WELCOME TO OUR 2010 MDS RACE SITE – BIENVENUE Á NOTRE SITE MDS 2010

VÍTEJTE NA NAŠICH STRÁNKÁCH ZÁVODU MDS 2010

HELP US MAKE A DIFFERNCE – JOIGNEZ-NOUS Á AIDER LES AUTRES - PODPOŘTE NÁS A POMOŽTE DRUHÝM!
(The description of our project is below our blog posts. Please scroll down. For the official Marathon des Sables website, please visit http://www.darbaroud.com/index_uk.php )

Sunday, April 11, 2010

Ray and Vlada's Final MDS Race Update - DAY 7/ Finalni zpravy ze zavodu MDS - DEN 7

We are happy to report that we have successfully completed the 25th anniversary - 250K Marathon des Sables! :) It was an amazing experience for Vlada running the course as well as for Raymund supporting Vlada and his friends throughout the week. With an incredible atmosphere and excitenement in the air, Saturday was the final stage, a half marathon throught some of the toughest sand dunes the race had to offer. Most people just went for it full throttle and ran the entire course, regardless of the pain, blisters, and exhaustion. Vlada, J and M, or the Three Musketeers as Raymund dubbed them earlier, finished in just little over 2 hours. Over the course of the race Vlada moved from last place after Day 1 to around 540th place out of over 1000 runners. Raymund has been overwhelmed and uplifted by the support of the runners and the race crew for having attempted the marathon and for staying on to cheer on the runners. Raymund has had many requests to have his picture taken with his fellow runners and the race staff, which has been a lot of fun.
 
Thanks again to everyone for your support of our race and fundraising project, and for following us throughout the week. We will have pictures posted as soon as we can. For both of us, this has been a life changing experience in ways that we are yet to fully comprehend.
 
Congrats, Bravo, Chapeau, Gratulujeme to all of the MDS runners!
 
R&V
 
PS: Omlouvame se, ze neprekladame tuto finalni zpravu do cestiny )nejsou sily). Dik!

Friday, April 9, 2010

Day 6

Vlada never thought that he would ever say `Thank God we only ran a marathon today.` This MDS course has been one of the toughest they have organized in honor of its 25th anniversary. It sure has felt like it and many veteran runners contest to it. The weather conditions have been more favorable than in the past-no sand storms or freezing temperatures at night. Today the temperature stayed in the high 30sC & Vlada was able to run most of the marathon stage with J&M. Tomorrow is the final stage-a half marathon thru the toughest sand dunes yet according to our veteran group leader, Jay. The Paris Opera is performing for us tonight in the middle of the desert with the sand dunes as the back drop. Ray rode the dunes in a sand buggy and will post his extreme ride video on our website later. Keep your fingers crossed for us tomorrow. everyone remains in good spirits. Cheers, R&V

Vlada si nikdy nemyslel, ze by rekl `Diky Bohu, ze jsme dnes bezeli jen marathon.` Veterani zavodu nam rikaji, ze tento rocnik zavodu je jeden z nejarocnejsich ktery kdy usporadali. A opravdu nam to tak pripada. Klimaticke podminky az doposud byly velice priznive-zadne pustni boure a ani mrazive nocni teploty, Dnesni teplota se pohybovala jen pod hranici 40C a tak Vlada s J&M mohl bezet prevaznou cast dnesni marathonske etapy. Zitra jiz mame finalni etapu- pul marathon prez extremne narocne pisecne duny, podle naseho veteranskeho vedouciho skupiny, Jayje. Ray mel dens prilezitost projet se pousti a dunami na pisecne buggyne a prida video jeho extremni jizdy na nase stranky pozdeji. Dnes vecer nam v Sahare zahraje parizsky operetni orchestr s kulisami pisecnych dun v pozadi. Drzte nam palce zitra! nazdravi, R&V

Raymundo & Vlada - MDS Race Update - Day Six/Novinky ze zavodu MDS - sesty den


Vlada never thought that he would ever say `Thank God we only ran a marathon today.` This MDS course has been one of the toughest they have organized in honor of its 25th anniversary. It sure has felt like it and many veteran runners contest to it. The weather conditions have been more favorable than in the past-no sand storms or freezing temperatures at night. Today the temperature stayed in the high 30sC & Vlada was able to run most of the marathon stage with J&M. Tomorrow is the final stage-a half marathon thru the toughest sand dunes yet according to our veteran group leader, Jay. The Paris Opera is performing for us tonight in the middle of the desert with the sand dunes as the back drop. Ray rode the dunes in a sand buggy and will post his extreme ride video on our website later. Keep your fingers crossed for us tomorrow. everyone remains in good spirits. Cheers, R&V

 

