Stage 2:
Mars in Gobi began with a trail through a red valley, passing farmland where crops of wheat are grown.  All of the competitors had completed the first leg of Stage 2 by 1100.  There was a cool, dry breeze in the daytime, providing respite from the blazing heat.   

The second leg of the stage was lunar, with red earth the sun was fierce.  It was veryy rugged terrain up and down with some vertigo inducing descents, and vistas all day long.   

An other-worldly third leg of the stage awaited competitors, in the notorious “red-zone.”  Mary Gadams, CEO and founder of RacingThePlanet forewarned competitors in the morning of the notoriously feared difficulty but also admired beauty of this area.  The red-zone is like its own little planet implanted into the thick of gravel, dusty flats.  Suddenly, competitors were required to ascend undulating mounds of crimson rock formations, seemingly transported from another cosmos. It was 4km on clay terrain, over smooth surfaced mounds on a plateau, and then 3km up and down over ridges. 

After a long, gradual descent and then 4km of flats, the front-running competitors were flying, at least those who could negotiate the uneven footing through small pockets of desert succulents.  But, with the breeze, many competitors were in good spirits for the most part, at least in the earlier hours of the day.   

Kevin Lepsoe (Canada) said that the “red-zone” was, “fun…kind of like  being in a video game.”  Adding, “the altitude and scenery of the ascents, at points, were breathtaking…literally.”  Patrick Diaz (United States) thought the stage was, “so nice,” whilst Shawn Harmon (United States) thought the same section was, “annoying and pretty rocky.”  Such was the varied response to terrain, illustrating how different people perform in their own ways. 

The last leg of the stage was moderately easy, with a difficult section near the end close to Camp 3: Langerville.  The grounds where Camp 3 is situated were harvested specially for wheat purchased by RacingThePlanet in order to clear room for the beautifully appointed campsite.  Taylor Duvall (United States) was curious about this, inspecting the wheat in the adjacent farm ground and deducting that it must have been recent.  The wheat was hand harvested by local women using traditional methods and a scythe. 

Heather Hunt acclaimed the terrain in the stage she completed today, “it was absolutely amazing, I have never seen anything like it.”  Sophie Collett (United Kingdom) thought it was, “weird and mars-like.”  Whilst Shawn Harmon (United States) described the temperatures as a, “raging inferno,” a sentiment echoed by most other competitors.  After noon, the course team set up another water stop between check-points 2 and 3. 

Weichao Wei (China) took Stage 2: Mars in the Gobi, after overtaking Eric LaHaie in the last 5km before camp.  Their times were 03.54.38 and 03.57.55 respectively.  In third is Sean W. Abbott (United States) who finished with the time of 04.35.19.  In the women’s division, Diana Hogan-Murphy maintains her lead for the second stage in a row with the time of 05.26.20. Second came Jill Wilson (United States) and third was Shirley M. Potter.  Team Esquel (China) are the team leaders for Gobi March 2009.