Feeling the burn

Well folks, as you can see from the blog posts that have gone up over the last few days, we are all getting increasingly excited about the event — and nervous about the training...

As a result, everyone on the team was pretty exercise-focused this weekend, spending any free time doing really great pro-active stuff like kayaking, swimming, running, cycling, making up team nicknames — oh no, wait a minute...

This weekend I joined the guys for kayak training. I'm not actually taking part in this event, but thought it would be a good opportunity to get in some general exercise, bond as a team, try to capsize other team members' kayaks and all that jazz.

Turns out kayaking makes your arms ache like hell - but was a surprising amount of fun!
Once I'd got out to sea and was paddling my way forcefully across the waves, I actually felt rather pleased with my progress — so much so that I started wondering whether I should explain to the boys that I was actually rather good at kayaking (contrary to predictions) and that they might want to think about putting me in their team for the real event.

This train of thought lasted all of ten minutes, after which I realised my ineffectual little strokes were having very little impact on the course my kayak was taking, as the tide was dragging me in an entirely different direction to the one I had intended.

All the same, it turned out to be good exercise and a fun way to spend a morning.
(If anyone's looking for a fab place to do watersports in Dubai, check out Nautica at the Habtoor Grand - www.nautica1992.ae. The owner, Suzy, is lovely and very helpful!)

Aside from the kayaking, I've begun to do some arm and upper-body exercises with weights at home — not really something I've done a lot of before, I have to admit.

Matt has assured me that doing weights does not mean I will end up as an androgynous muscle-bound lady, but that it will in fact tone my arms while increasing my strength and muscle endurance, which all sounds pretty good to me.

So the next big task is our 25k trek after work tomorrow evening.
No doubt some attractive red-faced photos of that will find their way on here later in the week, but until then, look out for our team shopping expedition pics!
(It might sound like a bit of a cop-out, but those who have spent time trekking round Dubai Mall desperately wondering where the hell they left their car will understand what a great work-out this can be.)

Water logged & skinny feet

It's Sunday (the first day of the working week in the Arab world) and it's back to the proverbial grind. This weekend saw the Desert Hacks' first team attempt at taming the midday swells, the plethora of sea snakes and the 80kph gusts of wind so prevalent in the Arabian Sea.

Ok, fair enough. There were no sea snakes (though some members of our squad continue to be on constant lookout); There was no wind (save for a slight breeze that was actually more cooling than detrimental); And the midday swells were more like oceanic speedbumps.

All of that stuff makes us sound much cooler and, if I'm honest, we need all the cool we can get. On Friday, we struggled a bit. Rythm, timing, teamwork, endurance (and manual steering!) were all challenges we faced and, while I wouldn't say we completly met them by the end of the Saturday session, we were at least playing footsie under the table with them.

After a massive post-workout meal, at Dubai Mall's 'Ribs n Rumps' (recommended by Lucifer), we needed trainers. A tip-off about the new Saucony store in Dubai Mall saw us head there first. The staff were excellent. Very knowledgeable and very helpful. They even put all of us on those foot impression boards where they can track your footfall and determine the best model for your particular foot. Nevermind that Saucony seems to only make trainers for people with concrete blocks for feet.

Actually, they're just a bit too wide for my thin, narrow, scuba-flipper-like feet. Pete & Scott found success with Saucony though and Matt has a pair on order. Lucky for Lucy & I, the Asics store was right next door and they seemed to have a special on shoes for those with wafers for stompers.

All in all, a good couple days of training and a good splash around on what was a lovely weekend. Watch this space for updates after our 25km hike tomorrow night.

Jro

Thank you and a promise of things to come

Just wanted to offer a super-massive THANK YOU to the people who have signed up to follow our blog so far - you shall ve rewarded after the weekend with all the details of our kayaking training and the trip to Dubai Mall to try out and buy trainers...excitingly, there will be pics and maybe even our debut video offering.

Any readers ever tried Saucony trainers?

We're hearing good things but wouldn't mind a bit of advice. Given that I'm ridiculously flatfooted it's essentiaal I get the right pair. Let us know if you're in a position to advise by leaving a comment.

Right, must run as late for kayaking!

Training day - the gritty details

We have touched on this a little during the blog so far, but I am going to give everyone a little more detail on the ADTA training trip into the desert.

We had an early start on a Friday morning, all arriving at Matt’s house for 6am. From there we started the hour and a half journey to Abu Dhabi, with Matt kindly driving. On the way we randomly met another team competing in the event at a service station. It reminded me of travelling to football matches in the UK and meeting rival supporters buying their breakfasts before an early kick off. This was a much more cordial affair, the other team were very friendly, although the element of competition was never far away: throughout the day teams would ask us how much training we had done and eye us up, almost trying to picture how far into the desert we would get before collapsing into a sand dune, never to walk again.

On arriving in Abu Dhabi, we were given instruction on how to use the sea kayaks, and how to assemble the sail. It was vital technical training and we listened attentively, all the while trying to ignore the streams of sweat pouring off our faces as the Abu Dhabi sun got higher in the sky. I was feeling hot then, and we were on the beach with bronzed overweight tourists, what would it be like in the desert in the middle of the day, with not a fat man in sight? We would soon find out.

After GPS training in the Liwa hotel, we drove into the desert, parked the cars, and started to walk. Very early on we realised we had made a terrible make with our equipment. With no gaiters attached to our shoes, sand was pouring into them like the proverbial hourglass. With the shoes filling up so fast, we had two choices; either stop and empty them every five minutes – and lose a lot of ground on the group – or walk with our toes pinned up to the end of our boots. In the end we chose a mix of the two, but a massive lesson had been learnt.

