Kathy's Visit With Ray!!!

I have finally settled back into my normal routine after spending a week in Niger with Ray, the team, and Lisa and Nicole (Charlie and Kevin’s girlfriends, respectively). We had an amazing week! Ray and I had not seen each other in 2 months; it was incredibly emotional to see his smiling face when I arrived! He has lost some weight but looks great - one would never guess he’d already run close to 4000kms at that point!

Unfortunately both Lisa and I lost of luggage on the way to Agadez (still in London as it turns out!). I felt terrible as I had packed some pencils, paper and Canada teddy bears for when Ray and the guys have the opportunity to visit the local schools. Also in the luggage were gifts of coffee and chocolate (desert treats!) from our family and friends to Ray for Christmas. Even though the bags did not arrive, Ray really appreciated the fact he was in your thoughts. Ray was happy to see I arrived safely, and I was happy to see that he is doing so well!!

We spent the next five nights camping in the most spectacular areas of the Desert. It is very inspiring how day after day after day these guys wake up, have a quick bite to eat, and are running before sunrise. Myself, Nicole and Lisa would typically sleep in until after sunrise, eat, and catch up with them via the Land Cruiser (we actually did get up a few mornings in time to see the sunrise)! Our routine would be to drive ahead of the guys maybe 5-10km, stop and prepare Gatorade for them, offer them words of encouragement and then continue on. While we were in the Desert there were several sandstorms which would be reason enough to stop the average person from running…not these guys! The 50-60km winds only fueled their fire to finish those days…coming into camp with sand-caked faces! They are so strong and so motivated!

As Niger is a French speaking country, our friends in Quebec will be pleased to know that Ray is pretty much bilingual now and speaks fluently with the local peoples (the Tuaregs). The Tuaregs we met were so kind and gracious, and they have a strong sense of community – it was a wonderful opportunity to learn more about their culture. Being there also made me realize that even with the lack of infrastructure, including wells to supply clean drinking water, people make the best of what they have and do not waste anything. The Desert itself is extremely beautiful – we saw lots of camels and donkeys, huge sand dunes, and you can see so many stars at night. Ray and I would count our lucky stars (all pun intended!) – it was an amazing way to spend out first Christmas as a married couple!

Since 2004 Ray has raced in Morocco, Niger, Libya, and Egypt and has always told me how much he loves the Sahara – in particular, the people and the sand dunes. Having just spent only 1 week in the desert in Niger, I too know its lure.

What Ray, Charlie and Kevin have accomplished thus far is a feat of strength and perseverance. Raising awareness with respect to the lack of clean drinking water in Africa is of paramount importance. Please check out the website at www.runningthesahara.com for more details on the expedition, the charity (H20 Africa), and the documentary film.

Cheers, Kathy

Kathy's Visit With Ray!!!

I have finally settled back into my normal routine after spending a week in Niger with Ray, the team, and Lisa and Nicole (Charlie and Kevin’s girlfriends, respectively). We had an amazing week! Ray and I had not seen each other in 2 months; it was incredibly emotional to see his smiling face when I arrived! He has lost some weight but looks great - one would never guess he’d already run close to 4000kms at that point!

Unfortunately both Lisa and I lost of luggage on the way to Agadez (still in London as it turns out!). I felt terrible as I had packed some pencils, paper and Canada teddy bears for when Ray and the guys have the opportunity to visit the local schools. Also in the luggage were gifts of coffee and chocolate (desert treats!) from our family and friends to Ray for Christmas. Even though the bags did not arrive, Ray really appreciated the fact he was in your thoughts. Ray was happy to see I arrived safely, and I was happy to see that he is doing so well!!

We spent the next five nights camping in the most spectacular areas of the Desert. It is very inspiring how day after day after day these guys wake up, have a quick bite to eat, and are running before sunrise. Myself, Nicole and Lisa would typically sleep in until after sunrise, eat, and catch up with them via the Land Cruiser (we actually did get up a few mornings in time to see the sunrise)! Our routine would be to drive ahead of the guys maybe 5-10km, stop and prepare Gatorade for them, offer them words of encouragement and then continue on. While we were in the Desert there were several sandstorms which would be reason enough to stop the average person from running…not these guys! The 50-60km winds only fueled their fire to finish those days…coming into camp with sand-caked faces! They are so strong and so motivated!

As Niger is a French speaking country, our friends in Quebec will be pleased to know that Ray is pretty much bilingual now and speaks fluently with the local peoples (the Tuaregs). The Tuaregs we met were so kind and gracious, and they have a strong sense of community – it was a wonderful opportunity to learn more about their culture. Being there also made me realize that even with the lack of infrastructure, including wells to supply clean drinking water, people make the best of what they have and do not waste anything. The Desert itself is extremely beautiful – we saw lots of camels and donkeys, huge sand dunes, and you can see so many stars at night. Ray and I would count our lucky stars (all pun intended!) – it was an amazing way to spend out first Christmas as a married couple!

