Patagonian Expedition Race
Dealing with Defeat or Carrying On
Anne-Marie Dunhill / 18.02.2016
According to the race director the 272 km bike stage has served as a filter, weeding out the weaker teams before the race carries on into more difficult terrain. Some of the teams that have withdrawn have been transported to Villa Tehuelches and slower teams who are continuing the race trickle in as well.
PRS Fit were one of the first team out of the race yesterday and when they arrived at Villa Tehuelches they said that they were devastated to be out so early. SheriAnne Nelson made a call home on their satellite phone; in tears she explained what had happened and asked about changing their flights home.
One of the main reasons that the team was racing was for their coach, Jeff, who has stage IV prostate cancer. He has been instrumental in getting the team to the level they needed to race PER. Jeremy said that he had been training for a year just for this race and both Jeremy and Michael spoke of the importance of knowing ones team mates well before such a major race. They then went into town and purchased two 12 packs of beer. As the two men digested their disappointment, SheriAnne took their bulging bag of food to other teams still in the race and shared its contents.
The UK team The Green Sentinels withdrew from the race as well during the bike stage but they were much more positive about their brief experience. Nathalie Gardner explained that they had calculated during the bike ride that they simply didn’t have enough food and time to finish the section. They were camped by the side of the road, discussing their options when a truck stopped and asked them if they wanted a ride to somewhere; at this point they made the decision to withdraw from the race and be transported to CP 5 in Villa Tehuelches. Nathalie said that the driver refused money for petrol and was just very interested in what they were doing and about the race.
Nathalie went on to say, “We were just too slow to finish but we’ve been really inspired by the teams that could even finish this section in the times that they did. I was struck by how helpful all of the racers have been. Nick Gracie invited us into his home before the race and went over everything with us, explaining what we would need and everyone out here has helped each other so much that it hasn’t really felt like a competition to be honest. Coming into the race we knew that we were total novices but we just wanted to come and give it our best shot. We’re staying until March 8 so we’re going to explore a bit and perhaps do the W trek but we’ll definitely be there for the closing ceremony.” The team set up their tent and slept in the field behind the Villa Tehuelches.
Interviewing the French team Vaucluse Adventures Evasions at 08:38 on February 18, Raymond Pascal said that the section had been difficult for the team. Corrine Bonnet said before the race started that biking was her least favorite adventure racing discipline and the second section confirmed her opinion. Her face was swollen and red and she had a dazed expression as she explained how she had mentally managed the monster section; to pass the time she thought about her 18yr. daughter back home in France and tried to imagine what she was doing at each moment of the day.
The interview was cut short when the German team CAMPZ Adventure called the organization. Unable to understand the information communicated because of the accent and the bad connection, staff member Camila Perez thrust the phone into my hands. CAMPZ Adventure said that they were withdrawing from the race, that they had no injuries, and stated their location as being between CP2 and CP3 on the Y-405. They asked to be picked up and asked how long the wait would be. Stjepan confirmed their location and said that they would be easy to find and that the wait would be 2 hours. Anthony of logistics dispatched a car to fetch the team.
Anglo-French relations improved considerably at 09:30. The French team Patagonia 4 Barth had arrived at Villa Tehuelches and Frederic Decamps was desperately attempting to get their camping stove to light. Ben Spurway of The Green Sentinels offered them part of his stove and proceeded to show Frederic how ignite it using a lighter instead of the internal button. Frederic laughed and said, “We spent 3 months training with all of our gear back home and it all worked fine and we get here and it doesn’t work!” When Ben gave him the lighter, he patted him on the shoulder and said, “Thanks guy, I appreciate it.”
Patagonia 4 Barth had been without a hot meal for the last two days and Claire Grossoeuvre said that bag 0 had not been waiting for them. The bike section had been difficult for Claire as well, due to knee problems. Laying on the massage table, tears spontaneously trickled down her face as she described thinking of her two boys when the pain became too intense. Frederic twisted her limbs around like a pretzel in an attempt to release some of the blockage. Claire said that at one point during the section she was near pulling out of the race but the fact that the team is running for a young boy with Barth Syndrome kept her going.
Describing the section her husband Wilfried said, “Usually when you’re doing long stretches like that you’re in a car. It was like the kind of road you would avoid in Mongolia or some other wild place. At least there were no sandstorms here.” He went on to say that the morale and cohesion in the team was excellent. When he asked what their strategy was, he replied, “Our strategy is to listen to Claire.”
The Chilean team Kaweskar arrived in Villa Tehuelches at 10:06; their arrival eliciting a loud cheer from checkpoint staff. They appeared to be well and quickly left the CP to finish the remaining 25km to the transition in CP6.
With these last teams through Villa Tehuelches, CP5 will soon be closing. It has been a long section and at the time of this writing, four teams are already out of the race. The remaining teams will be on the trekking stage for 1-2 days; media access to the teams during this stage is likely to be difficult.
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