National Indoor Adventure Race

The Final

Rob / 21.03.2002

Parrot/Lythgoe were feeling the effects of the heats. They walked back into the arena for the final with joints aching and hands blistered from the climbing. This was a common problem and the abrupt end to the zip wire wasn’t too popular either – the jolt was a severe and muscle stretching shock to the system. “I’ve got a bad shoulder�, said Jim Davies of Parrot/Lythgoe, “and am dreading that zip. Got to be careful throwing the bikes over the ramp too. I’ve only got one!�

But this was the final and everyone was up for it, though the extra hour was daunting. Genetic Potential were paired with Parrot/Lythgoe as the 2 top qualifiers. They started on the key stage, the simulators, and it was battle royale from the outset. Nicky Davies began climbing and somehow clung on, even when the angle was so acute she was almost hanging upside down. She climbed through and was the only climber to complete the full route, racking up a big points advantage as Fiona Lothian sat and watched. The same thing happened to Marc Laithwaite, he slipped and fell early on, then, disgusted with himself, had to sit and watch Jim Davies climb on, and on, and on.

Anna McCormack joined The North Face to replace Astrid Wheatcroft who was ill. Like most of the racers she would rather have been outdoors. “I was looking up at the race pictures on the big screen while waiting to get back on climbing wall and thinking ‘Take me home’!�

The interim results coming up onto the screen showed the competition was always close, between the 2 leaders, and also between the other 4 teams. The halls were full as the show was a sell out and the crowd were cheering and encouraging teams on. As the hours ticked by the pace and intensity of competition never eased, if anything it increased right up to the final laps.

At the end it was still between Parrot/Lythgoe and Genetic Potential, who finished on the speed stage. Genetic Potential were behind but making an all out effort against the tiring leaders, they set off on the last stage determined to lap the leaders. Each time the teams circled the arena and disappeared outside for the run the gap closed and when they came back in the crowds were cheering their favourites on.

The atmosphere was electric and the last time they made the circuit Genetic Potential reached the bike ramp just as Parrot/Lythgoe crossed. Dan Corner just picked his bike up and hurled it straight over, only afterwards saying, “I threw it without even thinking whether there was anyone on the other side! I was getting a bit carried away.�

In the end it wasn’t enough and Parrot/Lythgoe won by a narrow margin, a great performance considering they’d raced the previous afternoon. “It was the climbing which made the difference�, said Jim Davies, but the scores show they gained considerably on the technical stage too, despite his sore shoulder. Behind the two leaders it couldn’t have been closer. The North Face took 3rd, but there were only 56 points between the 3rd and 5th.

Come the end of the show everyone was aching, battered, bruised and blistered (no difference there then), and the general feeling was the idea was a success. It had been a perfect showcase for the sport in the UK at a major event, so as a publicity exercise it couldn’t have been better. The show organisers have already indicated they want to include it again, but it will probably stay as one-off annual event.

Jim Davies summed things up. “My true love is the outdoors and I still won’t be doing any training in the gym!�

[There is an mpeg clip of Dan Corner struggling to throw his bike over the ramp on the Dream Team T.V. web site.]