Merrell King Winter
Race Preview; Merrell Kong Vinter
Rob Howard / 02.01.2014
Adventure Racing gets going quickly in the new year in Denmark with the Merrell Kong Vinter race over the weekend of January 11/12th.
It is mid-winter in Europe so the race temperatures could be anything from -10C to +10C with rain, snow or sunshine, or maybe all three. The elements are sure to be challenging, but this popular winter race attracts a strong entry, both from Denmark and internationally. (Past teams competing have included FJS & Sweco from Sweden, Multisport.fi (Finland), Estonian Ace and adidas Terrex from the Czech Republic.)
The race is for teams of 2 or 3 and has both a Masters and a Challenge category. The Masters will have a winning time of 10-12 hours and a maximum time of 21 hours with mountain biking, orienteering kayaking and climbing as the main disciplines, while the shorter Challenge race will have no kayaking and an expected winning time of 6 hours.
The course planner Lars Bukkehave said, “The race is a combination of what we, as racers ourselves love, combined with trying to show the beautiful scenery and historical sites found less than an hour from our capital.” The course will be a combination of short, fast paced stages of 30 minutes to 2 hours, where fast navigation, team work and efficiency is tested, and longer sections, where endurance and willpower is tested.
The race start and finish will be at Helsingør, close to Copenhagen and international teams will have the opportunity to stay free of charge before and after the race. The course will include the area of the 4th biggest forest in Denmark; Grib Skov, and the third biggest lake, lake Esrum.
The race is put on by the Danish Adventure Race Union (DARU) and currently has around 30 teams in each category. You can find out more on the race website at www.kongvinter.dk, which is in English and Danish and SleepMonsters Editor Rob Howard will be reporting at the race this year.
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