Teaching on the run: Life lessons from a 100-mile expedition in the Indian desert

By Rebecca Byerly, Contributor / January 3, 2012

Rajasthan, India

Over the past five days, 18-year-old Canadian Emma Cook-Clarke and three other young people from India and the United States have run more than 100 miles through the Thar Desert, a seemingly endless, sweltering stretch in northwest India.

Except for the occasional passing camel herd, grazing water buffalo, groups of surprised children, and huge horn-squelching trucks, the route is monotonous.

To do a more thorough job reporting on the feat, this reporter decided to join the run. It's my first day and I lag a quarter mile behind. Only 10 miles in, I already want to quit. Though I'm an experienced ultramarathon runner, this is one of the most difficult terrains I have ever traversed. It's hot, flat, and seems to go on forever.

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