Since 2004 Ray has raced in Morocco, Niger, Libya, and Egypt and has always told me how much he loves the Sahara – in particular, the people and the sand dunes. Having just spent only 1 week in the desert in Niger, I too know its lure.

What Ray, Charlie and Kevin have accomplished thus far is a feat of strength and perseverance. Raising awareness with respect to the lack of clean drinking water in Africa is of paramount importance. Please check out the website at www.runningthesahara.com for more details on the expedition, the charity (H20 Africa), and the documentary film.

Cheers, Kathy

Happy New Year - Ray on Canada AM!

Welcome to 2007!

This will definitely be a New Year's Ray will not forget! 2 Announcements for you today!

First, Ray will be on Canada AM tomorrow morning (Wednesday Jan. 10) for a 5 minute interview via sat. phone at 7:15 am sharp!! Please tune in and let anyone else who might be interested know. We'll try to bring you details of the interview later this week.

Second, ball classes have resumed from their holiday break! Classes are 6-6:45 pm Tuesday's and Thursday's at the Churchill Seniors Centre in Westboro. Registration is $100+gst for 10 classes. Please don't hesitate to contact jenny@rayzahab.com for directions.

See you in front of the TV tomorrow morning 7:15am...Canada AM on CTV!

No Ball Class Thursday + Desert Happenings

For those of you who take the Tuesday/Thursday ball class in Westboro please note there will be no class Thursday Dec.21. Classes will break for the holidays and resume Tuesday Jan.9. Our apologies for the mix-up and short notice!

With Christmas only days away and ski passes ready to go, many of us in Canada have been discussing the lack of snow. A green and ski-less Christmas may not be the
norm for us but for Ray, Kevin and Charlie it will certainly be far from “normal”. While snow may be flying around here (optimism!) it will be sand in Niger. For the last few days the team has been dealing with some crazy head winds. “Wild” as Ray described it! Winds have a magical way of making the sand come alive so in addition to the challenge of running into the wind comes that of the sand getting into everything! A day in the life of a man running across the Sahara!

Another interesting challenge has been the maps. For those of you with a sporting background that involves maps you’ll appreciate the impact of out of scale maps. Ray says we’d all be incredibly surprised at how out of scale they can really be.

With the team well inside Niger and about 3300 Km’s down, the next stop is Agadez. Check out the website for the latest update from the crew posted from day 42.

Stay tuned, more to come! If you'd like to send Christmas Greetings to Ray he will get them, please go ahead and send them via email (ecofit@yahoo.com)!

Another day, another 80k!

With lots of communication from Ray over the past week, thanks to the good old satellite phone, we have lots of info for you!

The team is now consistently running down 70 to 80 km’s a day, still without a single rest day. By the time you read this the team will have passed over the Niger border, leaving Mali behind and pressing on toward the half way mark. In recent days they have mostly been on sand and at times it’s been very deep. Despite the associated challenges it’s been invigorating for Ray to be in his element. The hundreds of kilometers on the Trans Sahara highway were tough.

In his last conversation with his brother John, Ray talked about coming across a strange kind of grass that has tiny needle like barbs that work their way through the runners’ shoes. When they stop to take their shoes off they are stuck to their feet by thousands of these needles.

While talking to Ray this week, it’s obvious the team is keeping positive and is becoming more energized as they go. As Kathy said after her last talk with Ray, he sounds normal, just like himself. It’s rather hard to tell he’s running 80K a day. The team is excited to be on tract (a little ahead of schedule even) and nearing the half way mark which falls in the middle of Niger. Ray is thrilled to have Niger, Libya and Egypt ahead, all countries he's run across before. He's happy to be in a part of the world he’s so passionate about, and as you know this expedition is about more than running 80K a day. There’s purpose and passion behind it, trying to make a difference in a world where every 15 seconds a child dies due to unclean water.

A few things to take note of:

* In the first 31 days of running together, Ray, Charlie and Kevin ran the equivalent of 50 marathons!

* There are updates from the expedition crew on the Running the Sahara website. 2 from day 13 and 25.

* Also on the website is info about the route, check it out, it’s interested to read about where they are right now!

Keep those emails of encouragement coming to Ray. They are a source of energy for him! Thank-you!

A Message from Kathy!

Hi all!

It’s not often I write for Ray’s blog…but I thought this would be a good opportunity to say “thank you” to my husband for providing me with an amazing training program for my first Ultramarathon!

I ran my first Ultra 3 weeks ago in Maryland (JFK50 Miler) – it was great! Ray’s training program was perfect for me! Prior to July of this year I had never tried trail running, only ran a couple of marathons on the road. Plagued by injuries from high mileage on asphalt, Ray suggested I try trail running with him, somewhat unwilling I agreed. Wow – what a difference! So much softer under foot, but I found the terrain challenging at first (lots of hills and some technical sections). I also noticed I couldn’t keep the same pace I was used to running on the road which was frustrating in the beginning!

