Trail runner Sarah Whittington explains how Qatar’s Zekreet peninsula has hosted a unique race challenge.

I never thought I’d become a trail runner. Whilst living in the United Kingdom, I was most definitely a road junky, the half marathon distance was my thing and I rarely ventured off-road unless the going underfoot was perfect… I mean who wants to slip and slosh through mud all of the time?

On my arrival in Doha however, it soon became apparent that while the city roads offer okay running, there’s actually nothing better than getting away from the hum of constant traffic noise and breaking free in the desert. From November to March, with a bit of preparation, that’s exactly what any runner can do.

There’s something very special about feeling the dirt under your feet, the sun on your back, and wind in your face. It generates big smiles. It’s a chance to unwind, soak up the peace, and wallow in some beautiful lunar-like landscapes.

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Thanks to Emile and Wendy Fitzmaurice, formerly based in Qatar and veteran trail buddies, I was quickly tempted off-road and into the desert at Zekreet, the peninsula about 84km west of Doha. The area offers runnable terrain and good first time off-road running. Yes, you need to keep your wits about you – the desert surface isn’t sandy but hard, compact and often ridged which has the annoying habit of grabbing the soles of inattentive runners and flipping them up. You probably won’t dent much but your pride, but it’s still better to keep that focus.

I remember falling on my first outing. I was running along and then I wasn’t! With practice, however, you learn the skills, the awareness, and the ability to fling your arms out to find your balance and avert a trip – the exact skills that will set you up for success in traversing any off-road surface. Following these early adventures, some four years ago, I’ve since been lucky enough to run in some stunning places and rip up some fantastic trails.

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I’ve now completed the Al Andalus Ultimate Trail, a gruelling 230km five-day mountain staged-race in southern Spain for the last three consecutive years, winning in 2015. I took on the Salmon Wadi Bih 72km solo in 2014 winning the ladies section, and I’ve also spent a fair amount of time running up and down rivers and canals in the UK (strangely as it’s not much like Qatar), winning both the 100km Canalathon and Waterway 100 mile ladies categories in 2015. None of these race successes would have been possible without churning out some miles off-road in Qatar. The mainstay of my training here has to be on-road, the desert is out of bounds over the summer, but it’s great to get your head back in the trail game over the winter months.

Personally, I stick to old faithful road shoes for running in Zekreet. The wider bearing surface offers less sand-suction should you hit a soft spot, and since the landscape is neither mountainous nor boulder-strewn you don’t need the grip or toe bumpers of a trail shoe. “Old” is a key word however, the grit chews through soles and you end up with a rather slick finish which probably isn’t what you want on a brand new pair of road shoes with less than 30 miles under the treads.

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Trail runners should always be ready for anything and I never head out without the obligatory water reserves, fully charged mobile, and mini first aid kit. I’ve been caught out myself, setting out a little late, when the sun was already high in the sky and running out of water. While there’s usually a friendly 4×4 cruising around the desert, it can’t be depended upon, particularly if you go early or late in the season. Dehydration can take effect quickly, and while the peninsula is easy to navigate it gets confusing when the sun is beating down and your mouth is dry.

Wanting to help people experience the trail in safe and supported surrounds led my husband — Steve Farnham; a fellow Fitzmaurice-inspired trail runner, to set up some pop-up trail challenges. Assisted by a small, committed band of volunteers and with a “leave no trace” motto – the challenges incurred no entry fee and offered no prizes, no medals, and no t-shirts.

The thinking was simply to get runners sharing the off-road experience and enjoying the desert environment. Water at the event was kindly sponsored by Rayyan water, a company renowned here in Qatar for sports-based CSR activities. We are also indebted to IRM Offshore Services who offered some financial support in purchasing course marking apparatus (more of that later).

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And so the Ultra Trail Qatar – Oryx Run Series born, with the first event in November 2015 featuring a 15km or 30km run. Devoid of the regular race incentives, we were somewhat overwhelmed by the numbers signing up. Each race day in the series was capped at 60 runners, logistically we couldn’t cope with more, yet every entry list was full, but we squeezed 64 into the first event of the season. The December event saw runners tackle a 20km or 40km run, with a final 25km or 50km run in January, where entrants had the opportunity to tackle the widely acknowledged minimum entry-level ultra distance. We believe this was the first time a 50km “trail race” had been run in Qatar.

All Ultra Trail Qatar runs have water stations every 10-12km crewed by amazing volunteers, who got increasingly more generous as the season progressed, adding fruit, nuts and sweets to the provisions on offer.

The events were timed via webscorer so that runners had an idea of how quickly they had completed the track, generally learning if not always accepting that progressing across country means going much slower than on road. Rather than runner versus runner, the ethos was runner versus trail.

Keen to leave no mark on the delicate desert environment, we marked the first event with arrows laid in all-purpose baking flour. Rapidly realizing however that it’s not easy to spot a flour arrow on a flat landscape, we had to come up with a better method or risk having runners dispersing in all directions.

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Following a moment of inspiration, Steve came up with the idea of using helium filled balloons, tied to gas pipes, or with strings looped under piles of rocks, or simply attached to the wing-mirrors of cars. These massive red beacons, high in the sky, enabled runners to choose their own trail, hopefully the optimum route, and go point to point.

During the season Ultra Trail Qatar supported over 100 new-to-trail runners of 15 plus nationalities in taking to the desert. Footprints were left, many selfies were snapped, but more importantly many more memories made and friendships galvanized.

As the summer heat beckons, we’ll be having a final desert fling in mid February with a social group run and barbecue before saying farewell to the trails until the winter.


Visit Sarah Whittington’s blog on trail running mainly in Qatar at http://dustyrunner.com/


Words by: Sarah Whittington

Photos by: Noel Cuarton, Stephen Blows, Tim Harman and Sarah Whittington