Posted: August 6, 2004

Adventure Racing: First Canadian team crosses the finish line at ARWC

Adventure Racing World Championship 2004 - Corner Brook, Newfoundland & Labrador, Canada

August 5: Supplier Pipeline was the first Canadian team across the finish line in the Adventure Racing World Championship today. They completed the challenging Newfoundland course at 16:21 placing them 8th overall amongst a field of 42 international teams.

The team went out strong and was at the front in the early stages of the race. Trekking in the Blue Hills of Couteau in dark and foggy conditions made it tough to find CP 3, "the checkpoint wasn't on the top of the hill as we expected, some teams stayed at the top, while we went to look for it. It was just bad luck the checkpoint started to whistle from their position and the other teams ran immediately to their location ahead of us," Dave Norona commented. This served to drop them down a few rankings.

Throughout the race the team consistently remained in the top 10. This is the first time the team has raced together and were pleased with their efforts. Greg McHale said "the group had great dynamics, always looking out for each other and working well as a unit." Other members of the team include: Bob Miller and Denise McHale.

In the final stages of the race, they were hot on the heels of GoLite/Timberland (USA) but could not catch up with them. GoLite/Timberland crossed the line just 22 minutes ahead of them. The teams shared their experiences and war stories on the finish line.

Both teams suffered on the Blow Me Down mountains. They loved the scenery but the mountains lived up to their reputation with ferocious winds and sideways rain. "The rain was hitting us harder than if I was standing in my shower," commented William Mattison of GoLite/Timberland remarked.

Team GoLite/Timberland were awarded with a time penalty when they failed to sign in to CP 12. They had to serve a 1 hour and 37 minute penalty at CP 13. Despite some friction in the team they continued on at a great pace to finish in seventh position.

Team Reebok Maxim (Swe) crossed the finish line this morning at 08:53 to take sixth position. The highlight for the team was paddling the Goose Arm at night, in stormy conditions surfing the large waves. "if you didn't know what you were doing, it would have been scary," commented Peter Bringby.

There are still 21 teams on the course competing to see who can be the best of the rest. Even though the first teams have crossed the finish line the race is far from over for these racers. They are pushing hard Hafke Legal Services (USA), Wachovia Services (USA/NOR), Gearsracing.com (CAN), Zimmer (USA), Big Fish (USA/CAN) and Fudugazi (CAN) all passed through Checkpoint 15 within a half hour of each other. They face a tough trek tonight on the Blow Me Down Mountains and a final paddle in the Bay of Islands tonight. The teams are all expected to finish tomorrow.

The race can be followed on www.arworldchampionship.com and also on www.sleepmonsters.com.

Background information
The 2004 ADVENTURE RACING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP is the championship event for the Adventure Racing World Series of eight premier international races, including the Beast of the East (USA), Raid the North Extreme (Canada), Ecomotion /Pro (Brazil), Explore Sweden (Sweden), Appalachian Extreme (USA), Southern Traverse (New Zealand), European Championship Adventure Race (Austria), and Adventure Quest Africa (South Africa). The world's top teams were invited to compete in the 2004 ADVENTURE RACING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP based on winning placements and qualifying criteria of the Adventure Racing World Series races, with the remainder of the 50 teams selected via an application process.

About Frontier Adventure Racing Inc.:
Frontier Adventure Racing Inc. (FAR Inc.) is the leading adventure racing company in Canada, operating the popular Raid the North and Salomon Adventure Challenge series. Now in its seventh year of operation, FAR Inc. has established an international reputation for solid logistics and challenging race courses. Providing traditional wilderness adventure race experiences has been FAR Inc.'s focus since day one. Often building courses around the history and traditions of the regions competitors travel through, FAR Inc. remains true to its slogan: Real Wilderness. Real Navigation. Real Adventure.