At the end of the day, you’ll be hydrated, you’ll have a tent to protect you while you sleep and you’ll get medical attention, if needed. The 52-year-old, a race veteran who’s finished nine ultramarathons and five Ironman competitions to date, will attempt to conquer a mind-boggling 400-kilometre course in the Gobi Desert. “The reality comes back when you start to feel the pain and it snaps you out of autopilot.”The 4 Deserts Race Series, which stages the Atacama Crossing, puts runners through the test on four continents, in some of the world’s most extreme conditions: the Atacama Desert, Sahara Desert, Gobi Desert and the Antarctic. In preparation for the fall Gobi race, he’s conducted “experiments,” for which he’ll deprive himself of sleep and rest in short intervals to figure out an optimal pace. After Gobi, Borlinha — known as The Beast in racing circles for his monstrous approach to a course — might be hard pressed to find a similar rush.

Source: thestar September 26, 2016 12:00 UTC