Sean Curnow: The lads emerged from their tents a half hour earlier today at 5:00 am due to the early start. As usual, Sharon & Alessia had again organized breakfast and the team sat down to fuel up before our final days riding. There was a real sense of anticipation at the breakfast table. Whilst today was the longest day of the challenge – it was also the last and the guys could almost see themselves crossing finish line. The previous day where there was only muted conversation was replaced with talk of how good a cold beer would taste when we arrived back at the official finish line at the Le Meridien Mina Seyahi hotel. Spirits were high!

After a quick toilet break it was off to the UAE CC tent to kit up and get ready to go. This definitely was Ground Hog Day.

We again picked up our bikes from the Gecko Motorcycles service tent. The bikes had come through the fifth day relatively unscathed. However, in addition to the routine service, the Gecko mechanics changed out all the heavy duty chains as the previous 4 days of hard riding had unacceptably stretched the existing chains. The first competitor left the Moreeb Bivouac at 5:30am for the run to the start of SS-5- it was still dark.

The days riding started with a 119km liaison section on tarmac roads from the Moreeb Bivouac to the start of the 5th Special Stage (SS5 - Hertz). We were given 1hr 40min to complete this section – plenty of time and time to refuel. The sun came up over the massive Liwa dune set as we rode out which was a great sight to see.

SS-5 was a challenging 119km run covering a mixture of terrain including tracks of varying quality and soft dunes. It was more technical than we expected but still a relatively fast run. SS-5 was highlighted by 4 single hazards, 15 double hazards and 1 triple hazards. The last section leading into the end of the stage was a gravel road with sand spits intruding over it which was particularly tough. JQ came to grief over one of these sand spits and the impact bent his handle bars. Fortunately he was OK. (He then proceeded to ride the remaining days riding with bent handle bars!)

There was only one PC (Passage Controls) during SS-5 where riders could take on additional water if required (we chose not to on this occasion). Importantly there was no refueling point – so the riders had to ensure that they had enough fuel at the start of SS-5 (having already completed the 119km liaison – hence the refuel).
We then had another 78km liaison section on tarmac roads from the end of SS-5 to the start of the 6th and final Special Stage (SS6 - Emarat). We were given 1hr to complete this section – just enough time to get there without a refuel.

SS-6 was a testing 167km run covering a mixture of terrain including tracks of varying quality, some soft dunes and a final section of predominantly camel grass. SS-6 was highlighted by 23 single hazards, 14 double hazards and 2 triple hazards. The last 10km was particularly tough. You could almost smell the finish and we then rode through this section of desert that was soft rolling dunes covered with camel grass. It was like riding a bucking bronco for 10km and trying to steer between the bigger humps. There was only one PC (Passage Controls) during SS-6 where riders could take on additional water if required. However, once again there was no refueling point – so the riders had to ensure that they had enough fuel at the start of SS-6 (having already completed the 78km liaison).

The final stage of the 2008 Desert Challenge was a 47km liaison section on tarmac roads from the end of SS-6 back to the Le Meridien Mina Seyahi Hotel in Dubai. This was a chance to relax and reflect on the huge personal achievements for all of the riders as well as that of the UAE CC Team in raising nearly 90,000 USD for charity.
Cruising side by side along the road in the final liaison section we were passed by cars beeping their horns and passengers waving at us. It really was an incredible feeling.

As we rode into the car park of the Le Meridien Mina Seyahi Hotel we were greeted by our Support team – Sharon and Alessia and also by my partner Ginnie. It was all smiles now (and maybe a few tears).

The feeling around the team is pure exhilaration. The lads are broken but made it. We managed to get all four bikes to the finish line – the ultimate result for the team, the individuals and most importantly our sponsors.

Final scrutineering took place to ensure that no modifications had been made to the bikes – no issues here.

Then it was time to ascend the Official 2008 UAE Desert Challenge Finishing Ramp for the perfect photo opportunity to capture a huge personal achievement and most importantly take possession of the official 2008 UAE Desert Challenge Medal – given to all those competitors that manage to finish one of the toughest endurance races on the planet.

The final times and positions for the UAE CC Team at the end of SS-6 are as follows –

Name / Time / Position
Steve You / 28:35:47 / 12
Paul Anselmo / 33:56:20 / 15
Sean Curnow/ 34:01:15 / 16
Jonathan Quan / 34:07:02 / 17
For full details of the entire field – please see the official UAE Desert Challenge Website (www.uaedesertchallenge.com)

And then it was over!

It had been an amazing year. Just getting to the start line was tough enough – chasing after sponsorship, training in the gym every week, riding in the desert on weekends, attending UAE CC meetings every month, liaising with the media, coordinating all the logistics, managing the administration – the list goes on. Everyone played there role and there is a real sense of achievement that 7 ordinary people came together and have managed to achieve so much.

We made some new friends in the desert including ‘flip-flop Rob’. Alan Roberts has been touring the world on his motor bike for almost 2 years. He came to Dubai and decided to compete in the UAE Desert Challenge. With only a few hours of riding experience in the dunes he managed to achieve second overall in the 450 class – a huge achievement given the quality of the field. It seems where training and experience may have been lacking it was made up for by sheer talent. We nick named him ‘flip-flop Rob’ as he could always be found in his ‘flip-flops’ hanging around our tents after a day’s riding. Like a typical Aussie seagull he also magically appeared around the time food was being served. We wish him well in his travels as he rides his way back to Australia- ‘island hoping along the way’.

But listen? Can you hear it? The 2010 Desert Challenge is calling!!