I have returned from the Augrabies desert with a medal and trophy as a symbol of completing one of the toughest marathons in the world. I am amazed to still be in one piece. It has taken me some time to process all that has happened. From the moment I crossed that starting line on the first day, it was an overwhelming experience.

There were many highlights. Swimming in the Orange River, overlooking Namibia and interacting with top athletes from all over the world is what stands out the most for me. The not-so-good experiences tempered these memories of course; drinking warm hydrate, swallowing flies because it took less effort to swallow than spit them out, battling to breathe in the 40˚C odd temperatures of the Kalahari… it has been both challenging and wonderful.

“A sense of humour is as important as eating and staying hydrated in the desert”

People have repeatedly asked me how I survived in such conditions. My answer? A sense of humour is as important as eating and staying hydrated in the desert. As much as we need food and water to stay alive, I really believe a negative attitude is the ultimate killer. From Day 1 I told myself that I didn’t have control over the arid desert heat, didn’t have control over the pain my legs would feel after a full day of running and neither of the heaviness in my bag. The one thing I had control of was my attitude. How I choose to respond to these external factors was my business. I focused on enjoying the Kalahari and as a result my RAS opened up. I saw the most beautiful animals in the desert, including giraffes, Springboks, Kudus and even snakes. The beauty of the desert overshadowed the harshness of the conditions and this kept me in the game with a smile on my face.

My saving grace was that I could acknowledge I wasn’t immune to the difficult circumstances. In fact I didn’t want to be immune to the heat and all the things that made the marathon extreme! I wanted to experience it all because I knew that was where the learning would take place. Before the race, I had set-up a few personal goals for myself to achieve. These included increasing my mental strength and building my resilience levels so that I could take on bigger challenges in life. So when the inclines went steep or the sand dunes got intense, I knew it was an opportunity for growth and I welcomed the challenge.

I asked myself, ‘what other amazing things can I do?’

Because of this experience, I am now massively excited about my potential and want to share what I’ve learned with the world. When I crossed the finish line on the last day and I was floating in the pool with an ice-cold castle lager, I asked myself:  “Lumko, if you can complete a marathon of this nature with only three months of preparation, what other amazing things can you do?” This is only the beginning for me, now that I know where the use of my mind can take me, I feel challenged to know how far it can stretch.

Thank you all for the amazing support from LifeXchange, WoolSA and all my friends and family. I am especially grateful to Cobus who was in my corner every step of the way. Knowing he was also out there, fighting in the trenches, was one of the things that kept me in the game. The experience was real and I am looking forward to putting the lessons into action, especially as we continue as a team to implement mentoring in Africa.

by Lumko Velapi