Current Team Standings
1 Adidas TERREX - Prunesco
CP 19 - 06:09
2 EastWind
CP 19 - 17:55
3 GearJunkie / YogaSlackers
CP 19 - 21:01
4 KAURI
CP 19 - 22:15
5 Cyanosis
CP 19 - 22:29
6 Ad Natura
CP 19 - 18:10
7 Cuva
CP 19 - 17:43
8 Selva Kailash
CP 19- 20:23
9 Red Fox Goretex
CP 19- 20:47
10 Dancing Pandas
CP 19 - 07:40
11 Vaucluse Lafuma
withdrawn
12 NorCal
withdrawn
February 21, 2012
To reach Checkpoint 12, teams have had to kayak across the Strait of Magellan, trek through Tierra del Fuego, ride their bikes for 140 km of dirt roads, and then begin their trek deep into the mountains of the Cordillera Darwin.
Checkpoint 12 is a single yellow tent on the sandy shore of the Rio Azopardo, a small but, fast flowing river that connects the Fagnano lake to the vast Almirantazgo Fjord. Teams reach this checkpoint by hiking along the newly built Karukinka trails, over a mountain pass, through the magnificent Valle Profundo (Deep Valley), climbing a narrow mountain range, and dropping into the valley where there river bed lies. Then, of course, the tent is still on the other side of the river, which must be crossed by swimming or the help of a tyrolean rope crossing.
The water of the river is cold, formed by runoff snow and chilly lakes, it flows fast and icy between the mountains. It is not deep but the force of moving water is formidable - especially for the tired legs of these incredible athletes.
The teams began arriving with Adidas Terrex in the lead on the morning of February 17th. The team sends Sarah Fairfield ahead on the rope to do the crossing and it is clear that the water is pushing hard. It is deep and pulls at legs and bags but Sarah makes the crossing with mild rope burns on her hands. The rest strip off layers of clothes, stuff things into dry bags, and plunge one at a time into the water. In typical Adidas style, they are changed, repacked, and en route to CP 13 within minutes.
They are followed by East Wind seven hours later. Masato Tanaka crosses at the rope and again, the rest of the team head down river to swim. More teams come on that first day and cross safely with their bags.
There is a distinct difference between the teams of the first day and the teams of the second day of crossing. Lead teams all crossed successfully and with a very brief transition period. The shock of cold means teams want to throw their gear back on and begin hiking immediately to facilitate a rise in body temperature. Also, teams crossing in daylight will always take advantage of this and move as much and as quickly as possible while the sun is up.
On the second day the teams coming through are arguably weaker teams - slower and perhaps more tired, they struggle with the water crossing for a variety of reasons.
The first to cross on the morning of the 18th was the French team Vaucluse. While advised to swim the crossing, they chose the tyrolean traverse and their female teammate Josiane Seguier (a very hardy, experience expedition racer) had trouble navigating the strong waters. Teammates were forced to plunge into the water behind her and assist her across, all the while the bitter cold river tugging at their packs. The entire team had been in the water for a considerable amount of time before they emerged on the other side where checkpoint staff offered hot tea to warm them before they continued.
CUVA and NorCal made the next crossings - both choosing to swim and coming cold out of the water. These teams lost no time in getting back on the course to warm themselves.
As the day wore on, more teams attempted to ford the river with mixed results. Women were having an especially hard time, sometimes being forced to make two or three attempts. With the Patagonian winds picking up in the afternoon, and people spending too much time in the water, teams were hitting the shore blue-lipped and excessively cold. With all team members fresh out of the water, treating symptoms of hypothermia was difficult.
Generally in Expedition and Adventure Racing, checkpoint staff do not assist teams. Making the call about how involved to get is a difficult one as teams should not be given an advantage. At Checkpoint 12, however, sometimes a little warmth was needed, and teams were shuffled onto their merry way toward CP 13 as quickly as possible.
The last two teams to cross shortly before the cutoff were Pata-Gonna-Get-Yah and Four Continents. Pata-Gonna-Get-Yah sent two members across without bags, and then worked to send the bags over on the tyrolean. When Four Continents arrived just before the cutoff time, they stopped to help the team in their efforts.
It is seldom that teams assist each other in competition and the cooperation of these two was an incredible display of good sportsmanship. With shouts and combined strength, they worked furiously at the ropes to raise the tyrolean and attempt a dryer crossing in the darkness of night. The river had long since turned black and ominous. Finally, just as the checkpoint closing passed, the teams, exhausted and cold, made it to the other side of the river.
No hay comentarios:
Publicar un comentario