The Sting in Stirling
An International View on the Race
Rob Howard / 24.08.2012
There is a very international mix among the top finishers at the adidas TERREX Sting in Stirling. A British team might have lead the way, but second placed team FGS Nectar included a racer from New Zealand, Canadian team Salomon/Running Free were third and in 4th were Moxie Racers from Ireland, with a Danish racer in their team. Those were the only 4 teams to complete the full course of the race.
Liam Drew was the racer who joined FGS Nectar and he is no stranger to Open Adventure events having won their Coast to Coast multisport a few years ago. His team were pleased with their result, especially as they lost a lot of time due to a mechanical failure on the bike stage, and Drew was glad to finish a race in Scotland after retiring during the World Champs here in 2007. His only complaint was he’d rather have been in a kayak than a canoe. Typical Kiwi.
Salomon/Running Free had a solid race with “no real wobbles and good team work” and had enjoyed their experience of Scotland. “The views were nothing short of stunning,” said Pete Cameron, “and we were ready for the rainy conditions. The organisation too was spectacular and you have to shake your head at the level of detail. Some of the places we visited, Stirling Castle, Doune Castle, Rob Roy’s Grave as well as all the wild mountain terrain. Amazing.”
“It has been a very tough and competitive race,” said Harper Forbes. “The trek was massive and its one of our top races for sure. The organisation and logistics were a huge bonus and that made us feel comfortable racing, instead of being on edge, and the food around the course was unbelievable. We did get some horizontal rain at one point on the mountains and the only time we’ve experienced anything similar was in Patagonia.”
He was not the only racer to compare the highlands to Patagonia. Stephane Agnoli of Raid 74 commented, “It is marvellous country, but very wet and with no people. There was nowhere to buy food or sleep, it was like Patagonia.”
The Belgian team too had a similar experience. Laurent Lemaire said, “It was very wet, the mountain biking was very muddy, and we were not prepared for the midges. There were no hotels for food or paths but we came for the landscape and to discover another country, and we did.” No one had the heart to tell him the weather had been great and that occasional showers count as ‘dry’ in Scotland. It would have been a lot tougher if the weather had been bad.
Another French team, Life Experience.fr finished as the leading short course team in their first expedition race and they felt Scotland was the perfect place for a big expedition race. “You can orienteer like crazy, climb the hills from any direction, the weather keeps changing and the scenery is amazing wherever you go. It’s perfect.
The 4th (and final) long course team were Moxie Racers, and Irish team joined by Sessel Elmstrom of Denmark. Chris Caulfield said, “The course was epic and kept us focused all the team. There was lots of variety and I liked the canyoning best, it was short but full on.” Elmstrom has raced with Caulfield a couple of times before and said, “A big race is a good way to see a country as you get to go away from the tourist places and to extraordinary places. It is also a common experience with the others in your team but I can’t explain it better than that, you can’t put into words what you feel and share in an expedition race.”
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