It's hard but not as hard as you think!

This is what my friend Emily Woodland said to me over and over again. I'm so glad I had this quote in mind all the time during the race and my conclusion was also exactly this after I crossed the finishing line.

A few months ago, when Emily first said this, I thought it was easy for her to say that! she came 5th at Gobi last year and for somebody who could finish HK100 in 15 hours, I would, if I were her, say that the Gobi is a piece of cake!

The hard part for me really was the weight of the pack and the pain on the shoulders and neck. The first day it didn't bother me because I was full of energy. By the second day, my energy was starting to wear out but my pack was just as heavy. Ask me again and I would say Day 2 was the most frustrating. Day 3, I was distracted by the beautiful landscape and my determination to tackle which was supposed to be the most technical sections of the race. Day 4, a small dosage of pain killers helped me get through the day. Day 5, I couldn't think about anything else except finishing the long march and I was seeing light at the end of the tunnel anyway.

But the beautiful and positive memory definitely outweighed the memory of the shoulder pain, blisters, and the sleep deprivation etc... To be able to spend such time having such long spiritual dialogues with myself, with heaven and earth, with so many interesting new friends, are what I consider to be some of the most precious experiences in life and I cannot be more grateful. 

Do I feel a sense of loss because I did 20k less? To me, I am just as grateful with any distance, any weather, any terrain which mother nature permits and what my body permits. In fact, this has always been my attitude when I do any race or any training. Glad I still had this motto deeply imprinted in mind head when I was at the Gobi.