PUBLISHED 06/09/2008
When Dave Heeley suggested running seven marathons on seven continents in seven days, his friend Malcolm Carr didn't embrace the idea. "He thought I was stark raving bonkers," says Heeley, 50, of West Bromwich, England. Because Heeley is blind, it meant that Carr, as his running guide, would have to accompany him. But Carr agreed, and in April, the pair covered 183.4 miles on foot (and 29,000-plus miles by air). Below, Heeley describes their adventure.
1. Antarctica 4:14 "Our fastest, thanks to fresh legs. The course was set by military lads. For two miles we had 50 soldiers running behind us."
2. South America 4:45 "Our run in Rio de Janeiro was soul-destroying. It was 90 degrees, humid, raining on and off, and we were alone."
3. North America 4:35 "That was fantastic. We ran around the Rose Bowl in Los Angeles (3.1 miles per lap). Thirty runners joined us."
4. Australia 4:40 "We ran around Sydney's Centennial Park. A few blind runners joined us for a few laps. Afterward, we went for a swim."
5. Asia 4:55 "At the warmest point of our Dubai leg, the temperature was 39°Celsius"--102°Fahrenheit. "Flipping hot. It melted me."
6. AFRICA 4:40 "Exhausting. We ran in Tunis, where the last nine miles were uphill with a headwind. We were grateful to have only one marathon left."
7. EUROPE 5:23 "We ran the Flora London Marathon. Malcolm had stomach trouble. Without the toilet breaks, we would have been faster."
