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Mathew Reynolds

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Atacama Crossing (2025) blog posts from Mathew Reynolds

01 April 2025 08:11 pm (GMT-04:00) Santiago

Absolutely brutal day, started off strong with some runnable spots on the road - body was feeling good and the knee was holding up. Hit the flats where the terrain was rocky and muddy so walked the majority of it. Once we hit the real sandy parts it got a bit tougher, and just before checkpoint 4 (they added another one given the heat) there was a monster dune you had to go up - absolutely killed my legs and felt absolutely spent after that with another 5km to go which was tough.
 
Apparently yesterday, at the peak of the day, the thermometer reached 41 degrees - I made it in yesterday before the peak (around 2pm) but today was out on the dunes at that time. Tomorrow will be much slower, I am going to take it very chill and prep myself for the long march, really just looking to finish the race at this point. 
 
Thank you everyone for the kind messages / emails and the words of support, it means a lot and is really appreciated. 

Comments: Total (3) comments

Ronan Reynolds

Posted On: 02 Apr 2025 10:43 am

Onya Matt, really strong showing for these 3 stages. I imagine the end of the long march will be a much awaited respite when it rolls around. Keep an eye out for that foot placement ?

Andy Reynolds

Posted On: 02 Apr 2025 03:24 am

Matt, good stuff man. I did warn you about the heat on the salt flats and the rough terrain. It’s good that you are pacing yourself and looking after your body. Take it easy tomorrow and nail the long march. Good luck Dad

Lara Reynolds

Posted On: 02 Apr 2025 02:00 am

Hey Matt - you are doing really well!!! You are sort of half way, so you can do this and be clever and listen to your body. Save those knees for the long day. There is a massive dune in there just after half way if I remember right, but you should get your Coca Cola after that. I am sitting at the airport waiting for my flight to London - I got my bag in just over 7kg, but I am hoping to get it down a bit more once there. Seeing all the drone footage of Atacama makes me really excited for MDS. You’ve got this!
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31 March 2025 08:25 pm (GMT-04:00) Santiago

Felt much better today, really think it was the altitude yesterday that ruined my last stage. Started off reasonably strong, had about 10 river crossings in the second stage which made me reminisce about Gobi, did not mind getting the feet wet. Ran walked the first two sections, but really felt strong going up that massive hill so powered through that.
 
Going down the massive sand dune was a cool experience, had to focus on not putting too much pressure on my knees which are actually holding up pretty well. My feet are holding up pretty well too, got to restrap a couple toes but am hopeful the worst is over regarding the water crossings. Ended up coming in the 20s which was surprising, I thought I took this stage pretty steady so hope to keep the pace.
 
Thanks for the messages, we have not been able to read blog comments yet but appreciate the emails. I am too tired to respond to them, apologies.

Comments: Total (4) comments

Andrew Reynolds

Posted On: 01 Apr 2025 08:06 am

Well done Matt, great result today. Everything seems to be good… feet, knees, mindspace. Keep it up Dad

Liam Reynolds

Posted On: 01 Apr 2025 07:39 am

Sheez Matt, saw the climb in the ranks today, looks like your doing well. Hope you keep feeling like you have today and just enjoy the scenery and the beauty of the desert.

Lara Reynolds

Posted On: 01 Apr 2025 07:37 am

You are flying!!! Well done! Stage 2 was one of my favourites. You are now 1/3 into it so just power through. I am glad your knees are holding up. Jet lag is also a problem the first day or two. Keep it up!

Yolande Hansen

Posted On: 01 Apr 2025 07:23 am

Wow Matthew that sounds really great ! And your result is great too ?? keep it up and enjoy the experience xx
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30 March 2025 08:41 pm (GMT-04:00) Santiago

Stars last night were amazing in Camp 1! Also had a great start by waking up a full hour before everyone else at 4:30am, my watch went back an hour with daylight savings in the UK. 
 
Planned on taking Stage 1 easy, which I did for the most part. Did a lot of walking, ran through the canyons which were really cool - the terrain through was mixed, lots of rocks so walked a lot of those sections. Got to Checkpoint 3, felt great, only around 5km left, got 2km in and hit a complete wall. Think it was the altitude (we started at 3,200m), couldn't really stomach any food throughout the stage and when I got to 32km I felt really sick. Think I took around 45 mins to do the last 3km which was amazing form, but really loaded up on the electrolytes when I got in so feeling good now. Knee is holding up well, we will see tomorrow, but I am going to go slower than today...

Comments: Total (6) comments

Ronan Reynolds

Posted On: 31 Mar 2025 10:07 pm

Nicely done Matt, from the photos it looks like Atacama is giving you some great views. Great timing on the daylight savings as always. Keep on keeping on ?

David Grosse

Posted On: 31 Mar 2025 02:21 pm

Great stuff Matt. Well done on day 1. Keep eating and electrolytes. You’ll adjust to the altitude Stars are indeed amazing @ night. Enjoy

Lara Reynolds

Posted On: 31 Mar 2025 02:15 pm

You are doing great Matthew. Listen to your body and remember it’s a 6 day race. The stars in Atacama is absolutely breathtaking! Enjoy it

Yolande Hansen

Posted On: 31 Mar 2025 12:28 pm

Well done Matt - sure sounds like an experience in a lifetime...take it easy and enjoy !! Sounds tough ?

Nadine Rolland

Posted On: 31 Mar 2025 10:58 am

Well done Matthew - that is not a bad time - hope you feel better today. just enjoy the experience. xx

Andy Reynolds

Posted On: 31 Mar 2025 05:12 am

That’s good Matt, stick to the plan. I’m glad you have recovered well. I assume you ate well, which is important after feeling sick the last few km. the terrain doesn’t get much better, so watch your footing. I’ll follow your progress agin tomorrow, good luck. Dad
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