During-Race StressorsCramping and Injuries. Cramping and injuries wereissues faced by all the participants, but these were mostproblematic for Bryan, John, and Andrew, ultimatelyleading to their disqualification at the end of Leg 3. Theyeach associated cramping with their inability to cope withthe ambient temperature. John was particularly distressedabout suffering from cramp relatively early in the race.As he started Leg 2, he recalled “everything seemed togo wrong all at once… my legs were cramping within 3km… I was struggling.” During Leg 2, John was shootinga video clip and fell backward “as both legs seized up.”As he came toward the end of Leg 2, he recorded anothervideo clip and said: “I don’t know what happened but[I’m] cramping all the time. I tried to run there justalong the street and… and there’s nothing there.” At thispoint, John was groaning with pain and wincing, and hismental anguish was reflected by him questioning whatwas happening to him. He said “How can that, how can Ihave a cramp on the inside of my thigh and up my back?Someone’s gotta explain that to me.”Although he also experienced cramping due to theheat, the specific problem that ended Andrew’s race wasknee pain. He said:I got scared coming down Leg 2 [a long, steepdescent]. When my knees started really hurting…You know that was definitely gonna impact my race.And that was really frustrating… If I went slow, ithurt just as bad, or more than if I was going fast. SoI went pretty fast down the mountain.It got to the point where “My knees, I don’t know,I just couldn’t handle Leg 2 and then it’s too hard to runLeg 3, so yeah, I think it was definitely the knees. Andthen I’m, ah the heat also slowed me down but that was.I don’t know. If it wasn’t for my knees, I think I wouldhave definitely [finished].”Gastrointestinal Problems. Covering such longdistances requires racers to consume a great deal offood and drink. It was not uncommon for participants toexperience gastrointestinal problems. Of the finishers,other than some early cramping, these problems tendedto become more pronounced during the middle and latterstages of the race. For example, about half-way throughLeg 3, Richard remembered:My stomach was kind of knotted up and nauseous.The food I had eaten felt heavy and the coconut waterin my Camelback was not appealing at all. Eatingwas out of the question as I thought for sure I wouldvomit if I ate… One girl I know from previous raceswho is tough as hell vomited right in front of me…That kind of freaked me out a bit.Tara also faced some problems in this respect duringthe latter part of the race. She started the descent ofMount Hamel (the highest elevation on the course) at10:00 p.m. but “had to pee every 15 min and felt like Ihad little control of my bladder…” She then gave us anexample of how one problem could easily lead to another.At a particular moment, she realized she “had to pee verybadly [very] suddenly” and as she went into the bush torelieve herself she “veered off the trail, tripped in a rut androlled my ankle.” Hence, these gastrointestinal problemsshould not be viewed purely in isolation. Richard’s nauseacreated nutritional problems and uncertainty, and Tara’sproblems directly caused an injury. In these ways thestressor of gastrointestinal problems exacerbated otherconcerns, particularly as the race progressed.