Category: Mongolia

• The Eternal Knot: A Story About Beauty, Mongolia, and Finally Seeing Yourself

  Two tattoos. Two very different women. Same body. A reflection on where we place our beauty, and who we’re placing it for.

  

• DAY AFTER: SUNDAY and so on….Epilogue

  Back in Ulaanbaatar after the Gobi March 2024. The city reveals itself differently after a week in the desert. On the epilogue, the after-race brain, and why Iris is already…

• Tips & Tricks: “For the WIN” and “Better for NEXT TIME”

  Four Racing the Planet ultras in, and Iris Derke has a lot of hard-won advice. What worked, what didn’t, and what she’d do differently next time on the Gobi March…

• Last Day, 10K (nice rhyme, no?)

  The final 10K of the Gobi March 2024 — a ceremonial run to the monastery finish line. On crossing a finish line you didn’t expect, the people who carry you…

• Long days/daze (edited and added!)

  The long days and longer nights of the Gobi March 2024. Rain, freezing cold, blazing heat, and the particular bond forged between runners when everything else is stripped away.

• A long slog – along with brilliant moments

  After withdrawing from the Gobi March, Iris Derke stayed on as a volunteer. Watching the leaders come through checkpoints at impossible speeds. On the long slog, the brilliant moments, and…

• Thank you!

  Waiting for the cyberlink to ping and confirm she was ok. The first messages from family landed. Tears in the Gobi Desert tent, and a wave of gratitude so large…

• Hey all! I’m ok

  Relentless miles, high heat, and no gasoline left in the tank. Iris Derke withdrew from the Gobi March 2024 on Day 2. On knowing when to stop, listening to your…

• Day 1 done – Mongolian Adventure

  Day 1 of the Gobi March 2024 done. Frigid start, 26+ miles in the bag, all appendages attached. The first few miles running on adrenaline and inspiration before the real…

• Final day Final Check but NOT final!

  The last night of clean sheets before the Gobi March 2024. Two sides of Iris’s brain going head to head: the work side versus the race side. Neither willing to…