Ray’s first suggestion to me was to stop worrying about my pace and just run based on time…and enjoy it! So every Sunday I would tag along with Ray for an hour or so and I actually started to enjoy myself…and even started to think I’d like to try a trail race! A friend of ours suggested I try the JFK 50 Miler. With encouragement from Ray, I figured I would give it a shot. Now let me put this in perspective for everyone, when you live with one of the best Ultrarunners in the world and whose typical races are in the 250km+ category, 80km does not seem so far or unrealistic! So I set that as my goal and asked Ray to train me for it. Lucky for me, our friend Brian (who also had never ran an Ultra before) somehow let me twist his arm to run the race too! Just like any other client Ray works with we chatted about my goal, the amount of time I could actually commit to training, etc., and Brian followed the same procedure. We had 2 ½ months before race day so Brian and I made sure we followed Ray’s training program diligently!

On race day I thought about all the things Ray taught me over the last few months…stay hydrated, tips on how to stay relaxed while running uphill, and the power of positive thinking! He was certainly my motivation for the race – I kept telling myself “I just have to run 80km for one day, Ray is running 80km for 90 days…go!” Turns out both Brian and I had a great race! Brian finished in a time 7:58 and placed 69th out of over 1000 runners, and I ran 9:04 and was the 13th woman overall and 2nd in my age category. We were both quite pleased considering it was our first Ultra! We give Ray credit for providing a great training program (and I also want to say thanks to my Dad for coming to cheer us on)!

Ray called me from the Sahara Desert the following evening and I told him our results and how much we enjoyed the race – he was so proud of us! It was amazing to hear the excitement and satisfaction in his voice. Ray truly takes pride in seeing his clients do well and knowing his clients are pleased with their performance.

For anyone who wants a motivational, knowledgeable coach to help them achieve their goals – Ray is the BEST (honestly, bias aside!)! Check out Ray’s website for information on his training packages: www.rayzahab.com

Kathy

2000 km's down!

A message from John, Ray's brother:

Ray called from satellite phone yesterday, from the Sahara Desert. They have arrived in Mali, and have put down around 2000km of running so far. The first big chunk of mileage had to be done on roads, but recently they have been able to get more off-road, which has been a relief, but it also has its challenges (sand in shoes, etc.). Everyday is physically and mentally tough – but the team is doing amazing at keeping pace of between 70 and 80k per day. The official website www.runningthesahara.com has some updated photos on the photo gallery link, and Ray anticipates that the website will be further updated on December 4th. A notable highlight for Ray and his teammates was when Matt Damon called them the other day – to check on how they were doing.

I would also like to extend my congratulations to Kathy Adams, Ray’s wife, who just completed her first Ultramarathon – the JFK 50 Miler in Maryland. Kathy finished 2nd in her age group, and 195th overall. Joining Kathy was Ray’s good friend Brian Henderson, who finished an amazing 69th overall out of a total of 1017 runners. Both Kathy and Brian enjoyed training under the guidance of Ray’s coaching.

Another message from Ray!

Hi everyone!

Here's another message from Ray! He is indeed reading your emails as time allows and wanted to pass on his thanks for all your support! If you need to get in touch on any speaking engagement, ball class, or coaching questions please contact me at jenny@rayzahab.com or reply to this email. Hope you all are doing very well!

Holding the fort down @ "Team Ray" HQ,
Jenny

From Ray:

Hey Gang!

Well, we are now up to 1000kms of running - averaging 70-75kms per day. We have taken no rest days - and it has been very tough but rewarding. It is so cool running through these small towns and having sometimes up to 100 kids at a time chasing us, laughing and singing as they run with us! Awesome.

The heat has been intense, and the terrain the last few days mostly road. We have run in sand a lot, but due to these crazy sandspurs and necessity to cover a lot of ground quickly we are on the road! It sure is tough running 70-75kms per day on the road. I have never been a road runner - and this is tough. I will be happy to get back onto trails as we near Mali.

Our support has been incredible - with Don and Mohammed selecting routes - the doc and Chuck taking care of us with all other aspects.

Talk soon!
Ray

Greetings from Mauritania!!

Hey Gang!

We are here now in Mauritania after running through a small part of Senagal!

We have so far run over 500 kms with daily runs in the 70 km range. The running has definitely been tough, but rewarding. It is super hot- sometimes reaching the high 40's. We have been shooting for around 50 kms in the morning- and then another 20 to 25 after lunch.

We have seen many cool things already- such as camels, small desert towns, scorpions, and even a camel spider!

The people out here are amazing as usual- and the terrain as well, incredible.
Sandy trak for the most part so far- and sandy valleys a plenty!

We are now heading for the border of Mali! I will keep you updated. Mauritania is our biggest country to run across- so getting to Mali is a huge goal.

Cheers
Ray

Running The Sahara- We're Off!

Well, it's time.

Kevin, Charlie and I leave tomorrow for Dakar where we will commence our run! We will attempt to run 80 kms per day for roughly 90 days- that's over 6500 kms- through 6 countries-spanning the Sahara Desert.

To follow us-
wwww.runningthesahara.com

I will try to stay in touch with blogs, so keep reading!

I will miss all of you!