Wow! It seems somewhat surreal that after first hearing about RTP 5 years ago from Leah – that I am sitting in my hotel in Swakopmund, Namibia at a desk with my race pack – packed. I remember first receiving the mandatory list of items and thinking to myself – how (and where – what size & model) am I going to get ALL of these esoteric items - a portable mirror, blister kit, water proof bag, etc. . Well after lots of input from Sam (the race director) and visits to REI and help from the RTP Namibia Whatsapp group – Crazy examples of things I never imagined thinking about - I managed to find an MP3 player that can last 80 hours  (as there is no electricty for us to access) & I figured out how to get the shoe gaiters attached to my sneakers to prevent the sand from eating away at my feet (I found a great shoemaker to attach the Velcro onto my sneakers - although he cut it close – finishing up just hours prior to me leaving CT. on Tuesday). I still remember first running with the pack with 6LBS of rice, then 12LBS and finally 18LBS. Shockingly, I feel somewhat like an expert – however, compared to 50% of the field, (who are on their 2nd or 15th (yes - someone here has participated in 15 of these type of races) total 125 participants, I certainly am not. As all of you know – I am not shy in asking questions and ask away I did!  The final packing for the trip was a little overwhelming (& it takes a lot for me to get overwhelmed) – all of the details – down to the Black Sharpie that I have with me here in Namibia, different size Ziploc bags – empty and full, counting out the proper amount of Electrolyte tabs based on my expected course time….cutting labels off of everything……

My travel to Namibia was as easy as it could have been - everything went very smoothly! I have met some pretty amazing people in the first 24 hours – First timers & people who did not complete their first race – yet came back to finish their next race and now have continued to complete multiple stage races. Our group comes from (46) FORTY – SIX!! Countries – I mean wow – How is that even possible?  During my overnight in Johannesburg I had dinner with a gentleman who is 67 years old…who is participating in 4^th RTP race.

Today I spent repackaging all my dehydrated meals – to save space by putting them in zip-lock bags and removing them from their bulky packaging.  I then packed my bag – which is pretty much packed – I have a few more things I need to eliminate.  I ended up removing 2 pairs of socks and 1 shirt from what I was planning to bring.  For those of you that are interested – some of the details: total 2 shorts, 2 short sleeve shirts and 1 mandatory pair of long pants, 1 cut a 1” length of deodorant and put it in a zip-lock, my toothbrush only has the brush and 2” of a handle…It’s amazing how little you can get by on if you need to.  My pack should weigh about 18LBS – 9LBS of food (approximately 21,000 calories for the week) (minimum calories each person must bring is 14,000). I met someone at dinner – who is bringing hot sauce and said his pack is 25LBS – somethings he wasn’t willing to cut :). The other 9LBS consist of the mandatory & optional items we needed to bring with us.

Tomorrow – is going to be a full relaxation day.  No travel, no last-minute things to do. I am planning to bring my book that Cami recommended to me to the beach which is a 3 minute walk from the hotel and hopefully get some reading done and see the Seals!  Amazingly, Camille was in Namibia last summer and spent some time in Swakopmund.

I feel REALLY LUCKY to be able to have the opportunity to experience what I am about undertake. I also realize that I am very fortunate to be able to have put myself in the mind frame to be open to something like this!

Giant Thank you to Colette, Cami, Ollie Vee, Angela, Mom, Dad, Benay, Loren, Rise-Up Fitness for supporting & listening to me & talking to me when I was training & dealing with me not being available during my training).

I LOVE all of you so much – THANK YOU!! David