Journalist Report
11/12/2014
Dario Parastesh
MARTIAN ULTRAMARATHONS
Good morning...it's November the 12th. Today has been so cold here in MDRS. Warm wishes from Earth could help a little bit. Most
of us woke up at 7.00 a.m., and today I was the crew cooker, so I prepared the breakfast. What else to start with ham, eggs, and
Hashbrown potatoes? Maybe with some tortillas? That's it...breakfast ready guys!! They probably appreciated that as 4 folks of our
crew were going to deal with an arduous EVA. Again, I was the HABCom (now officially). After the dishes were cleaned, I got ready
for my work. Guys were in the prep room since 9.00 a.m. hoping the materials required for the long planned trip. 9.35 a.m. marked
the entering in the Airlock room. As the same procedure which for the previous EVA was respected was to attend the 5 minutes
decompressurinzing until exiting outside, the team waited for that in a professional way. Just a small snag was encountered since
the crew asked for a repressurizing and few moments later a new repressurizing. Then they stepped away. Which the purpose
today? Quite easy, moving out to selected waypoints and then repeat it 3-4 times. Whaaaaat?? Are you guys crazy? With the helmets
and the suits? Instead, this is necessary, as our FMARS Sea-Ice project foresee a long harsh walk. People are expecting a lot from us,
we're just rewarding them. Our heroes began likely as tough as an an ultramarathon circuit by passing three major points starting
from the HAB (obviously) I reassume here:
- 12 S / E 0518078 : N 4251880
- 12 S / E 0518919 : N 4252397
- 12 S / E 0519418 : N 4250111
And me, supporting for any request, timing peace and keeping tracks records. But the morning was not just HABCom, since Vincent
was in the GreenHab taking care of our precious fastly growing radishes and chards (someone grow faster than others but don't
care about that). We were all busy as every day spent on Mars, while Vincent and I looked for any sprouting. Vincent was so careful
in reporting and explaining me how plants attempt in finding their way to life that I stared for a while, marveling at the beauty of
nature, so plain and complex in a magnificent alter-ego. Great, and thanks Vincent for that moment of sheer human beauty.
Meanwhile, the EVA crew was on its way to complete their ultramarathon...uhm uhm...not properly since they got the first whole
circuit at almost 3.00 p.m., probably not the fastest peace expected, however it's a start. Fine guys!!
Meantime, Vincent and I were preparing some boiling water given the cold weather scouring us today, so having some tea ready to
administer to the fellows...
They went back to the HAB at 4.40 p.m. and we were surprisingly glad to see they were just as healthy as a runner at its
ultramathon's first kilometer. Well, it was not an ultramarathon regarding the length, anyway they showed us bringing a backpack
and a suit does not change so long things as the will to overtake situations and catch up the final goal push you to whatever you
want, even running an ultramarathon on Mars...