Desafios de Los Volcanoes

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Rescues and Volcanoes

Wladimir Togumi (SleepMonsters Brazil) / 22.02.2006

Team Antibala, from Argentina, was the winner of 6th edition of Desafio de Los Volcanes Elaion. With 50 teams taking part from 15 countries the race started in the city of Valdivia, Chile and 33 of them arrived at the finish in Quila Quina, in Argentina.

The race started in the Pacific Ocean off Southern Chile and later moved inland, up the rivers that cross Valdivia into the interior. After 7 hours of paddling on a course of 62km p the river Futa the first teams arrived in the PC2, taking their bikes and riding into the mountains. It was already night when the last teams had finished the paddle and the race continued into the mountain ranges of the Andes, passing Paillaco (PC3) and arriving in a small town called Llifén.

In Llifén, where PC4 was situated next to Ranco Lake, the support cars waited for the teams to deliver kayaks and to receive the bicycles at the end of the 100km stage. But to reach the lake and start the second leg of paddle, the teams had to carry the boats approximately 1 km, without any aid from the support crew. The teams had been told this in the briefing and some had found trolleys to save their arms and backs.

The lead was disputed here between two Argentine teams (Antibalas and Mamulyafu) and Team Sole from North America, and on the second night the most dramatic event of the race of this year happened.

First the boat sailed by Ezio Mucelli and Nerea Martinez capsized in cold waters of the Ranco Lake. Immediately, the second boat from the Argentine team went to help their friends, but Javier Paschetta and Marcos Barrantes had the same luck and they too capsized.See All Event Posts