the finish line came into sight. Tommy was long gone. So were Julien and Zeng. Another runner had passed Dion as well. But none of that mattered.
Because sitting there patiently by the finish line was a small brown lump. And as soon as Dion got close, the lump sprang up into the air, unfolding as it went. Now suddenly it was a small, fuzzy brown dog, and it was running for Dion, tail up, tongue out.
And, seeing Gobi, Dion smiled for the first time that day.
It was Gobi’s presence, her enthusiasm, and her support that got him across the finish line that night. Without her there, Dion wasn’t sure he’d have made it at all.
Gobi was thrilled to see the man again. He hadn’t forgotten her! And he was smiling at her too. Once he’d finished running he scooped her up, and she covered his face in licks. He laughed, and then the two of them crawled into their tent to eat and drink and rest. Gobi had been well looked after that day, but she had still missed him. He was back now, though, and that was all that mattered.
It was his own fault. Dion made arrangements for Gobi to travel in one of the race cars again. Today was the longest day of the race, covering over fifty miles and cutting right through a section of the Black Gobi Desert. The temperatures were going to be well over 125 degrees. Tough as she was, there was no way the little dog would be able to handle that kind of heat, especially over that distance. This was for her own safety.
But that didn’t stop Dion from missing her.
The starting gun sounded, and they were off. A bunch of runners shoved past, trying to take an early lead. Dion let them. He wasn’t too worried. He was having a great race so far, but it was more than that. He was good at the long distances, and at handling the heat. Not everyone was. They were using up a lot of valuable energy by sprinting now, and they wouldn’t have a chance to rest and recharge later. Today’s race was all about being smart and conserving energy as much as possible.
Fortunately, they didn’t have any wind today, and Tommy was off running his own race and Dion didn’t see him after the start. Though boiling hot, the day was clear, and Dion settled into a nice, easy stride. He wasn’t worried about coming in first. The important thing was to make sure he could cover the full distance. A lot of runners wouldn’t be able to do that. As long as he reached the finish line today, he’d be in good shape.
Time passed. Several times Dion saw runners walking, already exhausted. Many of them stared as he jogged by. He just waved, but not meanly. A few even cheered him on, or clapped for him. He waved at them too. He was covering the distance well, and felt good and strong. He had this.
He also decided it was time to finally use his secret weapon – his iPod. The tiny device could only run for a few hours, so he hadn’t bothered with it before this. But on a day like today, it was the perfect way to distract himself and let his body handle the running. Dion pulled out the iPod, put in his earbuds, and hit Play. The music started, and he could feel his spirits lifting. This was exactly what he needed.
Dion did stop at every checkpoint. It was important to refill your water bottles whenever you could, and it helped to check in with the race crew. They were being especially careful today. It was much too easy for a runner to get heatstroke out here. If that wasn’t caught in time, it could become heat exhaustion, which was dangerous. When someone had heat exhaustion they got foggy. They could no longer make smart choices – including knowing when it was time to get help. People could die from heat exhaustion, so the organisers were making sure every runner was okay.
Dion felt fine, and the checkpoint volunteers quickly allowed him to keep going. But another runner wasn’t having as easy a time.
It was Tommy.
He looked terrible. He was slumped in a chair while several volunteers sprayed him with water or fanned him with a clipboard. But Tommy still looked dazed. He also looked more tired than Dion had ever seen him. The heat had clearly taken its toll on him and he wasn’t looking to leave the tent quickly. Or he was just having a bad day. But Tommy was still one of the people ahead of Dion in the overall race. If he wasn’t running well today, that gave Dion a chance to pull ahead.
Dion was listening to his music but still heard the volunteer ask him if Tommy could run with him. Dion agreed because it was what you did, looking after another fellow runner. Races like this were more about doing your best than about beating someone else. And if you did beat them, you did it fair and square. You didn’t take advantage of someone. And you never turned your back on a fellow runner in need.
Tommy nodded and rose from his seat. He came over to stand by Dion. He still looked wobbly though.
“Are you sure you’re okay, Tommy?” Dion asked.
“Yeah,” Tommy replied. “I’m just struggling. It’s too hot.” His voice was so weak Dion could barely hear him, and he was swaying on his feet. But when Dion started running, Tommy ran with him.
It was even hotter than before. Dion liked that. He enjoyed the heat. He felt good. Only Jax, Brett and Zeng were ahead of him right now, and Dion knew he could catch up with them. This was his chance to take the lead. He picked up his pace.
Tommy kept up, but it was clear he was struggling. Dion felt bad for him, but he didn’t slow down.
They reached a long and sandy straight section with no shade. “Come on, Tommy,” Dion told the other runner. “Let’s run the flags.” The pink markers were set in a line every fifty feet.
Tommy sped up to match Dion as they ran to the first marker. Then they slowed down and walked to the next one. They ran the next, then walked, and kept up that pattern for a while. The ground around them became more sandy and rose to form sand canyons. But the track was still straight and solid.
Dion increased his speed again. He was careful not to overdo it, but he was starting to cut into Zeng’s lead. He noticed that Tommy wasn’t running beside him any more. That was fine though. He must have decided to walk for a bit.
But a part of Dion worried about Tommy. Was he still okay? He slowed down, and finally stopped. Then he looked back.
Tommy was swaying on his feet, flailing his arms to keep his balance. He looked like he was caught in an earthquake.
Dion felt his heart sink. But he didn’t hesitate. He turned and ran back towards Tommy instead.
“Tommy, tell me what’s going on,” he said when he reached the other runner.
“Too hot,” Tommy mumbled back. His words were slurred. He pitched forward suddenly, and Dion just barely caught him in time. This was bad.
Dion checked his watch. They were a little more than a mile into this section. The next checkpoint was another three miles ahead. It was just past one, and the sun was right
