Today is the annual Bataan Memorial Death March, a 26.2-mile race through the New Mexico Desert at White Sands Missile Range. It commemorates the long, grueling forced march of American POWs through the Philippine jungle in 1942. The story of these soldiers was commemorated in the book Ghost Soldiers and the movie The Great Raid.
The Memorial March actually has two routes, the long, hard one, and a 15-mile walk for those who desire to honor these men but don’t have the physical ability to endure the hard trek. Also, there are categories for both military and civilian teams, as well as those running and those who want to carry 35-pound rucksacks. See the rules for more info.
Each year, the veterans come out for the race and meet all of the marchers.
If you’re looking for an adventure race, but aren’t skilled in caving or swimming, this is one that you could train for. It’s just marching/running, but don’t let that fool you into thinking this will be easy. The route is through desert terrain– over gravel and sand, and includes some impressive elevation changes.
Miles & Miles of Nothing but Desert
- I’ve done 17 marathons – this was unreal. I wasn’t prepared for the sand.
- I wasn’t prepared for all the loose sand – many miles of this and a lot of it uphill.
- This course was nice due to the dirt. Not much pavement to pound the feet and joints.
- I was shocked as to how difficult walking 26.2 miles could be. I’ve been on a lot of forced marches but none were harder than this.
- Training for this course like a regular marathon doesn’t quite do the trick. I should have done a lot of hiking, hills, rough terrain type training.
Of course, registration is closed for the 2010 race, but you can start training now for next year’s race using tips from the race’s site.
What About You?
Would you ever try something like this? Have you ever been in a marathon or adventure race? Tell us about it in the comments!
No comments yet