Whitewater Descent

Rob Howard / 21.08.2012

After a night on the mountains the teams made their way back down to the water sports centre on the shore of Loch Tay, where they had set off from yesterday evening.  Conditions overnight were good with little rain or wind and Fiona McBryde from FGS even said it was hot when her team came back into transition, adding, “I thought it would be cold in Scotland!” 

Those teams who had completed the full course so far and returned before the paddling stage opened at 03.00 could put their tents up and sleep knowing they were off the race clock and this time-out will be factored into the results.  They also found the bar still open and serving hot chocolates ... and they kindly stayed open all through the night.

First back at 22.08 were adidas TERREX, so they had a long sleep by AR standards.  They were followed by Team Mountain Hardware at 23.12 and then For Goodness Shakes Nectar at 23.56.  Surprisingly, with teams with such good navigators the two lead teams completed the mountain circuit going in opposite ways.

They were peacefully asleep before the last teams had paddled into the transition and one team, Lakeland Terriers even arrived close to 03.00 so they didn’t really stop at all, they just missed the trekking stage and carried on paddling, setting off with the leaders!  I think some other teams did just sleep and miss the whole trek and others did not get all the mountain checkpoints ... but who did what I couldn’t say.  (Website viewers will have a far better idea of team rankings/positions watching at home than I will here at the race.)

Some teams arrived into transition after 3am and were not allowed to trek, even if they wanted, which I doubt they did.  These teams were Rocky Road, Delan Training, Cheshire Tri, Cosmic Killers and Hebridean Hopefuls.  It’s already clear there is a huge spread of ability and the score format of the course is coping with this.  So too is the flexible approach to planning.  Taking out CP9 on the trek allowed more teams to try and stay on the full course ahead of the paddling deadlines, and this morning the time for being allowed to start the river paddling was extended by an hour to help the slower teams after the safety staff agreed to stay in place longer.

As teams paddled down Loch Tay the morning light very slowly revealed a day of heavy cloud cover and damp conditions.  The canoe down the lake to reach the river took teams to the river and here there was an abrupt change of pace.  The slow steady rhythm of lake paddling was replaced by a swift descent, including numerous rapids which tested all the teams abilities – and found most of them out!

The first rapids arrived in no time and the teams had to remember the comments  and advice on the map and follow instructions from the many safety staff.  One had his canoe tethered to a bridge where the rapids flowed forcefully underneath and he was directing teams under the central arch.  This stretch tipped out several teams.  Both the lead teams were over and so too were Lakeland Terriers.  Unfortunately it was their lead boat and the second one took a long time to catch the upturned canoe.

At the transition hall at the end of the paddle at Grandtully the teams were busy, but everyone had enjoyed the river descent, and there is much more of it to look forward to.  Camracers said they were a bit slow as they were ‘just enjoying being on the river too much’.  This team had benefitted from dropping CP9 and cleared the course so far, but they now faced the difficult choice of where to send their bike boxes for the end of the next cycling stage.  Should they commit to the full course tomorrow morning, with a longer trek/ride, or not?  (I can’t tell you what they did as I left transition before they did.)

By this stage there were 7 sets of bike boxes set aside to go to the long course transition, including the French team Raid 74, and the Canadians, Salomon Running Free.

Grandtully was also the point where the prologue penalties were served.  After teams were ready to go and had clocked out they were held on the stage in the hall to serve their penalties.  This gave them no real advantage during the penalty time and at least it was warm and dry in there.

From Grandtully they set off on bikes again, riding to the Fall of Bruar for the canyoning and then moving onto the rest of the long biking stage that takes them into the Cairngorm National Park.

{One team did not make the 10.00am latest cut-off to enter the river – the Irish Army team.  There bikes were transported to them so they can continue and will have a severe penalty, though they won’t be classified as non-competitive.}

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