At the end of a short walk, we were back at the cars and making camp for the night. Cue more training inquisitions, thinly veiled ego massaging and, most pleasantly, desert banter. Almost all of the teams were extremely easy to get on with, keen to offer advice and genuinely enjoying the whole experience.

Now a word on the desert, if you look at pictures of it you may remark on its picturesque appearance, the beautiful calm, tranquil atmosphere and the ripples in the sand, which look like icing on a cake. That’s how I used to see it - until now. The picturesque appearance is soon soul-sappingly boring. The endless dunes and never changing horizon make you think you are in a sandy, scorching, personal groundhog day. It never ends. The calm and tranquillity soon become eerie reminders of your own insignificance in comparison to this dune filled behemoth. And then there are those beautiful ripples, the icing on the cake. Well, try sleeping on one.

The next morning was the big hike. 20km or so through the desert, we knew it would be tough, and tough it was. But we made it, and did so without any serious drama. It was a huge win for Abu Desert Hacks on the first occasion we had truly been tested. The walking is difficult, in both technique and distance, but the physical and mental barriers were overcome and we made it. We know we have a lot of training to do in the next month, but this experience was like starting off with a debut victory for a rookie team. And we all feel a lot more confident for it.

Birthdays and weekend training

We've all put a good week of training in (as of next week, we'll start sharing details of our regime for anyone interested), so we're having a fairly easy weekend through both necessity and planning (it's one month to go and the next month is going to be killer!).

First off, this weekend marks Pete's birthday. So he'll be spending most of Friday and Saturday dressed as a sexually-confused pirate and being ejected from ladies' homes/clubs/bars etc.

Also, Dubai Sound City is on, so I'll be gigging, drinking and dancing like a dad at a wedding all weekend.

However, we are making a start on our kayak training. We'll be doing an hour or two on both Friday and Saturday (those days are the weekend in the Arab world) down in Dubai Marina, thanks (hopefully) to Nautica1992 at the Habtoor Grand - double kayak just aed50 an hour!

Kayaking's tough and in the comp we'll need to be in the boats for around 4-8hrs a pop, two days on the bounce. So, we'll just be concentrating on getting in sync with the rhythm, strengthening up our shoulders a bit, getting used to paddling for hour after hour after hour and finding a way to be comfortable in the kayak for that long too.

The aim, over the next four weekends, is to build up to the point where we can do 4-5 hour training sessions int he kayak without too much pause...that should be enough to see us through the main event. Should.

Butch & Sundance went down in a blaze of glory.

Goose, Maverick, Iceman & Slider went ballistic avoiding Viper & Jester.

Joker, Mother, Eight-ball & Rafterman took the mick out of Private Pyle for most of bootcamp.

O-Dog, A-wax, LuLoc & Chauncey followed Co-Caine outta the ghetto.

My point is this, my teammates and I need names. Call 'em nicknames or call signs or monikers. Whatever they are, we need 'em. STAT.

As the list above illustrates, every great mission begins with cool nicknames. Those of you following us have probably picked up on one or two but those are no good. Here are my suggestions:

1. Matt 'Warchild' Warnock: His babyface belies his warrior-like attitude to training.

2. Lucy 'Lucifer' Taylor: Much like the devil, people have called her both hot & mean.

3. Scott 'Mr. Burns' Lang: He's small. He's frail. And he falls down a lot.

4. Pete 'Rooney' Ward: Unless it comes to footie, he's not very switched on.

5. Jeff 'Ocean' Roberts: Like Danny Ocean, he's older, smoother, more debonair and always one step ahead.

For the followers, Yea or Nay on the new nicknames?

Back in the game
It is with great pleasure and relief that I’m able to deliver this note because for the last week, it was looking as likely as a decently dressed Hilton twin; not good. Other than being more difficult to post than a plastic chair through a letterbox – the infuriating blog experience has only been marginally overshadowed by the fact I haven’t been able to walk. Equally not good.

That is, until today.

With a torrid history of kicking injuries, falling down stairs and occasional ligament damage, my ankles and feet have taken a decent barrage of abuse over the years. This time I was put out of action by an over zealous stride during a brutal 25km desert hike, which ruined my right foot. However, ice tactics and an unimpeded bout of positive thinking has led to a swift recovery and I will be hacking it in the desert if it kills me – although death not ideal.

In brief review, my sporting roots have always been in martial arts. I started training Kyokushinkai when I was about five and after a number of regional and national tournaments over the years, I was selected to fight for my country (Wales) as a junior. As a senior, I emigrated to Australia and couldn’t find a decent club so I gave fighting a miss for a stint on the rugby field.

Uni years followed, as did Renshinkan, Muay Thai and MMA – mainly fighting regional full contact knockdown bouts – although those were the last of serious competition days. Since then, I’ve been busy with snowboarding, climbing, longboarding, gym and capoeira.

While I’ve always kept up a decent level of fitness, I’ve never in my life lost the plot long enough to commit to such a ridiculous adventure. But other than the fear of paddling until my arms fall off or getting lost in the world’s largest expanse of sand, I’m looking forward to six days of physical and mental abuse.

It's imperative to remember that pain is weakness leaving the body, apparently.

Most looking forward to: Orienteering without getting rained on. i.e. not bumbling about in Snowdonia.

Least looking forward to: Being anywhere near Jeff’s tent at sleep-o-clock; mind-boggling volume of snore.