Vlada si nikdy nemyslel, ze by rekl `Diky Bohu, ze jsme dnes bezeli jen marathon.` Veterani zavodu nam rikaji, ze tento rocnik zavodu je jeden z nejarocnejsich ktery kdy usporadali. A opravdu nam to tak pripada. Klimaticke podminky az doposud byly velice priznive-zadne pustni boure a ani mrazive nocni teploty, Dnesni teplota se pohybovala jen pod hranici 40C a tak Vlada s J&M mohl bezet prevaznou cast dnesni marathonske etapy. Zitra jiz mame finalni etapu- pul marathon prez extremne narocne pisecne duny, podle naseho veteranskeho vedouciho skupiny, Jayje. Ray mel dens prilezitost projet se pousti a dunami na pisecne buggyne a prida video jeho extremni jizdy na nase stranky pozdeji. Dnes vecer nam v Sahare zahraje parizsky operetni orchestr s kulisami pisecnych dun v pozadi. Drzte nam palce zitra! nazdravi, R&V

Official Race Photo of Ray!




Hi All,

I hope you have been enjoying the updates from Ray and Vlada. My name is Kim Echols, I'm helping them while they are off doing adventurous things by updating their blog and sending out updates. I found this photo of Ray on the race website and thought I'd pass it along!

Kim

Day 4 & 5

The Marathon des Sables isn`t called the toughest foot race on Earth for nothing. The 82km stage was excruciating for Vlada and his friends J & M. This stage had everything-52+C weather, steep mountains, sand dunes, rocky terrain, sweltering dry salt lake beds, and three sections of the stage were completed at night, using compasses,glow sticks, and a laser beam to guide us through the dunes. Only the top 50 or so competitors were able to run the entire course. VJ&M completed this stage in under 20hrs, arriving at 5 Thu morning to hear Ray ask yet again `What took you guys so long?` Vlada`s legs almost gave up but the boys pulled him thru in the last 9km. The rest of the day was spent in recovery, to get ready for tomorrow`s full marathon. Thank you for sending support messages to us and please check the race site darbaroud.com for race videos and live updates. There is also a small report on Ray at TV5Monde.com. See you tomorrow. R & V

Marathon des Sables neni nazyvan nejtezsim bezeckym zavodem na svete jen tak pro nic za nic. Posledni 82km etapa byla pro Vladu, J a M obzvlaste obtizna. Zahrnovala vsechno - teplotu presahujici 52 stupnu C, strme hory, pisecne duny, skaliste plostiny, rozsahla vyschla jezera, a tri casti ktere se bezeli v noci s kompasy, sviticimy diodami, a leserovym paprskem ktery urcioval smer skrz pisecne duny. Jen zhruba 50 nejlepsich zavodniku bylo schopno bezet celoulou etapu. Vlada, J, a M dokoncily celou trasu do 20 hodin a dorazily do tabora v 5 rano, kde se jich Ray jiz tradicne zeptal `Proc vam to zase tak dlouho trvalo?` Vladovi skoro odesli nohy pri poslednich 9km, ale kluci ho podrzeli a dotlacili do finishe. Dnesek byl straven rehabilitaci a pripravou na zitrejsi marathon. Dekujeme moc za zpravy ktere nam posilate a podivejte se na videa a reportaze na oficialnich strankach zavodu darbaroud.com. Na strankach stanice TV5Monde.com take najdete malou reportaz o Rayovi. Zitra nashle, R &V

Raymundo & Vlada - MDS Race Update - Day Four & Five/Novinky ze zavodu MDS - ctvrty den

The Marathon des Sables isn`t called the toughest foot race on Earth for nothing. The 82km stage was excruciating for Vlada and his friends J & M. This stage had everything-52+C weather, steep mountains, sand dunes, rocky terrain, sweltering dry salt lake beds, and three sections of the stage were completed at night, using compasses,glow sticks, and a laser beam to guide us through the dunes. Only the top 50 or so competitors were able to run the entire course. VJ&M completed this stage in under 20hrs, arriving at 5 Thu morning to hear Ray ask yet again `What took you  guys so long?` Vlada`s legs almost gave up but the boys pulled him thru in the last 9km. The rest of the day was spent in recovery, to get ready for tomorrow`s full marathon. Thank you for sending support messages to us and please check the race site darbaroud.com for race videos and live updates. There is also a small report on Ray at TV5Monde.com.  See you tomorrow. R & V

 

