ATACAMA CROSSING (CHILE)
250km / 155 mile, 6-Stage Ultramarathon

30 March - 5 April 2025

137

DAYS TO GO

Race Coverage

RACE Coverage

Atacama Crossing Home

Mark MCINTOSH

Physiotherapist

United Kingdom, Resident in New Zealand

Andrea ANDREWS

Dietitian

Chile, Resident in Australia

Natasha FANSHAWE

Self-employed

United Kingdom

Hannah LYONMEARS

Clinical Research Doctor

United Kingdom

Carrie OWER

Retired

United States

Antonio TEIXEIRA

Engineer

Portugal

Arthur CHIN

Retiree

Malaysia

Dora SZALAI

Facility Manager Central Europe

Hungary, Resident in Germany

Laszlo VARJU

Front Office Supervisor

Hungary, Resident in Germany

Venkata RAVI

Engineer

United States

Mark MCINTOSH

Physiotherapist

United Kingdom, Resident in New Zealand

Briton Mark McIntosh is a physiotherapist from Gloucestershire in the United Kingdom. He is particularly interested in musculoskeletal and neurological rehabilitation, and integrates this with his role as an adaptive sports instructor. Mark speaks conversational French and Spanish and previously joined the RacingThePlanet / 4 Deserts Ultramarathon Series volunteer team at the Gobi March (China) 2015, the Sahara Race (Nambia) 2016 and RacingThePlanet: New Zealand 2019. Mark is excited to rejoin the RacingThePlanet / 4 Deserts team at the Atacama Crossing 2025.

Andrea ANDREWS

Dietitian

Chile, Resident in Australia

Andrea Andrews from Chile is a clinical Dietitian and a mum of two who lives in Australia. Her first RacingThePlanet event was in 2010 when she volunteered for the Atacama Crossing which she says is "the most spectacular race I have ever been a part of and most importantly in my home country". She came to that race with her husband who was competing. She never expected to have such an amazing time, and was hooked. She went on to volunteer in 2011 for the roving race in Nepal and in 2015 she decided to see what it was like from the competitor side and competed in the roving race in Ecuador which she describes as "an epic challenge and a humbling experience to get to complete this kind of race". In 2017, 11 months after having her beautiful baby girl she completed the Patagonia roving race, wanting to break the stereotype that new mothers were not able to be adventurous "it was an amazing challenge and my best race so far". She put her volunteering on hold when she had a second baby but avidly followed the races from her couch with massive FOMO and decided that she would definitely be joining the team again.
Andrea loved competing but is coming back this time as a volunteer. Her favourite part of the race is the checkpoint and camp life and the camaraderie formed by the volunteer team. We welcome her back to her fifth RacingThePlanet event - having volunteered twice, once at the Atacama Crossing, and twice as a racer. She is most looking forward to getting to know everyone and find out why they are here.

Natasha FANSHAWE

Self-employed

United Kingdom

Natasha Fanshawe calls herself a RacingThePlanet junky, stating that participating in the races is a life addiction. She has raced twice (in Jordan and Namibia) and volunteered eight times, including taking on a management role at The Last Desert 2018 and Gobi March (Mongolia) 2019.

She set up her own company Light Style Space, as a declutterer, where she helps people to get rid of unwanted stuff and simultaneously runs a sustainability network called "And The Future" with a friend. She also works on events when help is needed. If the event involves food or an adventure, she is there, and she thinks RacingThePlanet fulfills the latter. Amongst other job projects, Natasha has worked for the Olympic Committee in preparation for the London 2012 Olympics.

The races she has volunteered at previously include the Atacama Crossing 2011, RacingThePlanet: Iceland 2013, Ecuador 2015, Patagonia 2017, The Last Desert (Antarctica) 2018, Gobi March (Mongolia) 2019 and most recently RacingThePlanet: Lapland 2022. She has also completed RacingThePlanet: Jordan 2012 and the Namib Race 2016 as a racer. She is working herself up to racing in another event. Until then, we' re thrilled to have her return as a volunteer for the ninth time at the Atacama Crossing 2025.

Hannah LYONMEARS

Clinical Research Doctor

United Kingdom

Hannah is a UK-based medical doctor and currently completing a PhD in traumatic brain injury. She has grown up supporting her family and triathlon club with various Ironman and other sporting events around the UK and abroad. She has completed triathlon and running races and has been lucky enough to trek the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu and the Himalayas in India and Nepal. Along with sporting pursuits, she loves travelling and musical theatre. The Atacama Crossing (Chile) 2025 will be Hannah’s first time volunteering for a RacingThePlanet / 4 Deserts event!

Carrie OWER

Retired

United States

Carrie Ower joins us for her first RacingThePlanet / 4 Deserts event as a volunteer at the Atacama Crossing 2025. She was inspired to volunteer by being part of the Friends and Family Experience while watching her husband complete the Gobi March in Mongolia in 2023. She is looking forward to her second Friends and Family Experience as she watches her husband participate in The Last Desert race in Antarctica in 2024. A retired Employee Benefits Account Executive, Carrie loves to travel and enjoys an active lifestyle that includes chasing after her three beautiful grandchildren, being her husband's (unofficial) copilot, walking and running. Her love of travel led to her providing SAG support for an epic cycling journey across Scotland for the NC500 in 2023. She is enthusiastically looking forward to supporting RTP and cheering on all of the Desert adventurers as they fulfill their dreams of competing in a 250K stage race across the desert.

Antonio TEIXEIRA

Engineer

Portugal

Antionio "Brito" Teixeira is a mechanical engineer from Portugal who also has experience organising trail running events in Portugal and Cape Verde. The Atacama Crossing 2025 is first experience at a RacingThePlanet Ultramarathon.

Arthur CHIN

Retiree

Malaysia

Malaysian Arthur Chin recent retired as a partner after a 30-year career with KPMG in Malaysia. Arthur is an active member of Lions Clubs International providing him with great experience with volunteerism and humanitarian endeavors. Arthur is physically fit and an active long distance runner and trekker.

Dora SZALAI

Facility Manager Central Europe

Hungary, Resident in Germany

Laszlo VARJU

Front Office Supervisor

Hungary, Resident in Germany

Venkata RAVI

Engineer

United States

ATACAMA CROSSING (CHILE) 250km / 155 mile, 6-Stage Ultramarathon

DAYS TO GO

Race Coverage

RACE Coverage

Mark MCINTOSH

Physiotherapist

Andrea ANDREWS

Dietitian

Natasha FANSHAWE

Self-employed

Hannah LYONMEARS

Clinical Research Doctor

Carrie OWER

Retired

Antonio TEIXEIRA

Engineer

Arthur CHIN

Retiree

Dora SZALAI

Facility Manager Central Europe

Laszlo VARJU

Front Office Supervisor

Venkata RAVI

Engineer

Mark MCINTOSH

Physiotherapist

Andrea ANDREWS

Dietitian

Natasha FANSHAWE

Self-employed

Hannah LYONMEARS

Clinical Research Doctor

Carrie OWER

Retired

Antonio TEIXEIRA

Engineer

Arthur CHIN

Retiree

Dora SZALAI

Facility Manager Central Europe

Laszlo VARJU

Front Office Supervisor

Venkata RAVI

Engineer

ATACAMA CROSSING (CHILE)
250km / 155 mile, 6-Stage Ultramarathon