Southern Traverse Introduces Prize Money
Rob/Southern Traverse Release / 27.04.2004
The first team across the West Coast finish line in this year’s Southern Traverse will win $30,000 and free entry to the 2005 World Adventure Racing Championships.Director Geoff Hunt has announced that $40,000 in prize money will be allocated to the top three teams. Second place will win $7,000 and $3,000 will go to the third team home. He added; \"The winning team has the added bonus of competing in the world championships next year but the destination has yet to be decided.\"
It’s a significant move for a race that has been running since 1991, (making it one of the longest established races in the world) and which has never before felt the need to introduce prize money.
However, it’s a move welcomed by some regular Southern Traverse competitors. Queenstown\'s Eric Billoud says it takes the race to a new level. \"This is a development we have all been looking forward to and it will be welcomed by everyone who races at a high level and has connections with the Southern Traverse.\"
He commented that adventure racing is costly and sponsorship is often difficult to source and to have the chance to win a substantial cash prize can only be good for competition, adding; \"But it is not only a good development for athletes. It is also good for the Southern Traverse because it stamps it as one of the events on the way up.\"
Prize money has been on the increase recently, especially for the big international races, who are competing to attract the top teams, some of which are now full time, or semi-professional athletes. This level of prize money still can’t compete with the big bucks offered by the likes of Subaru Primal Quest, MSOQ or the Raid World Championships (who all have over $200,000 prize purses), but it will still attract top international teams. Any visitors will have to break the record of home wins to get the top prize though – no team from outside New Zealand has ever won the race.
