Raid in France - The Adventure Race World Championships 2012
Day 2; Down Two Rivers to the Dark Zone
Rob Howard & Anne-Marie Dunhill / 16.09.2012
It was a long, long night of trekking for all the teams at the end of the first day of the race, and for most of them, another long, very hot day of trekking on day 2.
For stage C, the third trek of the race, teams were again carrying their ropes equipment for a roped section by a waterfall and a via ferrata stage, so their packs were heavy. Their feet were already sore and blistered and almost all the teams were out in the cold and darkness overnight - it was a brutal combination. The leaders didn’t get to the end until mid-morning on Sunday, and many of the teams will be out on Stage C for most of Sunday.
It’s not a question of whether teams have blisters, more their extent and severity and whether the racers can cope with them. Pernilla Lagereren of Swedish team SWECO was treated by the doctor for blisters over most of the soles of her feet, but the team later withdrew as she could not continue. When I asked team adidas TERREX of the UK how their feet were Chris Hope just said ‘terrible” - but they are one of the quicker teams, racing in the top 10.
Other teams withdrawing or unranked that we have heard of are AR Team Germany and Littoral Adventure and on the first night BRAT Lupine were unranked when Thomas Etter was taken to hospital after a bike crash. (In the rush to restart after the first AT opened at the end of the glacier trek a group of teams trying to be first to a section of single track and a rider in front of him crashed, bringing him down and breaking his leg.) Talking to him on Sunday morning he was as cheerful as you could be with a leg in plaster and said, “The main thing was to persuade the other 3 to continue, and I’m glad they did.”
The via Ferrata section was at the village of Chateau Queyras, which is dominated by an impressive castle perched high above the narrow canyon of Le Guil river and the runs along the canyon wall directly below the castle. The route crosses the river 3 times on wire bridges and is open for use normally, though it was reserved for the race today. (The sign said the 800m traverse took 2 to 3 hours - but not today!)
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