ITERA - Presented by Open Adventure
Tom Gibbs Speaks out on ITERA
Open Adventure News Release / 15.07.2014
With just over one month to go until the ‘ITERA’ World Series Adventure Race in Wales, run by Open Adventure, we caught up with course planner Tom Gibbs to find out how plans for the five day race are developing and what his motivations are for dedicating such a huge portion of his time to expedition adventure racing.
As well as being the race planner for this summer’s Welsh expedition race, you have been racing yourself for many years. When and why did you start?
My AR career started in a Cow Shed in North Wales in 1998 at one of the first ACE races. I really enjoyed the mixture of sports and navigational side of things. Despite there being better athletes at the event, my combination of skills managed to get me the win and after that I was hooked! I love the shorter races for the physical and mental challenge but also the longer ones, which have enabled me to get to some amazing and remote places.
How do you fit all this racing in with real life?
I used to work for Airbus down in Bristol but now I live in the Lakes and work on the Design of the next UK Nuclear Deterrent Submarines. It’s a really interesting job and Submarines are an amazing bit of kit, but being in the Lakes now also makes training much easier. I can sneak out on the fells in the evenings and I do a lot of local races for training. There’s a good crowd up here who I can train and socialise with.
You’ve been AR World Champion and have stayed at the top of your game for a long time. Do you have any weaknesses?
Well my strategy and navigation skills are my main strength, plus an ability to concentrate for a long time. I’d say I was pretty strong physically, particularly at running and biking uphill. I’m not the strongest paddler though.
What is your involvement in the ITERA?
It has been an aim of mine for a few years to plan a long race and after doing so many races across the world I have quite a lot of thoughts about what makes a good course!
Too many routes feel contrived or just not exciting enough and I hate doing stuff on foot when you could easily be biking – and I hate unnecessary hike-a-bikes!
I’ve put all my experience into play in designing the ITERA course, so the competitors can expect a great journey with minimal hike-a-bike (unless there is literally no alternative) and a course that flows and hopefully keeps them engaged.
It’s a journey I would want to do myself.
You’re pretty excited about the race. What makes it so special?
I can’t give anything away about the route apart from one thing – that it’s a linear journey from coast to coast. That makes it really special but there are other reasons too. It’s also about the quality terrain the teams will cross - every stage has its own character. We have also focussed on taking the race to some of the best spots in Wales; not just in terms of scenery but also historically and culturally. So for the foreign teams it’s not just a race but an adventure holiday where they will see famous sites like castles and if they are really lucky, a dragon!
To find out more about the ITERA expedition race, including a full team list and promotional film, please visit www.itera.co.uk.
The race starts on 9th August ‘somewhere in Wales’.
SleepMonsters
