October 28, Camp Twin Peaks, 9:30pm - This morning started with the final formalities before the official start of the race. At 10:30am, a convoy of three buses, a lead Jeep and full security detail, left Cairo and headed out into the open desert. Racers are now dressed in their full racing gear, requisite race and nationality patches and carrying only their rations for the week. The terrain quickly turned into a wide expanse of....sand. As the sun set, the buses finally entered the White Desert. Breathtaking flat sand hills punctuated with white limestone formations formed by centuries of wind erosion spread out before us. The yellow sand gave way to a whiter, chalky sand, more suiting an Antarctica landscape then the desert.

The ride was long, so all are relieved to finally be out of the buses and settling into camp, set among the white rocks. The light cool wind seems to indicate that weather may be in everyone's favor tomorrow. Some are still sitting around the campfire and others are either doing last minute mental preparation in their sleeping bags or last minute equipment adjustments, wondering what is in store tomorrow. Only 12 hours now until the Sahara Race (Egypt) 2006 launches.

October 27, Cairo, 10:30pm - Jacob Nielson of Denmark appears to still hold the title for lightest pack weight. His record to date (from the Atacama Crossing 2006) was 6.8 kg but today broke that with a 6 kg pack. A few competitors have had some difficulty in the transit, losing bags in Frankfurt on the way. Jacqueline Eastridge of Philadelphia arrived with her backpack, but is missing all her checked luggage that held some of her safety equipment and food supplies. Lufthansa claimed the bag would arrive on the next flight but is yet to be seen. Staff and competitors quickly came to her aid and have rounded up missing equipment for her.

Distance: 30.8 km / 19.3 m

Camp Twin Peaks to Camp Icebergs

Camp Salt and Pepper is situated on the edge of the white desert. The white formations have given way to expanses of sand peppered with igneous (volcanic) rock.

Camp White Tower, 9:00am - The top 20 racers are now setting off on today's course. Competitors ranked from 21 thru 55 have a 3-hour head start as they were off in the dawn light at 6am. Team History Channel has now split and is only running with two members. They are currently leading the 6am start pack. Danny Moy, who came to the race with an injured ankle is now suffering toe problems and was pulled from the race for medical reasons. The team did their utmost in trying to figure out how to get Danny to the finish line without him having to walk on his one foot, but in the end, threw in the towel and set off with two. Everyone is cautiously optimistic about today...it will be a flat course but mentally tough. The first runners are expected to finish sometime before midnight and the cut-off time for everyone else is 3pm tomorrow. We will be reporting periodically throughout the day and night.

Distance: 13km

Camp El Ris to the Sphinx in Giza

The Sphinx, 3pm - Today was an early start as competitors boarded buses at 3am from the last campsite and were driven back to the outskirts of Cairo, a 7 hour trip. The Stage 6 start was staged so that all competitors would cross the finish line within a 3-hour window. The slowest competitors started out at 10am, the middle group started at 11am and the top 10 at 12pm. The overcast skies made for easier running and most cruised right to the finish line. Frank Alvarez, who started at 11am was the first to cross the finish line. The finish line is situated right at the base of the Sphinx and a band welcomed competitors on the last 100m downhill and under the green banner.

Final results (Primi 10)