The Wilderness ARC
A Welcome in Fort William
Rob Howard / 27.05.2006
The weather in Fort William was a wet and cold as teams began their predations for the Wilderness ARC, but they received a warm welcome from the race staff and the town is buzzing with activity as it’s also hosting the Mountain Bike World Cup this weekend.Teams were arriving late into Friday night and the early morning hours of Saturday, with the Swedish team, PS Communication, not reaching Fort William until 04.00. Not surprisingly they were one of the last teams into registration in the Nevis Centre in the morning, but they were just happy to be in Scotland, their first visit to the country, and to arrive with all their equipment.
“We have all our boxes and bikes,� said team captain Magnus Persson, “and that is always a relief. We flew Ryan Air and it was the best ever, as we could book and pay for all our bikes and boxes, with other airlines it’s much harder.�
Their team had a couple of replacements due to injury in the weeks leading up to the race, but they are still one of the most experienced international teams here and should not be phased by the colder than normal weather.
All the teams registered Saturday morning and then attended a race introduction where they all spoke briefly. Total-adventure.co.uk have returned after their 3rd place last year and are the only team to come back with same 4 team members, including husband and wife, Paul and Sam Noble. They know Scottish conditions well and have opted to use dry suits for the paddling and canyoning stages, which were still on their way by courier. In his introduction Paul said, “We’re hoping for a good race and some bad weather conditions as we’ll do better then.�
He may get his wish as Monday’s forecast is for freezing conditions on the summits with snow and hail. After a spell of unseasonably cold weather with lots of rain the rivers are full and water temperatures low.See All Event Posts
