To the Penguin Colony, and Beyond!

Adam Rose / 13.05.2017

Race day minus 1. From 7am, in strict succession, teams were at the registration to drop off their bikes in their boxes. Miss your slot and you were awarded a one hour penalty, before the race had even started. Harsh? No, it worked. Running a race like a military operation is generally a win.

At 11am everyone assembled en masse at the HQ, carrying national flags, some wearing practical and some not-so-practical hats, ready for a march down the beach. As has become customary at EA, there was a community project for the teams to engage in, this time in support of SANCCOB (the Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds).

The Cape St Francis branch is based at Seal Point lighthouse, catering for injured, abandoned, ill and oiled penguins. Operating since 1968, open 24/7, 365 days a year, SANCCOB has treated over 95,000 birds in those 50 years. There is a great need for such a facility, as there has been a 98% decline in African penguin numbers since the start of the 20th century, and as with most conservation organisations, there is an ever-pressing need for funding, and raising public awareness.

Expedition Africa’s answer was to stage a flag parade down to the lighthouse, and a stone laying ceremony, which brought media, locals, politicians and families of the teams involved. As many teams have brought their own media representatives, this in turn will generate a wider presence on social media, and awareness of this valuable work.  

From the HQ, a long snake of flags followed the beach in a curve around to the lighthouse. Most teams were grinning, relaxed, some walking with their children, posing for pictures and glancing at the drones buzzing overhead.

Once at the centre, with everyone gathered in front of the lighthouse, speeches were given, a plaque unveiled marking this headland as the southeastern-most tip of the continent, and each team laid a stone tablet marked with their team name and flag/s. Together, these stones all formed the shape of the African continent, and will be cemented into position as a permanent memorial of the event.

This has far reaching implications for local adventure racing. Anyone who visits the lighthouse or SANCCOB will be faced with these stones, and how can they not be curious as to their origin? For who knows how many years to come, the centre will be advertising adventure racing, what the sport involves, some memory of the excitement and awe of seeing athletes tackle an event most people consider beyond the pale.

While many races have a community project, they do not always have AR longevity in the public eye. Planting trees, for example, is always good, but how many people know about the planting project even a year or two down the line? SANCCOB’s idea sits front and central to any visitor. What are these team names? Why all the nationalities? What did they do, and why did they come here? Why the memorial? It’s not simply a plaque on a wall, easily missed, and it appeals to children.

Speaking of children, once the festivities were over, teams explored the centre and lighthouse, visited the curio shop to buy presents (more fund raising), watched the penguins, and then made their way back to the resort under their own steam, enjoying the wind and the surf as they meandered.

Off to side, one of the members of Swedish team Skylotec was paddling in rock pools with three young children. He was in no rush to get back, no urgent gear still needing attention or packing, bikes boxes gone, maps 1-4 only arriving at 16:00. He was chilling with his kids.

Close to the base, I came across Ronald Jessop of South African team Parallel. His five-year-old daughter was tracing tramlines on the dune, for her father to attempt to navigate. Again, in no hurry. Last year at EA Kynsna, he’d brought his young family along on holiday, and it had worked out so well, this year he’d brought them again, plus extra, to enjoy the sun and sand while he sweats bullets.

We agreed that it was important to introduce children to adventure racing at the earliest opportunity, to brainwash them with the sport, rather than leave it up to the general media to brainwash them down a different, less positive path.

The teams are now back in focus mode, poring over the new maps. While they will have plenty to think about, it only connects them to the Baviaans trek on maps 5 and 6, not enough to keep them up all night with planning, so hopefully they’ll be rested before tomorrow’s kick-off at 07:00.

Follow the action from 06:45 on www.expafrica.live

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