The 14 teams preparing to take part in this year’s Wenger Patagonian Expedition Race had their first taste of the adventure they are about to experience in the wilderness when they took to the water to test their kayaking skills in Punta Arenas harbour today.
To ensure maximum safety, all teams must be proficient in kayaking and to prove their skills all but those who participated in the race last year had to endure a capsize training drill that dumped them into the cold waters of the Magellan Strait.
A crowd of racers, media and onlookers gathered on the beach to watch events unfold and in a dramatic demonstration Bruce Duncan, the captain of the reigning champion team (now named adidasTERREX), took part in a helicopter rescue to test the safety measures in place for the race.
For many teams, it is a relief to have made it all the way to Chilean Patagonia and British team member Mark Humphrey said: “It is good to be here now. We have been preparing for a long time and it has been quite a trip just to get here, but we have all our kit and we are just eager to get going now.”
Team GearJunkie, meanwhile, were making last-minute preparations for their race after one of their bikes got lost in transit. Team member Jason Magness could be forced to hire or borrow an alternative bike if the luggage, which has now been located, does not arrive in time – and that could cause the team a big disadvantage.
“The bike went to Las Vegas instead of Los Angeles and it’s been there since,” said Magness, whose team finished fifth in an impressive last year’s race. “We will try to get it here today, but we have been looking at cheap bikes in town and trying to think of alternative solutions.
“We feel good minus that, but at the level we are racing then that sort of thing could make hours of difference, depending on the amount of hours we will be biking on the course. Without the saddle and frame all the other things you are used to, it could be around 20 percent less efficient. So we hope we can get it in time.”
