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A Fun Run Get Together in Kathmandu

Rob Howard / 23.11.2009

<b>Robb Taylor (67) of Canada is accompanying the race as a volunteer this time, after racing twice in the past, and this is the first of his occasion reports from the race, describing the arrival of the participants in the Nepalese capital.</b>

Well, we have finally reached Kathmandu from all over the world. (Jari got stuck in Helsinki by a pilots' strike but made it after an 'interesting' flight via various European airports.) The Hotel Shanker is a beautiful place, like staying in a museum, but with all the latest mod cons, and we had an enlightening sightseeing tour of the city's temples and palaces yesterday.

<b>A Fun (Funny?) Run</b>

An early wake-up call got everyone up for a shower and a box breakfast. Three busloads of participants then wound their way through the early morning traffic and finished with a challenging ride up through the forested Nagarjun nature reserve. We had a stunning photo stop at the top (6,000 ft) amongst the prayer flags, with snow-capped mountains in the distance.

Then we were off - four pirates, Tinker Bell, three tutu-wearing fluorescent-wigged Welsh fairies, an aging '60s rock star, the Queen of the Netherlands, Superwoman, Super Bee, the Invisible Man, a ghost, a Roman in a toga and an assortment of wigs and hats. We crashed and stumbled our way down a gravel trail for 7.91 miles (GPS measured) and gathered in a meadow for refreshments and more photos.

Then it was back to the hotel to clean up and to deal with the formidable task of stuffing our purple duffle bags with a mere 12 kg of absolutely essential gear for the weigh-in. Tomorrow we have an incredibly early start (wake-up at 03.45!) for a morning flight to Lukla. We are praying that flights will not be cancelled because of poor weather or visibility up there. Then the real adventure and hard work begins.

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