Raid Gauloises
Montrail Race for the Finish
Tim Lloyd, Manager Team Saab Salomon / 15.06.2003
For two days they have battled almost neck and neck with the Swedish Team Human Link, but they have since been overtaken by the French team Ertips, and Montrail have extended their lead to 3 hours over the French. There is a good chance that Ertips will make up some time on the Americans on the final 40km canoe stage, but the chance of them taking the lead are all but gone, barring any catastrophes on the water for Montrail. Ertips are now looking good for second place, which will be a fantastic achievement for them, they too have come through very strongly on the second half of the race.
The race for third is still very much on, with only one and a half hours separating Human Link and Extrem team Buff (Spain), both facing a hard trek and canoe to the finish. If the Swede’s run into any trouble, the Spanish will soon be upon them and will be hungry for the final podium spot. The other French team looking for a podium place, VSD Eider have been less fortunate, with the continual sickness that has hampered Giles Lelievre forcing them to retire with the finish almost within their sights. The 2002 champions will be bitterly disappointed, but remain realistic about their fate. “We got 9km into the bike ride but I just couldn\'t keep going. Every time I eat I am sick. We saw a race helicopter overhead and made a big H sign with our arms. It landed nearby and we told them our race was over. That’s life sometimes,� said Giles, no doubt they will be back in 2004. In an act of tremendous sportsmanship, VSD Eider, noticing that Saab Salomon were struggling with the wheelbearings on one of their bike wheels, have loaned a wheel to the Brits who are still racing hard for a top five spot.
The demise of VSD has moved Seagate (NZ) and the British team Saab Salomon up to 5th and 6th places. AT the start of the day there was 2 hours separating these teams, that was due to Seagate opting to race non-stop through the night, while Saab Salomon chose to sleep, hoping that they might be stronger today and through to the finish. This tactic seems like it might have been a good one, with Saab Salomon within just 45 minutes of the Kiwis at the halfway point of the final MTB stage. With a trek and canoe to the finish, these two teams are almost certain to be fighting their own battle for fifth spot, with fourth and third now slipping further from their grasp and looking almost impossible to achieve at this late stage of the race.
One thing that will definitely have pleased the race organisation is the fact that the top of the leader board is a totally international field, with the first 8 teams being from a different nation. The qualifying system for the Raid Gauloises seems to have achieved the objective of bringing all of the Worlds best teams together, this will be further reflected in the 2004 Raid, with the 2003 Raid series making visits to the Australasia as well as the USA and Europe.
And so, as the 2003 Raid is nearing completion for the front runners, there now appears to be only one team in the race for the coveted Raid Gauloises title, but spare a thought for the teams still racing at the back end of the field. There are 19 teams of the original 37 still racing, and for some of these there is a very long way to go.
SleepMonsters