Marathon des Sables neni nazyvan nejtezsim bezeckym zavodem na svete jen tak pro nic za nic. Posledni 82km etapa byla pro Vladu, J a M obzvlaste obtizna. Zahrnovala vsechno - teplotu presahujici 52 stupnu C, strme hory, pisecne duny, skaliste plostiny, rozsahla vyschla jezera, a tri casti ktere se bezeli v noci s kompasy, sviticimy diodami, a leserovym paprskem ktery urcioval smer skrz pisecne duny. Jen zhruba 50 nejlepsich zavodniku bylo schopno bezet celoulou etapu. Vlada, J, a M dokoncily celou trasu do 20 hodin a dorazily do tabora v 5 rano, kde se jich Ray jiz tradicne zeptal `Proc vam to zase tak dlouho trvalo?` Vladovi skoro odesli nohy pri poslednich 9km, ale kluci ho podrzeli a dotlacili do finishe. Dnesek byl straven rehabilitaci a pripravou na zitrejsi marathon. Dekujeme moc za zpravy ktere nam posilate a podivejte se na videa a reportaze na oficialnich strankach zavodu darbaroud.com. Na strankach stanice TV5Monde.com take najdete malou reportaz o Rayovi. Zitra nashle, R &V


Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Day 3

Today was HOT (48C/115F)! Stage 3 was 40km across flat plains of dry salt beds & wide open plateaus.Our friends & supporters felt Ray could have completed this stage. Still it was tough as more people dropped out. Vlada has teamed up with 2 tentmates Mike (NZL) & John (AUS), pushing each other thru the course. Ray waited at the finish line in the sun for hours to cheer on V, M & J-& gave them all a hard time for taking so long to complete the stage. We took a photo at the finish as a team. Vlada is now pooped but has the night to get ready for tomorrow's 82.2km which can be done nonstop or in two days. He & the guys are aiming for nonstop. On another note, we met Malika from Handicap International-France, who expressed her gratitude on behalf of HI-France for our fundraising efforts. She told Ray not to be discouraged that he couldn't continue the race as his effort to try counts more than his result. Pls check the official race site 4 current photos, vids, & articles. Thx, R&V

Dnes bylo horko (42C). Etapa 3 vedla prez vyschla solna pole a nekonecne ploche planiny. Trasa byla narocna. Trebaze mnoho zavodniku odstoupilo, vetsina nasich znamych a fandu verilo ze Ray by dnesni etapu dokoncil. Vlada se dal do tymu s dvemi spolubydlicimi ze stanu, Mikem (NZE) & Johnem (AUS) aby si pomahali tlacit dopredu. Ray cekal nekolik hodin v paru slunce na V, M & J u cilove pasky aby jim fandil pri finishi - a po dokonceni si z nich delal spasy ze se s tou etapu loudali. Za cilovou paskou jsme se vsichni vyfotili jako tym. Vlada je znavem a ma noc na pripravu na 82.2km etapu zitra. Vlada, John & Mike ji zkusi nonstop:). Mimochodem, take jsme potkali zastupkyni Handicap International-France, jedne z nasich partnerskych neziskovek, ktera nam vyjadrila vdek za nasi financni sbirku. Taktez Rayovi sdelila, ze jeho snaha ucastnit se zavodu znamena mnohem vice nez jeho vysledek. Prosim, shlednete soucasne fota, videa, a clanky na oficielnich strankach zavodu. Dik, Ray & Vlada

WELCOME TO OUR 2010 MDS RACE SITE – BIENVENUE Á NOTRE SITE MDS 2010

(version en français au dessous du texte en anglais)

WHO WE ARE – QUI SOMMES-NOUS – O NÁS

Raymund Acevedo and Vladimír Martinovský are two good friends participating this April in the 2010 Marathon des Sables (MDS: www.darbaroud.com/index_uk.php), a week long, 155-mile/250-kilometer treacherous trek through the Sahara Desert in Morocco, North Africa. With daily temperatures averaging above 120F/50C, this is considered the most challenging foot race in the world. Raymund is physically disabled, infected with polio at the age of six months, and has walked with crutches since he was five years old. He will be the first person with polio to participate in this marathon on crutches and with leg braces. Vladimir will walk alongside Raymund to encourage him on and keep him company.

WHAT WE ARE DOING – QUE FAISONS-NOUS – O NAŠEM PROJEKTU

We are walking the marathon to raise money for three well respected charities recognized for their works to help better the lives of people with disabilities in the U.S. and all over the world. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, over 50 million Americans have some level of disability. There are large populations of people living with disabilities in all countries. Millions of them, like Raymund, strive to live active normal lives. We have chosen the following organizations:

:: Challenged Athletes Foundation, provides grants to help people with physical disabilities be active in fitness and competitive athletic activities through many unique programs, including one that assists past and present veterans.

:: Shriners Hospitals International (where Raymund was a patient) specializes in pediatric care, focusing on orthopaedic, burn, spinal cord injury, cleft lip and palate child patients. Shriners doctors also respond to emergency needs as with the many Haitian children injured from the recent earthquake.

