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World Championship Entries Open Soon

Rob / 02.12.2003

Raid the North Extreme has always been a popular international race, with it’s real wilderness expedition format and a reputation for uncompromising courses in the Canadian outback. The race was an inspired choice for next year’s Adventure Racing World Championship, and with only 50 places available any teams hoping to take part will need to get their entries in soon. Registration opens on December 10th.

The venue has not been announced yet, but organisers Frontier Adventure Racing are promising a RTNX unlike any other. Here’s what they have planned: “In classic Raid the North style, we are building a course that traverses the landscape as nature would have it – and as historic explorers already have. Working with experienced world-class adventure racers, this will be an event of historic proportions. The race will take competitors through one of Canada’s most historic, yet least explored, regions. Honouring the traditions of the host region, and the traditions of adventure racing, the race will include off-trail trekking, mountain biking, ropes and paddling on flat and moving water.”

“Known for its highly unpredictable weather, the venue could grace competitors with stunningly perfect weather, or it could impact the finish rate with intense rain and wind. The maps are encouragingly devoid of roads, settlements, and symbols of man. They are, however, scattered with the opportunity of exploration. Cliffs and valleys, open expanses, water large and small, moving and still. Heights with vistas ... depths of marsh and swamp. Competitors will experience it all, and never forget it!”

Teams will be competing between August 1-8th for a prize purse of $100,000 CDN and the title of Adventure Racing World Champions. Some of the available places are already filled as teams who have won World Series events are guaranteed an entry. The series currently includes Beast of the East (USA), Expedicao Mata Atlantica (Brazil), Explore Sweden, Appalachian Extreme (USA) and New Zealand’s Southern Traverse, but more races may be added. Teams who won places in qualifying events since the last world final in Switzerland in 2001 will have their places honoured in Canada too.

Those who want to join them need to get on-line on www.raidthenorth.com at 10AM EST on Wednesday, December 10 to register an application. The will need to outline their nationality, skills and accomplishments, and the 50 teams selected will be announced early in 2004.