“You can’t walk without leaving footprints, you can’t eat without sand in your food, and you can’t not get excited when you see the red flag.” Although it has been a month since returning to Tianjin, the three days of desert hiking through flying sand, fierce winds, and scorching sun still linger in the minds of Nankai University MBA students. “The hardship was unimaginable for ordinary people, almost making you feel like you might die.” Recently, 14 students who completed the challenge received their achievement certificates from the organizing committee of the 2nd Asia-Pacific Business Schools Desert Challenge.
These everyday white-collar professionals hiked 65 kilometers through the Tengger Desert in the Alxa region over three days. Faced with nine-level gales that made it hard to stand, scorching suns that caused them to sweat profusely, and even hallucinations of seeing oases, these first-time participants from Nankai University not only achieved results but also gained a unique spiritual experience. This year, Nankai University was the only one among the 30 university teams nationwide to have a full team of participants, with all 14 members completing this “devilish race.”
The beautiful desert can be overwhelming
The Desert Challenge is conducted in the form of lightweight desert trekking. Each day, participants carry a light load of 10 kilograms (essential items for that day’s hike) and trek 15–30 kilometers to reach the endpoint, where they camp at fixed desert campsites for the night. The competition spans three days, recording daily and overall team and individual scores. Participant Wang Ru told reporters that this was Nankai University’s first time joining the event. Out of 423 participants from 30 teams, only 310 completed the entire course.
The Nankai Business School MBA Center only received the invitation in March this year. After comprehensive evaluations including physical fitness, 14 students were ultimately selected as “desert challenge” team members. In addition, five teachers from Nankai accompanied the team, though their results were not counted in the competition.
“Stepping into the desert, it looks as if nature has laid down a golden carpet here.” Upon first arriving in the desert, participant Wang Yiwen was immediately awestruck by its beauty. But as they truly entered the Tengger Desert, the challenge participants felt overwhelmed: on the first day, walking along the desert ridges, the wind was extremely strong, reaching nine levels—what could only be described as a real “sandstorm.” Despite being fully geared up, fine sand still managed to find its way into ears, mouths, nostrils, eyes, and every other gap. On the second day, while climbing over dunes, although the wind wasn’t as fierce, the desert felt as if it was on fire.
Mutual support reveals the beauty of life
To persist or to give up? This was almost the most agonizing question in the minds of participants each day when they were on the verge of despair. On the first day of desert hiking, female participant Yan Jun encountered a student from a southern university whose teammates had dropped out but who had accidentally taken his supplies with them. With no supplies of his own, he approached Yan Jun for help. In the desert, water is extremely precious, and many are reluctant to share even a sip. But Yan Jun gave him her own food and water, and he accompanied her for more than ten kilometers. “He ended up dropping out too, but if it weren’t for our mutual support, I might not have made it either,” said Yan Jun.
In the desert, a word of encouragement from a teammate is as precious as water. Countless times, students wanted to give up, but they encouraged each other by saying, “Let’s go, I’ll just follow your footprints.” “Look ahead, the red flag of the supply point is calling us.” It was this spirit of mutual aid that enabled all the Nankai participants to reach the finish line.
After the race, the participants collected all the trash they generated in the desert and planted trees together. Revering nature is the best way to respect life—a lesson the participants took to heart the most.