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At Assistance Point 3 - Time is Tight

Rob Howard / 11.11.2009

Assistance Point 3 is a hub of activity tonight (weds) as teams have spent a long time on the river Tagus and all their support crews are here waiting for them. Luckily it's a spacious location as there are several withdrawn teams here socialising and a few who are withdrawn but will continue to do some sections of the course. It's also a collection point for gear collected from earlier CP's and for the organisation to regroup ... there are vans, people and gear everywhere!

The teams arriving from the paddle come into a small beach on the Tagus just below the transition area where the kayaks are hauled ashore and the walk uphill to check in and find their support, who can now assist them. As its evening many teams are choosing to sleep here as well (there is plenty of grass to lay down on and the weather is fine and warm).

The first teams to arrive were 28, 10, 20 and 05 who have been leading most of the way but it was the Czech team Opvanet who left first, followed by Outdoor Experiences. They set off just as it was getting dark by returning to the kayaks and paddling across the river, then leaving the kayaks and their paddling gear to scramble uphill to reach a jumar stage at the beginning of the next trek. Once this was complete they could leave their climbing gear at the rock face to continue with stage 4. This has only 2 sections, a trek and a ride, but they are long and teams will be on the stage all day tomorrow.

When I spoke to Team Accelerate they were busy eating and getting to sleep, while their support crew had the maps laid out across the grass. It was a long line of maps! They told me they'd been aiming not for this cut off but for the closing time of the next stage, as it was very tight for them to make it. So much so they are planning to take a detour on the main roads to speed their progress through and ensure they arrive. There is only one problem with that, they'll have to ride off the race maps and are not allowed to use any others, so if they do it, it's a calculated risk.

The support crew for Helly Hansen Prunesco, the other well placed British team, also pointed out that even those who make it onto stage 5 but are close to the cut off will be left little time to sleep if they are to complete the final stage. Judging by these comments the time pressure will remain tight right to the end of the race, especially given that Team Accelerate arrived at AP3 in the top 10. If they are concerned about the timings those behind them will be under greater pressure to balance speed, distance and sleep to achieve their best result.

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