With the promise of hot springs surrounded by colorful peaks, teams departed for their Marathon Stage which was a self-camp night away from basecamp amenities near the border between Nevada and California. A chance to shake off any mistakes from Stage 1, teams started their day heading west towards the Monte Cristo Range with some demanding routes but spectacular scenery. The latter part of the day featured the old mining area of Columbus and ended at Fish Lake Hot Springs featuring a hot springs and the opportunity to connect with other competitors without the staff around.
With competitors out at the Marathon Leg tonight, reports will be limited. A full brief will be sent out with results from both Stage 2 and Stage 3 tomorrow.
Tana White #206 – “With the Marathon Leg, I love the relaxed atmosphere and how everyone gets a chance to chat and talk. It’s the fun time where all the competitors get to know each other and it’s special because no one is here to tell us when we have to do anything,” competitor Tana White of Team #206, Plot Twist. “Yesterday our Terra Trip died, we lost our sensor so we ended up timing out of a lot of checkpoints. I was expecting to be way better yesterday than we were. We had a rockstar morning and then bombed it in the afternoon. Last night, our engineer friends gave us some math to figure out our distance so I just did math all day today. Every distance we had today I had to multiply our odometer reading from the car and figure out our location. It felt amazing, I felt like I had my groove back.”
Anna Lewis #148 – “I always enjoy coming to marathon camp now. It’s fun getting to hang out with the girls and be able to kind of reassess and fix things in your vehicle that you haven’t been able to get to because of impound. It was a beautiful day, we saw some gorgeous scenery. Our first two days have been going great getting checkpoints, just having a few computer issues with the car but getting on with as many as we can”, said Anna Lewis of Team #148, Switching Roles.
Daily Tech Tip – What is a Marathon?
A Marathon takes place over multiple days with minimal outside support (only fueling is allowed). The teams are required to carry all of their own camping gear and cook for themselves, without the luxuries of basecamp. Mountain House freeze dried meals substitute for Drew Deckman’s cuisine and there are no showes or bathrooms. Many competitors mention the Marathon as the most memorable night of the rally, where lifelong friendships are formed in the middle of the desert.
