The first day turned out to be quite tough, with lots of creek crossings and we didn’t manage to get everyone in until close to midnight. All volunteers put in more than 100 per cent, cheering racers on and comforting them when the going got too tough. The hardest job belonged to the sweepers, whose job is to stay at the back of the pack and bring people home when it’s getting too late, which means that on most days they will spend more than 12 hours on the course and not come back until well into the night.
Their motivation and dedication were absolutely remarkable, unequal to anything I have seen in any work settings. Of course they are self-selected to be here, but something that attracted them to be volunteers must be the dedication and passion of Mary with both the race and everyone involved with the race. She cares about her people and their opinion when making decisions and is no Scrooge in giving compliments. In return, everyone respects and adores her and cares about whether the race is a success.
Nevertheless, I could also see that leadership has to be a lonely job, as the “buck” stops with her and she has to be responsible for every decision that is made. I guess leadership ultimately is about taking responsibility, else there will be no one there to be led. And there is just no better way to learn about this than by observing leadership in action.
Waking up to another cold morning, the second day started early at 8am, after everyone got rested and recharged. We hurriedly picked everything up to set up the next camp, at a very beautiful location by a salt lake with a huge mountain range as the backdrop. Satisfied with the setting up progress, Mary went out to call on the checkpoints – what I would call “rallying the troops”. We checked on Checkpoint 7 with a Chilean TV crew, which was located on top of the Valley of Death just below a huge sand dune. It must be one of the most spectacular locations in the Atacama Desert, where racers can slide down to find water and some shade. Timing of Team Rhino could not have been better as they checked in not long after we arrived. They were interviewed by the TV crew and it certainly should help raise awareness to their cause.
Racers began coming in after 5 hours and many commented how beautiful the course was, something non-racers would just not be able to see, or appreciate without going through the hardship I guess. Everyone managed to get in by 8pm to get some well-served R and R, jolly good considering what lies ahead of them tomorrow.
