I saw an “Eco-Challenge” week-long team race a few years back. This one was in Borneo. A British Army team was in it. One phase was about a 50 mile jungle run. The Brits stopped and aired their feet and changed socks about every two hours. Feet in the air, the whole 9 yards. Because of these stops they fell further and further behind on the first day.
It was classic tortoise-and-hare. They passed every other team as one by one somebody’s foot issue made them a casualty. (You had to complete as a team, no left-behinds).
Super studly Olympic-caliber athletes who train in gyms or on roads and then take a shower and put on fresh clothes have no concept of what days in the jungle will do to your body, especially your feet.
Yep. I played soccer from the time I was six through college, did lots of orienteering and spelunking and that was before going into the Army. One can never underestimate the value of healthy feet. No matter how heavy a ruck I would hump, there was always room for one more ziplock sandwich bag with a pair of clean dry socks; worth their weight in gold. I still do a lot of recreational backpacking/camping, though now I have to pay for the equipment.
Bingo ..... what was the saying ? “It’s not how fast you go but how far you go fast.” or something to that effect ..... ENDURANCE !