Independent Networks Adrenalin Rush
Fast, Slow and Standing Still
Rob / 27.05.2003
By the end of the second day of the race the leading teams and the back markers are almost a day apart and the gap is widening. As darkness fell on Tuesday night the leaders, still The North Face, were trekking across the Five Sisters of Kintail. The mountains were cloaked in thick mist which had settled over the high ground throughout the afternoon and gradually reached down to the valleys. All the leading teams have slept today, though some for only an hour. The North Face were lucky to find a bothy between PC15 and PC17 which had sleeping bags in it, only three though! Their pursuers, OK Renault Adventure Sport also slept for a while and The North Face have maintained a lead of around 2 hours much of the day. (They left PC17 exactly 2 hours in the lead.)
It’s by no means a two horse race though as Speleo Dec and Thomas Cook both gained time during the day and they are having a great battle between themselves. At PC17 the British team arrived a minute behind and left a minute earlier than the Poles, and both their transitions were much quicker than the two lead teams. Total Adventure Sealskinz will also feel they can make up time on the second big trekking stage. “The Polish team passed us looking so strong,� said Paul Noble, “but we’ll keep chasing and see what happens.�
The teams at the back of the field left the transition point at PC15 at around 4pm, after sleeping in their tents through the afternoon. Aventura High5 didn’t make the best of restarts, setting off up the wrong road, but they turned back after 5 minutes or so to take the right way. Right at the back are the remaining 3 members of Active8/Budget Pilgrims.
With the spread of teams increasing the logistical difficulties of supporting the race get more difficult. Marshals and medical staff have to wait longer, but bikes and staff still have to be moved into position in time for the race leaders. Race Director Brian Elliot uses a helicopter to move quickly around the course and to get to inaccessible points like the big abseil at PC21. In the evening he asked the staff, who will be camped there for 48 hours, if they needed anything and got the answer, “Teabags!� Later on he dropped these essential supplies in from the chopper, weighed down with some Mars Bars.See All Event Posts
