Patagonian Expedition Race

Hot Off The Press: The Patagonian Expedition Race Team List

Anne-Marie Dunhill / 01.11.2018

The thirteenth edition of the Patagonian Expedition Race will be taking place from November 17-30 in Patagonia Chile. This iconic race, simply referred to as PER amongst seasoned adventure racers, is known for it’s brutal, challenging race route through the wilds of one of the remotest locations on the planet.  Each edition takes the teams of four racers through a different part of this pristine environment. In the past, racers have navigated their way through the Southern Continental Ice Field, the Strait of Magellan, Torres del Paine, Tierra del Fuego, and the Beagle Channel.

According to the race website, “The race follows an expedition format, where teams composed of four competitors (at least one man and one woman) must use navigational skills to interpret a race map … to find a route that will guide their team autonomously between disciplines, such as kayak, trekking, mountain bike, and/or others, in order to reach the finish line within a maximum time limit of 10 days. Race strategy, teamwork, and navigational skills are the key factors for completing the Patagonian Expedition Race.”

Although the format will remain the same, one major change is the month in which the event will take place; the Patagonian Expedition Race usually takes place in the month of February (one of the three summer months at this latitude.) With the race being held in November for this 13th edition, teams can expect longer days but also colder weather.

The race director, Stjepan Pavicic, and his organizing team have been hard at work tracing the route for this edition. A professional geologist, the RD has been out on numerous expeditions to scout the locations; although the race route won’t be revealed until 24 hours before the race start, teams can be sure that they’ll be in for a wild ride. It’s with good reason that the BBC has referred to this race as “The Last Wild Race.”

SleepMonsters was delighted to pin down the elusive race director long enough to obtain the team list for the 13th edition. So let’s see who will be heading down to the end of the world to play.

There are eleven teams on the finalized list with members representing twelve different countries: Japan, USA, Denmark, Canada, Ireland, United Kingdom, Brazil, Romania, Poland, Italy, Spain, and France.

Here is the team list;

East Wind (Japan):Masato Tanaka, Machiko Nishii, Yasuhiro Takahama, and Koki Yasuda

Bend Racing/YogaSlackers (USA, Denmark, Canada): Jason Magness, Chelsea Magness, Lars Bukkehave, and Alexandre Provost

Dar Dingle (Ireland, UK): Noel O'Leary, Caroline Bullard, Ailise Deane, and Kevin O'Brien

Xtreme Operations Racing (USA): Jeff Thramann, Alan Villavicencio, Dennis Villavicencio and Arlette O'Rourke                                              

Terra de Gigantes Selva (Brazil): Carlos Eduardo Ribeiro Fonseca, Philipe Campello, José Elias Martins, and Mariana Pontes Marques

Equipe Harpya XP Investimentos (Brazil): Fausto Silva, Diogo De Sordi, Pedro Alex Viana, and Paula Barros

Climbing the World (Romania): Vasile Osean, Alexandru Diaconu, Monica Manicuta, and Ionut Olteanu

Spirit of Poland (Poland): Rafal Nowakowski, Piotr Szymczak, Robert Przytula and Marta Naglik         

Freemind Italy (Italy): Marco Ponteri, Telemaco Murgia, Laura (Cristina) Rossi (Fusco) and Andres Bonelli

Columbia Vidaraid (Spain, Brazil): Urtzi Iglesias Mota, Marco Amselem, Barbara Bomfim and Saul Abril

Patagonia 4 Barth (France): Olivier Renard, Frederic Décamps, Céline Décamps and Olivier Décamps

SleepMonsters will be publishing further information about the teams, as well as interviews, in the lead-up to the “Last Wild Race.”

Race website: https://www.patagonianexpeditionrace.com