:: Handicap International assists people with disabilities in over sixty developing countries to learn how to become more independent and help themselves. Handicap International also provides medical aid to people injured from man-made and natural disasters and is one of the major relief organizations that has responded to the recent devastating earthquake in Haiti by expanding their emergency relief efforts on the island.

COMMENT FAIRE PARTIE DE NOTRE AVENTURE – JAK SE MŮŽETE ÚČASTNIT TOHOTO ZÁŽITKU

This race is not about us, but about helping our fellow citizens of the world who, for whatever reason, are challenged by a physical disability. We are committed to making this a successful fundraiser and see this event as a unique opportunity to help make the lives of many people with disabilities a little better. Please be a part of our experience by donating to one or more of our partner non-profits. You can also help us spread the news about what we are doing to everyone you know. All your donations are tax deductible and go directly to our partner non-profits.

Please be sure to come back to our site from April 4-10 to follow us live from the desert during the race. We will post updates each night on our progress and adventures. Or send an email to follow our preparations for the 2010 Marathon des Sables.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH! MERCI BEAUCOUP! MNOHOKRÁTE VÁM DĚKUJEME!

Raymund Acevedo (Racer #634, USA) & Vladimír Martinovský (Racer #677, CZE)

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QUI SOMMES-NOUS

Raymund Acevedo et Vladimír Martinovský sont 2 amis qui vont participer, en avril 2010, au Marathon des Sables (MDS: http://www.darbaroud.com/index_uk.php), une course à pied d'une semaine, à travers le Sahara marocain sur un parcours de 250 km semé d'embûches. Avec des températures diurnes au-dessus de 50°C, cette course est considérée comme l'une des plus difficiles du monde. Raymund a un handicap physique, atteint de la polio à l'âge de 6 mois et marche avec des béquilles depuis sa jeune enfance. Il sera le premier participant à cette aventure à courir avec des béquilles et des attelles aux jambes. Vladimir accompagnera son ami, pour l'encourager et participer à l'aventure.

QUE FAISONS-NOUS

Nous participons à ce marathon afin de lever des fonds pour le compte de 3 organisations charitables reconnues pour leurs actions en faveur des personnes handicapées aux Etats-Unis et à travers le monde. Selon le bureau du recensement des Etats-Unis, 50 millions d'américains souffrent d'un handicap. A l'instar de Raymund, des millions d'handicapés à travers le monde luttent quotidiennement pour mener une vie normale. Ainsi, nous avons choisi ld'apporter notre aide aux organisations suivantes :

:: Challenged Athletes Foundation. Cette organisation fournit des subventions aux handicapés physiques pour qu'ils suivent des activités de fitness et activités athlétiques, à un niveau compétitif. De nombreux programmes d'aide sont en place, notamment un programme destiné aux vétérans de l'armée.

:: Shriners Hospitals International (où Raymund fut patient) est spécialisé dans les soins pédiatriques, brûlures orthopédiques, maladie de la moelle épinière, et enfants avec bec-de-liève. Les docteurs de Shriners répondent également aux situations d'urgence comme celles des enfants d'Haïti suite au tremblement de terre.

:: Handicap International porte assistance aux personnes handicapées dans plus de 60 pays en développement en leur apprenant à devenir indépendants. Handicap International apporte également de l'aide médicale aux personnes victimes de catastrophes naturelles et humaines. C'est une des organisations principales qui est intervenue en Haïti pour soulager les populations de l'île (veuillez choisir Handicap International France pour faire un don).

COMMENT FAIRE PARTIE DE NOTRE AVENTURE

Notre participation à cette course à pied a pour but d'aider nos concitoyens et tous les hommes et femmes sur cette terre qui, pour quelconque raison, souffrent d'infirmités. Nous nous engageons à être des récolteurs de fonds et mettre à profit cette course dans le désert marocain pour participer à l'amélioration du sort des infirmes. Ainsi, nous vous remercions par avance de bien vouloir donner à une ou plusieurs de ces organisations afin de nous aider à atteindre notre but. Vous pouvez aussi faire connaître notre cause en partageant cette information avec les personnes de votre entourage. Tous vos dons sont déductibles de vos impôts et vont directement à ces organisations charitables.

Assurez-vous de revenir sur notre site du 4 au 10 avril afin de suivre notre périple dans le désert pendant la course. Nous mettrons des mises à jour tous les soirs afin de relater les faits de la journée et partager notre aventure. Ou bien, envoyez-nous un email pour suivre notre préparation au Marathon des Sables 2010.

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Vladimír's Greetings from Snow Covered Washington DC

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Disclaimer: the Marathon des Sables (MDS) logo placed in the banner image on this site is a property of the ATLANTIDE ORGANISATION Internationale France (AOI), which has granted us a permission to use the MDS logo to promote our project.
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