The Abu Dhabi Adventure Challenge
A long,hot day
Anne-Marie Dunhill / 11.12.2010
Whilst the first section was relatively easy, the adventure racers found the mountain biking difficult as it was a non-stop climb. The first to arrive at the end of the section were team Thule and after the first pack of teams the other slowly trickled in. Team 29, NBADdirect/Arrow Team, found it so difficult that three of their team members pushed their bikes up the mountain towards the end. It was interesting talking to team at the back of the pack during the transition. The French team D-Mec 1 fille decided that they would take a penalty and send only three members out on the mountaineering section. Eve Berthomier arrived at the transition with both knees shot, indeed she had had the same problem when she competed in a recent marathon and they took the group decision to preserve her for the up-coming long sections.
Team 27,Monaqasat, a local team comprised of expatriates, arrived chatty at the transition once they’d caught their breath. Elliott Web explained that this was their first adventure race, but they’d had the home turf advantage of desert training in the heat of the summer months (to the extent that one of their members had heatstroke). They come from a variety of sporting backgrounds, from squash to rugby. Elliott is a pilot who almost missed the race start as he was flying at the nearby Dubai air show.
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