Raid the North
DirtWorld Adventure Race Team, #22 Takes the Podium!
Doug Doyle / 25.08.2005
Three lead teams were putting the Raid the North Nelson bragging rights up for their motivation as they departed CP5 only minutes apart after 12hours and 40 minutes of racing. Team #25 Helly Hansen, team #31 Mergeo.com and then DART started onto the paddle with only three minutes separating Helly Hansen from Mergeo.com and 5 minutes separating DART from Mergeo.com.
First into CP6 and out of the water was Helly Hansen, then Mergeo.com then DART. The lead teams took the advanced course and by CP6a it was Helly Hansen, then DART with only two minutes separating them: Mergeo.com had fallen back by 41 minutes due to the steep uphill trek and likely fatigue due to the pace set by #25 and #22.
The race to CP6b must have been intense with DART hitting the CP at 22:55 and Helly Hansen at 22:56 – both teams left the CP6b together.
DART’s hard spinning prowess led them into CP7 at 00:31 and Helly Hansen pedalled into to CP7 at 01:34 – the gap only got wider as DART continued their pressure to stay out front and keep their lead – I’m sure they were looking over their shoulders to spot the lights of Helly Hansen and Mergeo.com.
DART didn’t have to look back and took first place with a finish at 02:19 in the morning ahead of second place Helly Hansens’ Denis Fontaine, Cheryl Beatty, Chris Christie and Justin Mark by one hour and 58 minutes.
Mergeo.com took third for a podium finish at 08:55 Sunday morning.
These teams were the only ones to make it through into the advanced section of the course.
With only one team having withdrawn from the course, team #33, One Mind/8 legs and two teams racing unranked, (team #26 Holofiber, where team member Seth Casden broke his collar bone during the first mountain biking section and team #30 Jam Cabins where Sarah Newman had to make the hard decision to take herself out of the race due to breathing difficulties) the finish rate was on this course was high as the remaining teams completed the regular course.
Continuing unranked and finishing the course demonstrates competitiveness and credit should be given to Holofiber and Jam Cabins for their perseverance and dedication to the race. This is not to criticize Team #33’s decision to withdraw from the race as I am not aware of the circumstances surrounding their decision; however I have no doubt that their conclusion to stop moving forward was a difficult one and their only option.
I’ve been told that Team #26, when transitioning to the last paddle, left their maps somewhere other than in the canoe or backpack. When faced with which direction to paddle along Kootenay Lake, north-easterly or south-westerly (or even easier, to turn left or right on the lake,) they employed the standard navigation tool known to adventure racing enthusiasts: a carefully crafted procedural model designed to eliminate unknown variables, subjectivity and personal bias and provide a greater probability of success in determining the correct choice - they opted for a flip of the coin and letting faith guide them to the finish line: they turned left to paddle their canoe northeasterly.
As they paddled and the lake narrowed, the team soon realized that their decision making tool was flawed (most likely by using a foreign coin, probably one tuned for the southern hemisphere) and re-traced their paddle strokes and finally wound up under the arch, finished.
Stephanie Verot, racing with team #20, ‘2hot, 2not’ had a birthday while racing and was greeted at the finish line with the voice of spectators and team mates Jim Doucette, Kailey Mclachlan (daddys’ little princess) and Scott Covey singing happy birthday.
The final team in, team #37, Stadium Dogs crossed the finish line at 12:07 having finished in 17th place, but due to not missing any CP’s they came in ahead of two other teams.
Geoff Langford, Race Director was happy with the race format and course design, noting that the finishing rate was high and injuries were few.
I have a post race interview with Geoff planned to discuss the highlights and the inner workings of the race organization, so stay tuned to “www.sleepmonsters.ca.�
SleepMonsters
