Hello there, JFC-ers!

Greetings from Marrakesh, where I arrived this morning on a night train from Tangier, after a busy week of meeting like-minded travellers passing through Valencia on their week-long race to Marrakesh.

After departing London’s Herne Hill Velodrome at 10:30 AM on Saturday morning, the seven fastest racers had already made it to Marrakesh — via 5 other checkpoints — by 3 AM on Tuesday. Before crossing the finish line of the food-themed race, they had one last task to complete: snapping a pic at renowned street food spot, Chez Lamine.

The victory ultimately went to three-time-racer Sam, who eagle-eyed Detour readers may remember from the delightful interview she gave us last year, ahead of the second race to Albania. Take a look back here.

Regardless whether they were going for gold or just enjoying the adventure, all racers had to make their way across the English Channel to Paris and complete their first task, which depended on their onward route. From they had the choice of three routes; The Pilgrim’s Picnic, The Mountain Goat, and The Island Hopper. 

The first would take them to St Jean Pied de Port in the Basque Region before plodding onwards to Santiago de Compostela. The next option saw racers zigzagging down to Chamonix in the Alps and then across to Andorra, while the final route took them to Toulon on the Côte d'Azur and then across the Med to Palma de Mallorca.

Next up, they’d all converge on Valencia, where Team JFC were waiting to greet them for a couple of drinks and a travel-themed pub quiz. Of course, the speediest racers didn’t hang around for our social evening, while the back of the pack — mostly country counters — are only just passing through now!

From there, everyone had to set sail for Tangier, with most boarding a ferry in either Algeciras or Tarifa. Before changing continents, however, many of the more leisurely racers have made the most of southern Spain’s high-speed rail network and found time for beach days and sunrise summits of the Rock of Gibraltar. 

But ultimately, to complete the race on time, everyone must make it across the finish line in Marrakesh’s Tinsmith Square by 5 PM this evening. With some adventurers heading as far north as Sweden, or as far east as Hungary, it remains to be seen whether that will actually come to pass…

Happy travels and safe landings,