Coastal Raiders

Rob Howard / 10.09.2016

Clear skies and sunshine greeted racers for the second day of racing at Raid Gaspesie International 2016.  After the recent rains it was a crisp, clear morning, but a busy one, as camp was broken down ready to move to the starts for the day ahead.

For day 2 there was a bus transfer for the racers, with the two races, 150km and 300km starting from two different places. However, both were heading down to the coast to the same finish and camp site at Pointe Taylor in New Richmond. The finish was at the mouth of the Grand Cascapedia river and this would be the setting for the days canoeing for both teams.

The 300km racers had a little extra paddling to do (of course) as they began at Lac de la Ferme, a small lake high the hills surrounded by forest. The turquoise water was glistening in the sun as the teams set off en masse it their canoes to race across it, and soon paddles were flashing and bow waves breaking the crystal clear reflections.

It was only a short paddle across, may 10 minutes, and on the far side teams were aiming for a heavily overgrown creek to portage towards the Grand Cascapedia. It was hard going as fallen trees and dense bush blocked the way, but the reward was to reach a remote area of the river and paddle down a section which is deeply set in the hills with regular rapids. Later on Team Storm Arrow commented, “The paddling was amazing and going through the rapids was a first for us. Really exciting.”

For the race leaders Estonian ACE Adventure one rapid was too exciting and they tipped the canoe, spinning it around cross-wise in the water. It was pinned and rapidly filling and it took a big effort from the pair to move it out and regain control.

The next riding stage was riverside too, and in the bush briefly before reaching the Pont de St. Edgar, which was where the 150km race had begun. This is a historic covered bridge, characteristic of the area, and the 300km teams rode across it into transition.

Trekking and biking took teams down to the coast now, with one checkpoint under one of the many wind turbines in the area. (Not on top as a joke video at the opening ceremonies had suggested!)  At the coast road teams transitioned and passed under it in a culvert before descending a creek to the coastline and moving onto a zip line descent of the cliffs, one of the many highlights of another busy day.

It was a steep drop off, followed by a coasteering section below the cliffs to reach the township of New Richmond, where the course planners were feeling creative again. The CP in a café with a free (non-alchoholic) drink for all was welcome on a hot day and soon after teams were riding the railway lines again, seeking a checkpoint on a snowplough in the station yard. The day then finished with ride along the shore to Pointe Taylor for the 300km racers, while the 150km racers were arriving by canoe.

The finish was in a park and recreation area at the river mouth and it was packed on a sunny Saturday evening to the welcome for all the teams in.  There were food stalls and a band, and a big open area for the camp, and one local was evening offering to wash and dry kit for teams.

Once the teams arrived (by canoe or bike) they had to run to the point and wade out to the sand bar off shore for a final checkpoint. It was 500m away but very shallow and with no real current, so not too difficult on a still, sunny evening.

While later finishers were hobbling a little and showing the fatigue of 2 hard days of racing, the leaders were still going strong and had been bunched closely together for much of the day.  Estonian ACE Adventure and Azimut/Espresso Sports arrived at the final transition by the finish line at the same time and raced for the final checkpoint on the sandbar. The Estonians just got ahead at the finish to marginally increase their overall lead and when I spoke to them later Timmo Tammernae said, “It’s a good competition and they are a strong team, especially the woman racer who is really strong – they are pushing us hard.”

I also spoke to the South African pair on the finish line and asked about the broken bike frame theyd suffered from yesterday. They smiled and said their support crew, who they called Angel, had somehow managed to get it welded before they needed to ride it. They had no idea how and she explained she’d asked at the nearest garage, who said no, but pointed a man filling up his motorbike and said, “He can do it for you.” And he did!

The official results for the day will be posted after verification on the race website at http://www.raidinternationalgaspesie.com/raid-wpmu/en/

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