XPD Australia
A Hospital Stop
Geoff Hunt (AR World Series Director) / 26.05.2010
Check point 21 is a historic hospital site almost through stage 9, the 130km Mountain bike ride.Approaching this CP I passed two teams - one of the youngest in the competition- Team 28 Outward Bound Australia and another distinct (in pink) team the Macpac Girls On Top (NZ).
This CP is located at the remains of the hospital grounds that was used in 1944-46 during the Pacific campaign. Two army hospitals here covered two square kilometers with 1800 beds
Outward Bound appear a little dazed and have had enough of this bike ride 100kms into it and they will be happy to get off the saddle. They are also a little daunted by the last trek and were asking how long the front teams took to do it. They did not stop at this CP for long - just to punch the control and move on towards Tolga to perhaps refuel before the last few kms to Lake Tinaroo
Macpac Girls arrive and a sleep is called for 15 minutes. They want to arrive at the TA at Lake Tinaroo a little refreshed so that they can move through it quickly and be on the lake. They are asking how long these last two stages have taken the different teams. In the time it has taken to write these words they have all pulled out their sleeping bags and are settling down, but even so, by they time they rest and set off again the 15 minute stop has lasted 40.
Team 38 arrives - at least three of them do. Peter Lally, pulling the tandem wheel load carrier, is not sure where he is. When told this was an old hospital he asks for some drugs.
Alison Friswell reports that they 'got lost last night in the tricky navigational section'. The roads marked on the map at this point are only cattle tracks. All the teams have reported difficulty in this area as the mapped roads do not exist.
After some food 'Where the fukrwe' are on the road again. They are racing unranked after losing Cameron Single after the Misty Mountains stage. They have also been lifted forward from the end of the Walsh River.See All Event Posts
