Raid Gauloises
A Steady Start – Ski & Anna are with the Leaders
Chris Archer / 28.04.2002
The 11th edition of the Raid Gauloises started today (April 28th) at 13h00 local time from the Vietnamese village of Bac Ha, situated 315kms Northwest of Hanoi, for 1000kms of non-stop racing. A veritable release for the competitors and a spectacular festival for the local villagers coming in their thousands to see and encourage the raiders. The early withdrawal by one of the race favourites, Spie Batignolles, is the first shock news of the day.
Early this morning, the magic of the Raid Gauloises gripped the small Vietnamese village of Bac Ha, the start of the 11th Raid Gauloises. Bac Ha had been a hive of activity since the day before, the very moment the imposing Raid Gauloises caravan arrived. 550 people, counting teams and organisers, pulled into town aboard the 30 local mini-busses coming from Hanoi, where the pre-race technical and logistical headquarters had been established. After the hustle and bustle of Hanoi, it was time for these amateurs of the Great Outdoors to plunge into the immense verdant depths of the Northern Vietnamese landscape, home to 53 different ethnic minorities.
“It’s the first time we’ve ever seen so many people in Bac Ha,� confided a local villager. “We never see any Europeans here. The rice-paddies are deserted and the entire village has just stopped working so as not to miss the start of the race.� The local ethnic minorities, in their stunningly colourful costumes, take advantage of the opportunity to have their picture taken with competitors and organisers alike, so taken are they with this unexpected spectacle.
Inspired by the warmth of this welcome, the teams took the start under the appreciative gaze of the Vietnamese Minister of Tourism for an initial 120km trekking section. With the temperature climbing the pace soon slows and even the best teams are forced to walk. Approaching CP2, the Finnish team NOKIA ADVENTURE, winners in the Himalayas in 2000, are setting a firm pace though without running. 2 minutes behind them are the Americans of Team PARALLAX followed 1 minute later by team VSD – EIDER (FRA). ERTIPS (FRA) 3rd in 2000, make an early orienteering error and drop 14 minutes behind the leaders to find themselves with INTERSPORT (FRA), 2nd in the 2000 edition, who’ve decided to start at a slow pace.
SPIE-BATIGNOLLES (FRA), one of the favourites to lift the trophy, were forced to abandon the race early om. The Franco-Vietnamese team member Fred Binh, called in to replace Mickael Fargier injured 24 hours before the start, was unable to sustain the rhythm set by his team-mates for more than 100 minutes. Fredo, born in Paris but living in Hanoi, obviously underestimated the size of the task facing him on this gruelling, 1000kms long race. Somewhere between the start and CP2, Fredo began to stagger then fell, forcing his team-mates to bring their exploit to a rapid halt: “He didn’t know where he was, couldn’t speak properly and was asking why he was dressed as an athlete…� Beatrice Piolat, the team captain, explained. “It proves one thing. If you’ve never experienced the Raid Gauloises, you have no idea the challenge it represents…�
Teams positions through CP2Starting from Bac HA at 13h00, the leading teams took just over 3 hours to cover the distance between the start and CP2.
- 24 LAPIN KULTA (FI)
- 12 PARALLAX (US)
- 10 NOKIA ADVENTURE
- 43 VSD – EIDER (FR)
- 08 GEOLOGISTICS (MA) at 4 minutes
- 44 7 LIEUES (FR) at 5 minutes
- 09 TERRAFORCE (US) at 6 minutes
- 14 PHARMANEX – ENDEAVOUR (US) at 7 minutes
- 30 BUFF (SP) at 7 minutes
- 33 LES FOUS DE BASSIN (FR) at 7 minutes
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