Parallax Take the Lead

Chris/Raid Gauloises / 30.04.2002

Parallax emerged leaders after finishing a 20km rafting section and checking into CP22 at 10h17. They were 17 minutes ahead of their nearest rivals, VSD-Eider.

Almost 28 hours after leaving Assistance Point 1, in third position behind VSD-Eider and Ertips, team Parallax, led by the Tony Molina, trekked overnight and into the lead on a difficult orienteering section. Ertips had already fallen behind at CP16, when they lost time as a team member, suffering from acute dehydration, received medical attention. Having slept only 30 minutes, Parallax arrived first at the start of the rafting section feeling very fresh, a primary concern for all teams in this hot, damp climate. They made up for the lack of sleep by alternating paddlers as they guided the bamboo raft, constructed using 7 metre-long bamboo poles lashed together, down the slow moving, swollen Song Nang river to lake Ba Be. On arrival at CP22 they were obliged to purge the 30 minute penalty picked up at CP6. They were last clocked through CP23, halfway up a steep climb and still leading at 16h12.

Accepting an invitation from local villagers, VSD-Eider took the time to eat and sleep after experiencing some orienteering difficulties. The team navigator Sylvain Mangin had been suffering from serious blisters on the long climb from CP16 to CP20. Setting off 2 hours later, they arrived at CP21 to find that team Parallax had sneaked past them overnight and were already on the lake. They hoped to benefit from their strong kayaking but the water level was too high and the favourable current cancelled out any anticipated advantage. An electrical storm crackled around them as they slept/paddled their way down the long lake but they eventually arrived at CP22 where they purged their 90 minute penalty.

• Ertips: arrived CP22 at 12h27 with a 30’ penalty to purge.
• Nokia: arrived CP22 at 13h17 with a 45’ penalty to purge.

Copyright www.raidgauloises.com

See All Stories On This Race