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Sleepwalking

Susan McKenzie / 20.09.2003

There’s something about the notion of a transition area that makes many teams pick up the pace. Maybe it’s the change in discipline or the idea of getting off weary feet for a few minutes. Or maybe it’s a psychological thing: come into the TA looking fit and fast, and that’s the image likely to be passed on to those behind you. Most likely, though, it's the allure of hot food, dry clothes and the comfort and efficiency of a support team.

The sun breaks through the cloud overhead as Simon River Sports cruises down the shoulder of Highway 63, on their way to TA3. It’s not a pretty trek, but a highway never is. The transition area, in a quarry pit off a dirt road, is only half-full as most of the teams are well back of SRS, which has held the lead almost since the beginning.

The first day of the race began overcast, but was quickly reduced to a wet slog: paddling in the rain, with whitecaps at times; then biking through the rain; and then trekking through heavy bush, under trees thick with rain.

“The bike section was tough,� says Alain Beaudry. “The rain made the trails very soft, so we were squoosh-squoosh-squoosh along parts of it,� says Benoit Gauthier. “Then on the trekking some of the navigation was quite challenging. Because we did it in the dark, we had no markers to go by, to look to see a river or a trail or anything. Other teams will have problems in there, for sure.�

The team from Quebec had planned not to sleep at all on this race. But Benoit Gauthier admits to a bit of a doze overnight. “We were bushwhacking, and it was so slow, we were hardly moving, so I just closed my eyes and slept as I walked,� he says.

Third place Taiga took a bit of a sleep overnight, too. Well, more of a catnap really, just fifteen minutes along the trek. “I was so tired last night,� says Sven Brouwer. “The rain and the cold can take a lot out of you; my stomach was a bit weird, too. Just fifteen minutes made a huge difference. I felt so much better after that.

Taiga has spent the whole race virtually hand in glove with Toronto’s GearsRacing.com. They also raced for a bit with Runningfree and Jimmy’s Night Out before passing those teams on Friday.

“It’s good when you’re racing alongside a team that you’re friends with,� says Jodi Bigelow.

“It’s really fun racing with gears,� added Sven Brouwer. “We’re friends with them, and it’s great to have new people to talk to besides your team mates.�

Friendship aside, at some point you still have to make the break. “We’ll have to do that on the next trek section,� says Brouwer.

“Yeah, no point trying to beat them on this next bike leg (a 20 kilometre ride along highways to reach the start of the trek),� adds Wendy Powell. “We’ll have to do well in the bush.�

“And then we’ll finish the race tomorrow morning,� says Brouwer

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