run. While I was gone for the funeral I hear that it has rained in the desert. Apparently there can go years between it does that, and as you can see at the pictures from todays run - where there before was a yellow-brown blanket of sand by my startpoint, there now is a thin cover of tiny green leaves :-)

The new supportcar, rented 400km away in Arequipa where the nearest rental-option was, is driven by Pali from Slovakia who will take on the important task of supply-driving during the next two months untill Equador. Jamie from England, who takes good care of my logistics maneagement from Santiago in Chile, has also come to make sure things get proper started. So, the run still has a lot of helping hands - what is needed now is that I get the motivation and mental strength up at "FULL" within the next few hundred km's of running, and if the amazing terrain continues that should not be an impossible thing :-)