BOMF- 16k race up Mt. Kenya while straddling 2 hemispheres

6k (3 and 3/4 miles) to go, about 10,000ft above sea level, I took a glance behind me and there he was just 100 meters away....a heart wrenching feeling having ascended so far all alone. I quickly commenced a mentally taxing, tactical triage as I calculated a way to create enough distance between us. The tactic, an acceleration at each of these acute gradient switchbacks in the oxygen depleted air that might establish just enough distance causing the chase to abort....

From 16K up to Mt. Kenya to 11800ft

Physical activity has not been my strength while being in Nairobi. The roads lacking sidewalks, the reckless Kenyan drivers nor the client's demands are conducive to a regular exercise routine. So when an email populated my outlook requesting someone to fill a spot in a 16k (~10 miles)race up Mt. Kenya (from 7800ft to 11800ft)I apprehensively accepted. Influenced by the fact that I would at least get to see Mt. Kenya even if I knew it was going to be a struggle to traverse the 16K up the mountain.

Police shakedown and a series of unfortunate events

Seamless...would not be the way I describe Kenya. Undiscovered intrinsic potential yes. From observation Kenyans work hard performing the most routine of tasks. This includes basic transportation. Like attempting to catch a ride by running alongside a matatu (Nairobi's version of a shuttle bus each characteristically displaying their unique flair)as it navigates traffic to jump in and fill a slight gap in an already tightly packed vehicle. Machines (mostly cars and Matatus) are pushed to their limit as drivers weave through traffic to minimize any gap between them and the nearest vehicle in their horizon.