Tim Bourquin: Thank you for joining us at EnduranceRadio.com. We’ve got another great interview for you today. We’re going to be speaking with Jay Batchen. He was the first American to finish the Marathon des Sables. We’re going to hear about that and his background in ultrarunning and a little bit about his background in endurance sports in general. So, Jay, thanks very much for joining us. I appreciate you taking the time to talk to us on the phone.
Jay Batchen: Thank you, Tim. It’s my pleasure.
Tim Bourquin: So, talk about the Marathon des Sables. How did you get into that?
Jay Batchen: It’s funny how I did get into the Marathon des Sables. I was introduced to it while working for the Discovery Channel. I filmed the event in 1999, which is actually the year my wife, Lisa Smith Batchen, won the event. And that’s how I ended up in Morocco and ended up learning about the event myself.
Tim Bourquin: So, did you know Lisa before that event, or you met her there?
Jay Batchen: Met her there
Tim Bourquin: OK, so you ended up marrying the winner of the race that you were filming.
Jay Batchen: Yup.
Tim Bourquin: Oh, very good. So, talk about that race. How did that start? How long is it? Where is it? That sort of thing, for our listeners that may not know.
Jay Batchen: Sure. The race is … it takes place in the Sahara Desert in southern Morocco, just outside of the Atlas Mountains. And the course is different every year. For instance, this year, it was a 154-mile course, and the year I ran it, in 2000, it was about 148 that year, so …
Tim Bourquin: Wow!
Jay Batchen: … it just changes year to year, and obviously the terrain will change as well, since the course does.
Tim Bourquin: Now is this a stage race, or is it just start and go till you finish?
Jay Batchen: No, this particular race is a stage race, and the format is fairly, fairly similar each year in that the first three stage all around 20 miles, give or take, and then the fourth stage is a 50-mile-long stage. Then that followed by a full marathon. And the last day basically makes up the difference, just gets you back into a town, and it’s a little shorter. Gives everyone a chance to get across the finish line and get back to the small town where we rendezvous and clean up for a nice night of awards and festivities.
Tim Bourquin: If you’re able to stay standing at that point, I guess.
Jay Batchen: Definitely. And what’s unique about this race is that you do have to carry all of your food, extra clothing and things like that for the entire event. You are given a ration of water each day at checkpoints roughly about 6 to 8 miles in length. I mean, you’re sleeping in a tent every night; there are sandstorms; you’re sharing the tent with eight other people; it’s not fully enclosed, so you have wind and sand and people snoring and rustling next to you. You’re sleeping on rocks.
Tim Bourquin: Well, you know Jay, it doesn’t sound like a whole lot of fun; so, you know, in the night, you’re not getting a lot of sleep. What is in it for you? What does the race do for you personally?
Jay Batchen: That’s a good question, and it’s a question that many people ask. And what I tell them is that this race is more than a race. It’s a life experience. And what I mean by that is you’re sharing a tent with eight other people, and you’re going through the same highs and lows every day. It might not be at the same time, but you’re running in the same heat, you’re running in the same wind, you’re sleeping in the same sandstorms on the cold nights, and for me its about meeting the other people that are running this event and sharing stories with them and sharing the experience with them. And it’s so hard to describe to someone who hasn’t been there and run the event. So for me, it’s completing the distance and knowing that I can do it, feeling that I can do it; but it’s meeting the people from all over the world, from all walks of life, and just sharing it with them that makes it special.
