Discover Yourself Racing in Sri Lanka
Rob / 02.01.2004
The Race Directors are Barry Siff and Liz Cadwell of Mountain Quest Adventure, two of the best known names in US racing. They work as instructors at the Balance Bar training camps, and are the joint authors of \'Adventure Racing – The Ultimate Guide\'. Now they\'ve been given the chance to put together a race in a very special location. The course will be in the Central, Southern and Western Provinces of Sri Lanka, an island renowned for it\'s natural beauty.
The race will include the standard disciplines of trekking, mountain biking, abseiling and navigation, but they also plan to include paddling with indigenous boats, white water rafting, caving and snorkelling. The format looks a little different too, with 4 stages of different lengths, ranging from faster single day stages, to a 30 hour endurance section.
There are places for 20 international and 10 local teams (4 person mixed) and there is prize money on offer of US$ 50,000, plus what\'s described as \"a very special gift package for all competitors\". (The winners get $20,000, down to $3,000 for 5th place.) All the entry information is available on the website, and there is a complex entry form which can upload all your team details and pictures.
Aside from the practical details the site makes some interesting claims, such as; \"This would finally become an annual pilgrimage to adventure racing enthusiasts of the world\", and goes on to suggest it\'s the chance for a spiritual journey.
\"Individually, racers will go beyond their perceived limits and collectively they will accomplish given tasks through team dynamics in adhering with Laws of Nature in the wilderness realizing at the end that this race experience is one in which the body is finally broken down in the beginning of letting go of the ego.\"
The bit about breaking your body does not sound encouraging, but if you want a race in a new and exotic location, with experienced Race Directors, this could be the worth a look.
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