Porsche Outward Bound Adventure Race 2007 - Hong Kong
Mixed Team Success in Hong Kong
Jeanette Holmes-Thomson / 11.04.2007
Shek O beach, Hong Kong was the starting point for this year’s Porsche Outward Bound Adventure Race, which saw mixed team “The North Face� emerge as clear and overall-winners ahead of pre-race favourites “Power Bar Cores�. It was the first time in Asia that a mixed team has won the overall title in an adventure race of this caliber.The race got under way with a beach dash under perfect racing conditions, before heading into the first of several, river gully sections. Power Bar Cores, comprised of regular winners on the Asian adventure race circuit, took the lead, closely follow by The North Face and the leading team in the open division, Adventure Square.
A quick 3km ocean paddle, provided a chance to rest the legs, but it was not long before teams were back on terra firma for another fast trail-running leg, one which deprived oxygen from brains in readiness for the “Protrek Challenge� a test of the competitors cognitive memory skills with crucial time penalties on the line.
The leading 3 teams were all penalty free out of the transition, however Power Bar were out of sight leaders and The North Face and an all male Hong Kong Police Force team were jockeying for 2nd place over a run and river gully section. The North Face, caught sight of Power Bar as they entered the orienteering leg, and team members Blair and Sharpless, Adventure Race World Championship veterans made short work of this section, catapulting The North Face into the lead.
A steep jungle climb, followed by an equally steep and slippery gully descent led teams to a kayak with a twist - 4 team members, 1 kayak and 2 rubber rings, to cover a distance of 3km. On hitting the beach another challenge awaited, with more kayak surprises in the form of a “Porsche Challenge� – fill three balloons with water and use a kayak to carry balloons over a 100m hill to another beach and then paddle to the Spirit of Outward Bound boat with only 2 dragon boat paddles, all while keeping 1 liter of water in the balloons. Easier said than done! See All Event Posts
