Raid the North Canadian Championship

Rob / 16.09.2003

This coming weekend top teams from N. America and Canada will be competing at the Raid the North Canadian Championship at the Canadian Ecology Centre, in Mattawa, Ontario. And the good news is SleepMonsters.com will be hosting the leaderboard and reporting coverage of the race as it happens (as we did with Raid the North Extreme recently).

Raid the North is Canada’s best known 36 hour adventure race series, and each first place team from the qualifying races has earned the right, by racing hardest and fastest, to wear the race winner’s yellow competitor’s bib, nicknamed the ‘Golden Fleece’ - during this National Championship event. The Rest of the Best, the second and third place teams from each prior race will race in their own blue or red competitor’s bibs, so it’s going to be a colourful and competitive race.

The 2½ day wilderness race starts September 19th at 8:00am and runs until 4:00pm, nonstop, on Sunday the 22nd on a 250 km course of trekking, mountain biking, canoeing and ropework. Teams will compete for $15,000 CDN in prizing and be eligible for draw prizes including a weekend getaway for 4 with accommodation, lift tickets, rentals, and ski lessons from Searchmont Resort.

We have some of the top teams in Canadian and American racing registered to compete for the Championships, said Frontier Adventure Racing President Geoff Langford, “The course we have planned will take racers through some of the most beautiful terrain in the Canadian Shield and we are very pleased to be working the Canadian Ecology Centre and the Mattawa community. It’s a great opportunity for people to get a feel for some of the history and culture of the area.”

Either side of the race competitors, spectators, volunteers and race staff will have the opportunity to experience some of the unique facilities at the center as well. It’s best described as a learning environment where technology and modern thinking allow more understanding of the surrounding forest and wilderness. So there will be the chance to paddle Voyageur canoes, mountain bike an abandoned Mica Mine and “Howl back and forth with nearby wolf packs\" ...! (Hope there are not too many roaming the course.)

“We are looking forward to hosting the participants. Not only will they enjoy the hospitality and complete facilities, I also think the terrain and challenges will be memorable,” said Bill Steer, Education Manager at the Centre. ”The Mattawa River is a Canadian Heritage River and its national significance is important to the race. I think participants will come away with a better understanding of this natural and cultural heritage.”

The center will act as race HQ and communications should be good – every cabin is wired to the internet and there is a 15-station computer lab linked to GPS units and topographic map creation facilities. No excuse for missing any of the race coverage then!