X-adventure Raid Series Grand Final
Blowing a Storm in the Pacific
Ben Bardsley / 29.10.2003
You could be forgiven for thinking New Caledonia was an area of Canada, or a region in Scotland. I for one was surprised to discover that it was a small French speaking Island, 2 hours by plane East of Sydney, Australia.It is still a concept I cannot quite comprehend, being jetted half way around the world for a weekend race. Still, no one was complaining, it would be a great experience and probably would be a place I otherwise may never visit.
Pre-race preparation included snorkelling, scuba diving (with sharks!), sailing and windsurfing (for those that could get it up … and only Pete could) Our baggage didn’t arrive, which was perhaps just as well, since the 9-seater hire van we picked up at 2 am presented itself in the form of a saloon car!
Our digs were simple, but had some great bare essentials- quality cappuccinos on a funky veranda, good homecooking and a laid back attitude. In fact the whole island had a relaxed feel…dreads and sandals were de rigeur. Reggae in the restaurant was quite uplifting.
The race start list was very impressive – Land Rover G4 and AROC came over from Oz with very strong teams. There were several local teams - one of whom had won the Raid Gauloises on three occasions! All the top teams from the raid series races were also present. We had high hopes, but in reality a podium position would be a fine achievement.
The start line was near the town of La Foa on the West Coast. Racing inland for over two hours up an estuary we were only 4 minutes off the lead. A good effort considering the canoe was losing pressure.
Next up was the blade from hell. Uphill, with over 5 Km on rough tracks … I wouldn’t have wanted to go there even on my road bike! Several kilometres had to be run, but our training paid off as we only lost five minutes in one hour.
Our trump card was to be the mountain run. Up through dense rainforest, the descent was in a canyon and on a very rough track slashed through the vegetation. By the summit we had taken the lead. Teams chasing hard came into view on the descent, but this only served to drive us on harder. We gained over ten minutes on all the other teams, which proved a real winner for us. See All Event Posts
