At -22°C, your morning coffee freezes in your hand as you drink it. Your food goes cold after one bite. Your gaiter freezes onto your face as you inhale. "Why would anyone want to go through this willingly?" was my exact thought on day two of my 100-mile ultra run in Mongolia, but looking back now, I learned a lot from this experience, especially about how to camp like a pro when you’re exposed to such harsh conditions.
Rat Race’s Mongol 100 is a one-of-a-kind adventure. The challenge sees participants traverse the entirety of Lake Khovsgol, a huge body of fresh water in northern Mongolia, on foot, skates or bike, covering around 100 miles in four days. When you aren’t moving, you sleep in traditional Mongolian gers, round tents covered with comparatively thick material such as animal skin or felt.
