Land Rover G4 Challenge
Getting High on Competition
16.05.2006
With the two big Europeans disabled by the effects of the thin mountain air, the rest of the competitors voted for their partners Victor of Taiwan and Gabriel Maldonado of Spain to not be allowed to score in their absence.
Knowing that he would not score, Victor decided to endure the pain of the Stage Start competition regardless. “This is really special scenery,� he said of the world’s largest salt lake - Salar de Uyuni - on which the competition by mountain bike, Land Rover vehicles and on foot was held. “But more importantly I want to do every part of the Challenge. I have come all this way. I want to do it.�
A shimmering flat of salt up to 4 metres deep and peppered with cacti-impregnated islands including the oddly named Isla del Pescador (Fisherman’s Island), the salt lake does occasionally flood as subterranean Andean aquifers force water up to the surface. On Monday though, the lake was dry and crusty.
“The aim of the task today is for the teams to cycle to one of the islands, collect the keys for their car and the electronic dibbers (scoring markers) and meet their partner (who had to climb another island), memorise the shape of four more distant islands before driving out onto the lake to identify the islands from memory. First one back is the winner,� explained Competitions Director Simon Day.
Despite the thin air, the 16 remaining competitors blasted off at breakneck speed – half haring across the Hollywood smile-white salt and half scrabbling up the crumbling volcanic rock of the island – trying to avoid the razor-sharp cacti.
Australian Alina McMaster was the first biker back but she had to wait for Eleonora Audra of Brazil to climb back down the mountain before they could start the memory test out on the lake.
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