hour 18
.
and then there were 12.
iceland finally fell from the ranks of unscathed teams.
.
but they continue to build on their lead,
now 11 yards ahead of malta.
switzerland and vietnam are still inching up on malta.
finland finally lost a runner,
and they are now 1 yard behind singapore
with both of them closing in on vietnam.
.
this is the point in the small country competition where every drop is a tragedy,
and every extra yard managed by a weary competitor is golden.
.
even iceland is not safe,
despite dominating the small division for hours.
and no one behind them has a lock on any place.
.
meanwhile,
the reports of wild weather continue to come in.
morocco is dealing with gale force winds now,
while the finns are running in the rain..
.
439 of the original 544 runners are heading for 75 miles to finish this hour.
75 miles may not sound like much…
.
but it is really far!