 |
| Session with Louie - the North Pole Marathon participant, along with coaches Ige and Ani. |
I know that we should seldom entertain the word ‘Quit’; but
reality dictates that we should be practical and smart in our approach, whether
that’s attempting a summit in a very cold place, or – as these questions are
designed for, attempting a marathon in the North Pole!
I used these questions to preempt my one-on-one sharing
with the marathon candidate, to see his risk perspective and detect what should I highlight
in our discussion – and sharing this to you in case you plan to
climb or do any winter endurance sport.
How many ‘Quit -yes’ will you answer?
Here below are my personal opinions on each scenario - a
sort of guide on how to survive these challenges:
1.
“You had a bad night with only 3 hours of sleep
and you were not able to get a good rest in the cramped seat on your flight to
North Pole (or say the pre-summit night in the last camp). Race started and you felt weak and
tired; after 20km (or say 3 hours of summit climb), you felt that you can’t
make it anymore.” Quit or not?
== In many cases, this is almost ‘normal’
but I still go for the summit anyway. Feeling
tired and sleepy – are not usually enough reason to quit unless there are other
critical conditions. Fight on, endure!
2.
“Before race start, you already feel weak due to
diarrhea; During the run (or climb), the urge sets in and you’re about to
‘explode’ yet again…” Quit or not?
== I’ve had many battles with diarrhea, my
2 worst ones are – first in Carstensz when I have ‘to go’ whilst hanging on a
rope – on a 600m wall! And the second
one in Khumbu Icefall in Everest where doing a toilet business in a highly-crevassed
area is a gamble of life-and-sh*t. Net –
not enough reason to quit, just drop the S-bomb.
3.
“You were sick the day before, felt extremely
cold before the start, after 5km (or say 40 to 60mins of climbing) - you can’t
seem to warm up & still felt cold, weak and running (or climbing)
slow. The constant 20-30kph wind was not
helping. After a mindless 2 more hours,
you started losing your balance, but didn’t seem to care what was around you
anyway and felt you can just continue on “auto-pilot” mode.” Quit or not?
== What was your answer? This scenario is a probable hypothermia case – you
could DIE! First, prevention is key,
keep warm before and during (i.e. hot liquids, enough insulation layer, protection
from wet/wind, etc.). Losing balance and
apathy are clear symptoms of hypo. Quit,
and get medical attention.
4.
“You have blurry vision after a windy but sunny
15km run (or say 2 climbing hours), the goggles are fogged and iced - and now
useless. You didn’t have a backup sunglasses, and the 15kph headwind is making
it worse.” Quit or not?
== Prevention is key, I’ve had this problem
in Everest when during the night start, constant wind made my eye blurry in the
early morning. I didn’t wear the goggles
as darkness was my first enemy. During
daytime, constant wind eventually ‘iced’ my goggles so I sometimes
remove them. Obviously, I didn’t quit,
but prevention is important lest you risk losing your vision (i.e. an accident risk) or get permanent eye damage (i.e. have a back-up eyewear, control your
condensation constantly, etc.); Manage your issue (ex. melt the condensation inside your layers), don't quit just yet.
 |
| Denali 2008 - after our ordeal - surviving a sudden storm at the summit. Never underestimate the power of nature! |
5.
“You felt and knew that there’s blister
developing in your right foot after 15km (say 1 climbing hour), presumably wet
socks rubbing your underfoot. You can feel some pain and thinking that you will
not be able to make it.” Quit or not?
== I’ve had a 5-peso coin sized blisters in
my left and right underfoot (plus 2 small ones) during my 2-day fast descent
down Denali. It felt bad, but generally –
it’s not enough reason to quit. Manage
blister like wound, and endure the pain during the trip. You didn't go out there to whine about blister pain!
6.
“You realize that you didn’t like the terrain,
you didn’t like the cold, you didn’t like running (or climbing/hiking) in a
bulky outwear and the freakin’ goggles and tight balaclava are making you
uncomfortable!” Quit or not?
== It may sound funny but I have friends
and colleagues who occasionally ‘snapped’ realizing they ‘can’t take it anymore’. Obviously, it’s a temporary ‘insanity’ and
pissed-off mood, and not enough reason to say sayonara.
7.
After 15km (or say 1 hour of climbing), you
can’t seem to ‘feel’ your fingers. You
try to move them but it felt numb. You
checked and saw that they’re ‘white’ and pale. You think the glove layers are
not giving your hands/fingers enough warmth.
But you felt that you can finish the marathon (or climb) and deal with
it later.” Quit or not?
== You still want to go on? And risk losing your fingers? This is a frostbite risk scenario. Fix it first before even thinking of pushing
on. Again, prevention is key (enough
warmth, move constantly, etc.)
8.
“You felt cold and sick before the start. Race
started (or summit bid), after a few kilometers, sick feeling prevails, but you
were sweating, still felt like vomiting.
You’re unable to drink water, afraid that it will trigger your vomit and
make yourself weaker. There’s 30 km more to go (or say 4+ hours), and it’s an
effort trying not to vomit.” Quit or not?
== My first ever 7 summit peak, Kilimanjaro
- was littered by my vomit! I’ve
vomited in most of the mountains I’ve climbed.
Just throw up, you will feel better.
Then push on!
9.
“You have runny nose before the start. As you
run (or climb uphill), it worsened and getting harder to breathe esp. with the
face mask. It was uncomfortable and air
you inhale didn’t seem to be enough for you to run (or climb) well, and to
complete the whole distance (or trip).” Quit or not?
== Recognize that in cold, dry places – you’ll
have runny nose even if you’re not sick.
Toilet paper will not work (it disintegrates), while stronger wet tissues will
freeze. So just blow it out, ugly as it
may be – dirty as your face mask and gloves might get (trust me, you’ll use
your gloves to wipe off the ‘excess’) – but that’s the only way to clear your
nose. No quitting!
So how did you fare?
This article was written in support of FWD's North Pole Marathon #BlazeATrailInTheArctic Campaign. Content and opinions are all my own.
No comments:
Post a Comment