Adventure Racing World Championship 2016
Goldfish Finish Again
Rob Howard / 16.11.2016
This World Championships is the 9th XPD race (and the races’ 2nd hosting of the World Champs), and this morning two racers who have completed them all arrived to a great reception on the finish line.
Team Goldfish are one of the best known and most popular teams at XPD and they crossed the line in 54th place on another sunny day in Ulladulla to be welcomed by friends and family and the race staff who know them so well from past editions.
Mardi and Richard Barnes (brother & sister-in-law) are the two racers who have completed all the XPD’s and this year they were joined by Andy Halliday & James Johnson. Andy was a newcomer to the team and he raced the last XPD World Champs in Tasmania, and is a Shoalhaven local.
As the team settled down for their post race pizza and champagne in their XPD 2016 etched glasses, Mardi took Craig to task about the hike-a-bike. “What are you thinking,” she said with a smile, “bikes are for riding, not carrying! You did redeem yourself with that last ride though, there were some great down hills on that.”
One reason the team struggled with the hike-a-bike is that Marid and Richard ride a tandem – and they are not easy to carry down a cliff! Two of the marshals rode it this morning and said they had a new appreciation of the team as it was hard to steer and had no brakes pads left!
Mardi told me; “It’s a bit uncomfortable for me on the front but I sit there as Richard is the navigator and he can pin the maps to my back and tell me which way to steer – then we end up in the right place.”
She also told me about the unusual race footwear both she and Richard wear – Dunlop Volleys. These are $20 budget tennis shoes (no bootbeds or padding) and they ride, run and paddle in them.
“They are great,” she said, “the grip is good and they are perfect in canyons. I wouldn’t wear them on a long trek, but do for most other things. I think I bought about 5 pairs and I put on some prettier looking ones for the finish.”
I asked her why she kept coming back and she looked at me as though I was the crazy one. “Well why wouldn’t you,” she said. “The races go to some amazing places, and this time it’s in our own backyard. We’ve paddled the Shoalhaven and been to most places on the course before but this was the grand tour .
“In the race all the logistics are taken care of, bikes and boats are moved and transitions set up so it’s like a week long holiday with friends someone else has organized for us! And organized really well, the volunteers are amazing. They are really happy and helpful people.
“There is the competitive element too – on our own level. We are usually close to the Muppets so we have a great time racing each other, but that’s not the main reason we are here. The team had finished just a few minutes ahead of Muppets this year, much to their delight.
Louise Foulkes of Geocentric said, “Goldfish used to be back markers, but others out there don’t realize they are a stronger team now and their heads drop when Goldfish go past them!
They are also a team in the Masters category (teams with 190+ years between them), though Mardi was keen to put the record straight that she is not over 50, as some reports said all the team were 50+.
She raised her glass of champagne at the end and said, “I have raced with 3 wonderful gentlemen. Thank You!
[There is a special trophy given to 8x XPD finishers called the Legends of XPD Rock and I’m told several of the Muppets now hold these – though I don’t have the details. There is also one other competitor who has completed all the XPD’S to date and that is Kevin Piercy who raced with Mawson Tiger Adventure who finished in 37th place.]
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