Bimbache Extrem

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The Race Slows and Team Finland Catch Up

Rob Howard / 23.03.2006

During day 2 of Bimbache Extrem the race went into ‘AR Time’, a strange phenomenon where time stretches, the teams take many hours longer than expected and whole days can disappear while marshals, team supporters and media wait for something to happen.

The leading teams were expected to complete the mountain trek and ropes stage around 9am/10am on Wednesday morning, finishing with a high and exposed tyrolean traverse spanning the gorge above Zunheros. This was where most of those following the race waited - for most of the day. It wasn’t until 15.01, that the leaders Lundhags Adventure arrived to finish a stage which had taken far longer than expected. Their experience of ‘AR time’ was a more painful one of slow trekking across the mountains, footsore, hungry and dehydrated.

“We were glad we took some water purifying tablets,� said Bjorn Rydvall, “we used them all as the only water we found was pretty dirty and we are still really thirsty. We are short of food too, but you know, when you are so thirsty you can’t eat much anyway.� He didn’t say how footsore they were, but it showed and all the teams will come off this stage with sores and blisters which will need attention.

Race Director Antionio de la Rosa explained that only two of them (including the female in the team) needed to cross the 185m tyrolean which spanned the upper part of the gorge from a panoramic viewpoint above the town. Once across they would run down into town to the transition and meet up with their team mates, who ran directly down the road. The planned rappel in the bottom of the gorge had been called off earlier.

The rest of his news wasn’t received too enthusiastically. “Now you will have only a 3 hour mandatory stop, as you had 95 minutes yesterday, and the next kayak stage is cancelled as we need to catch up some time.� See All Event Posts