May 31st, 2007
Dear Friends and Family,
As many of you know I’ll be heading to China to run the Gobi March in a couple of weeks and as it gets closer I am finding myself reflecting back on the journey up to this point and I wanted to share my thoughts with you.
My wayfaring started over two years ago on a night in November of 2004 at a slide show of the Marathon des Sable (MDS) that Rob “Packman” Mackay presented at Camosun College. I was awestruck by the stunning visuals and stories from that night and left the auditorium with a tiny seed planted.
In April of 2005 I watched, anxiously, as Packman ran the MDS, checking the website and leader board daily for results, pictures, and anything else I could get my hands on, I even sent him an email of support (although he doesn’t remember it 
). Once I saw the finish of Packman’s race that planted seed sunk a bit deeper into my soul and just sat there dormant for a few months.
It was an offhand question/comment from Miss Smith that energized that seed to sprout; she said “Why can’t you go do it?” I pondered that question and at first had all kinds of crappy ‘excuses’ for why I couldn’t go; work, children, money, etc… but after a little while of that self argument I finally told myself to “Shut the f*#k up!” and decided that if I really wanted to do it I could make it happen and that day sent an email to Packman asking for some advice about running the MDS.
Packman and I met for coffee a few days later, in the morning at my office, just before Christmas of 2005, spending about an hour chatting about running, training, and the MDS. As he was leaving he said something like “I would totally recommend the MDS, it is a great race, and will help you out how ever I can but if you’re interested I am thinking about getting a Team together for this other race…” He wasn’t very specific at the time, just giving me some basic information – it’s a desert race, has a much smaller field than the MDS, with a similar format, and takes place in a very remote location. I am not sure how long I thought about it after he left (10-15 minutes) but it was a quick decision. I didn’t want to seem over eager and first had to run things past T to make sure she was okay with everything so waited until the next day to call him back and commit.
T and I had a sit down the night after my first meeting with Packman and I asked her how she would feel about me going away for a few weeks to run a ‘big’ footrace. She looked at me for a few seconds, smiled and said she would be okay with it and then the first question she had was “Will I be able to come?” – my answer – “That’s a great question, lets see what we can do to make that happen!”
A countless number of things have come together over the last fifteen months; two incredible teammates, tons of training, stupendous sponsors, and a wonderful gang of supporters just to name a few. Because of all this, tonight I find myself just twelve sleeps away from a plane ride to Beijing with my daughter and some amazing friends.
I have many people to acknowledge for this amazing opportunity and while I will send out a more personal ‘Thank-you’ when I get back I’d like to start the express of gratitude now
So… without further ado I would like to send a big, huge, ginormous THANK YOU out to the following:
Our Sponsors: I don’t think I will ever be able to completely thank this bunch!
Varty Floors Ltd. – Brad Varty and Craig Smith
Atomic Crayon – Dale Campbell
Frontrunners Westshore – Mark Nelson and Nick Walker
Venturi Schulze Vineyards – Giordano, Marilyn and Michelle
Quantum Computing – James Peterson
Popeye’s Supplements Victoria – Chris Kinnear
EAS Canada – Kelly Holian
GoPro – Nicholas Woodman
Harvest Foodworks
Zym
My Family:
Dad/Grandpa
Brother/Uncle Jimmy
‘Other’ Brother/Uncle James
and my lovely daughter – T
T’s Mom:
Wendy – Thank you very much! This journey wouldn’t be complete with out T and that couldn’t happen without your support.
My employers:
ACME Supplies – Richard & Robin Impett
The Ladies:
Erin, Julie, Linds, and Roz
*You are awesome! I can’t express enough just how much you Ladies mean to Tori and me.
An amazingly supportive group of friends:
*Far too many to name
The Three Rogues:
Jim, Mike, and Rumon
*For the encouragement, inspiration and support!
GutBuster Trail Running Series:
Bryan Tasaka - Thanks for the epic training courses!
Our Coach:
Mike Suminski
*Thanks for keeping me in check : )
And of course my Teammates:
Donna “Scooter” Carrigan and Rob “Packman” Mackay
*I can’t wait to share this adventure with you both!
Cheers,
Donald
[...] are so many people I need to thank for this opportunity and I have mentioned many of them in my Pre-Gobi Reflections letter but there are a few people in particular that have gone above and beyond to make this a [...]