Gobi March (China) 2014
'Chema' and Isis Breiter Hold Onto Lead in Stage 4
Press Release / 05.06.2014
The Spanish double Olympian, Jose Manuel ‘Chema’ Martinez Fernandez, has continued to conquer the Gobi March 2014, completing today’s extended fourth stage with a time of 5:10:30.
Sebastiano Arlotta Tarino of Italy remained in second position, finishing the 48.8-kilometer course in 5:21:27.
Mexico’s Isis Breiter has continued her lead in the women’s division, pushing through the course with a time of 7:18:02. This puts her in the top 20 overall.
Danish competitor Lene Larsen also sustained her second position, finishing the course with a time of 07:59:24. “It was brutal but beautiful,” said Larsen. “And I am full of energy for tomorrow.”
Today’s fourth stage, called ‘Kazakh Backyard,’ was extended by eight kilometers to make up for yesterday’s shortened course—making it a total of 48.8 kilometers. There were 99 competitors gathering at the starting line at 8am—viewing the clear and sunny skies with some relief after yesterday’s rainy conditions.
There is a strong sense of friendship emerging from this group who have, by this point in the race, moved through an astonishing 160.8 kilometers together and have formed close bonds.
Within the first 500 meters of setting out from the starting line they had their first river crossing of the day to navigate—but the sunny skies made this a much easier prospect.
With the snow-capped Altai Mountains in view, it was a day of astounding scenery. Many competitors enjoyed taking photos as they moved across yurt covered green pastures, down riverbeds, over water crossings and up a 700-meter climb to a ridge with 360-degree views.
“The views are amazing,” said Scottish competitor Nicholas MacKenzie as he came to the top of the ridge. “The climb was well worth it.” His companion, his father Peter MacKenzie, was focusing on his inner visualizations of gourmet food. He admitted that he’d spent much of the stage brainstorming a five-star 4 Deserts racing experience complete with porters and professionally prepared cuisine at every checkpoint.
Nicholas Mead, a journalist with The Guardian newspaper in the United Kingdom, said he had been amazed by all the wildlife on display during the stage. He saw camels, marmots and countless sheep.
There was a comical moment for German competitor Jessica Schumann when she found herself stuck in a traffic jam of sheep. "At first I tried to wait for them to move, but they didn't and I just had to start moving through them—it was like the parting of the seas!" said the 35-year-old.
The Pastures of Wenquan campsite, which is set in a small forest of poplar trees, was an extremely welcome sight for those coming into the finish line. By early afternoon, it was a Grand Slam reunion at the campsite, with many of the contenders for this year’s challenge to finish all 4 Deserts races in one calendar year coming in first and swapping their stories of the difficult but staggeringly beautiful stage.
As the day shifted into evening, a steady stream of competitors began to flow into camp. For Yoshiko Kogi, who works for an art gallery in Tokyo and is taking on her first desert race here in Xinjiang, there was elation at the finish line. “I am so glad to have made it,” she said. “It was hard, really tough but it was really nice going through the village - everyone was so friendly."
Fredrik Stromwell of Sweden, who is also taking on his first 4 Deserts race in China, had an emotional end to the day as he realized just how well he is doing, ranking in the top ten overall: “I trained for this, but I didn't realize this is what I might achieve.”
By 6pm, 54 competitors had come through the final checkpoint and the weather began to cool. It had been fairly warm for most of the day apart from a few early afternoon showers.
Competitors are now getting rest for tomorrow’s famed overnight stage. ‘The Long March’ covers 68.1 kilometers and will see many of the competitors racing through the night. The course begins in the valley of Wenquan and climbs a mountain pass to reach the highest point of the race at 2,785 meters. Competitors will then cross into nomadic grazing land to a second mountain pass and an amazing view of Lake Sayram—finishing with a descent to the campsite.
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