Seagate @ GODZone

Nathan Fa'avae / 27.02.2015

The Godzone Adventure stage descriptions have been announced and we’ve spent the day packing our gear into four bike boxes and 5-gear trunks, well, three of us have at least.

Our team, myself, Sophie Hart, Chris Forne and Stu Lynch are preparing for the first round of the Adventure Racing World Series in Wanaka, NZ.

Stu though has shirked pre race duties by attending a wedding in Nelson today and will subsequently be driving all night, about 800km, to meet us at the start line at day break, wondering if all the red wine he drank at the wedding was such a good idea. It’s not an ideal start to a major event but Stu knows what he’s getting in for and it’s important for us as a team to ensure that racing and life can co-exist.

The course looks great and we’re anticipating a lot of fun out there. There is a Northwest weather system moving in which will likely throw some showers on and off but that shouldn’t present any problems. We’re thrilled to see four paddling sections and also a coasteering section, getting out to the ocean will be quite special when blended with the high mountain stages, the rivers and lakes. It sounds like there is some testing navigation which always makes for an interesting and engaging course.

The world number one ranked team in the World Series Columbia Vidaraid (Spain / Brazil) is here racing which is fantastic for the race and the teams competing adding an international flavour. It will be great for the Kiwi teams to pit themselves against this team and we’re looking forward to an exciting competition in the days ahead. There are also a number of NZ teams with accomplished racers that we expect will be all be chasing the win. We expect to see teams Absolute Wilderness, Swordfox, Torpedo 7, Bivouac inov-8, One Square Meal, BNZ, Chimpanzee Bar, Next Generation all racing for the top spots. There is also the chance emerging teams could make a name for themselves in the race also.

This is our first race since winning the World Championships in Ecuador in November last year so we’re keen to get back on course and start the season with a successful performance. As usual, we’ll be focused on getting ourselves through the course as quickly as we can and we’re hoping that will be enough to win the race, time will tell.

Stage 1    Mountaineering                         22km
Stage 2    Whitewater Canoeing                22km
Stage 3    Alpine Trek                               56km
Stage 4    Canoe / Coasteering                  34km & 7km
Stage 5    Mountain Bike                           137km
Stage 6    Kayak                                      28km
Stage 7    Hiking                                      47km
Stage 8    Mountain Bike & Orienteering     152km
Stage 9    Kayak                                      52km

Seagate wish to thank their sponsors:  Seagate, Rocky Mountain Bicycles, GU Energy, Absolute Wilderness, Torpedo 7, Antichafe, Patagonia Clothing, inov-8 footwear, Northface Packs, Nordenmar, Revelate Designs, Gloworm Lighting, Tineli, Wildside Travel, Bridgedale Socks, Wind Paddle, Xinix, Railriders, Ems Power Cookies

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