Southern Traverse
Kathmandu Bush Bash into the Lead
Michael Jacques / 15.11.2004
From Hokitika's main street, where local school children lined the streets to send the 26 teams from nine countries on their way, the race headed uphill into the Blue Spur Forest where they found knee-deep mud holes and a steep, rocky trail ridden downhill to Lake Kaniere.
As Governer General Dame Silvia Cartwright started the event, locals chanted "Kathmandu, Kathmandu, Kathmandu ..." in support of their heavily favoured local team. But two hours into the 430km course, five-day course the American team, GoLite Timberland held a 2min lead as they left Lake Kaniere shore and continued inland.
Behind the Americans, who are led by Kiwi Aaron Prince, came Sweden's Team Lundhag Adventure and then the race favourites Team Kathmandu. GoLite are the third ranked team in America and the Swedes are the seventh ranked team in the world, but Kathmandu have local knowledge in their favour thanks to the Hamilton brothers Duncan and Hamish who have been born and bred on the West Coast.
The West Coast of New Zealand's South Island is legendary for three things: wild countryside, wild people and wild weather. The Hamilton's know all about all three and on the start line a few hours earlier Duncan Hamilton spoke of the weather and the high mountain treks as making the big difference in his year's race.
Last night, on the eve of the 2005 Southern Traverse, the weather had issued it's first warning. As competitors filed into Hokitika's historic Regent Theatre, where race director Geoff Hunt would reveal the physical horrors that await them this week, the roof reverberated with sound of a heavy rain that is promised to haunt them all week.
Inside Hokitika's historic Regent Theatre Geoff Hunt talked of bringing the adventure back into his adventure race, which established in 1991 is the longest running expedition-type race in the world. In recent years the Southern Traverse has been held around major centres. But this year's event heads back into the backcountry.
Hunt's race this year promises wild, high mountain treks, some in regions that have seen only 60 people in 10 years. There is also a healthy smattering of grade two white water kayaking, which with Kiwis being the recognised world leaders in the kayak could also be a factor. But for once, an adventure race might be won on the bike.
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