The Lesser Spotted Lammergeyer Mountain Challenge

Keane and Adri went through to this event over the long weekend. This is Keane's report of the race.

What a weekend for racing and breaking mental and physical boundaries!

Adri and I travelled down to Aliwal North this weekend to visit some family and enjoy the spectacular scenery of the Witteberg mountain range. It’s a beautiful part of our country and any adventure racer’s dream training ground with breathtaking mountain peaks, rugged trekking terrain and the Orange river for hours of paddling.

A few weeks back we decided to scout for events in the area over the same weekend and came across the Lammergeyer Mountain Challenge. It seemed like the perfect event to do the Saturday morning with the start time being 7am at the local sports club in Lady Grey.

The event was hosted by local farmers, Anna-Marie en Pieter, which promised a true and vibrant feel of the area of which it came to deliver on both. This was a totally different race to what you will find in Gauteng. Most of the competitors being local and those who were not travelled from far and wide giving the 4Peaks a skip to attend this challenge. 73 competitors, from young to old(75),from strong to first time trail runners pitched up for the event.

The Lammergeyer route is a unique route and runs through the Skyrun and Wartrail routes for the first 12km. The race starts with an easy run through the town towards the foot of the Witteberg mountain range that has pain and sweat on the menu for the day . Before the race we decided we would go out and break through some mental and physical boundaries and we definitely selected the best race to do this. I joined up with two sub 8hours comrades runners and Adri set the pace in her own group pulling and motivating other runners all the way to the end.

Hitting the foot of the mountain, our 10km-700m climb started with warmed up legs and steady heart rates. We tackled the old Lesotho paths to the highest point in the challenge at approx the 11km mark from where we descended via the third highest mountain pass in South-Africa, the Joubert Pass. Pacing ourselves down the long and painful pass we finally got to see the town. Just as we thought we were as good as done, we got the signal to make an unexpected left turn away from town up the last climb and then turn back towards the end. Looking at the time we realized we could finish this challenge in an even better time than planned so the pace was lifted and pain pushed aside. Coming round the final turn, with legs burning and lungs pumping, it was the smell of pure “boere wors” and the look of friendly faces that kept us going.

The race was well organized and one of the better races I have ever participated in. Anna-Marie and Pieter ensured that we had a clearly marked route, water point every 3km, T-Shirt, Medal and a guaranteed spot prize for every entrant. They might as well have called the race the White Indian Tiger Mountain Challenge considering that we never saw a Lammergeyer, droppings, or any form of evidence of their existence.

We arrived as total strangers and left with dozens of new friends to visit on our next trip. One thing is for sure, you need to be twice as fit for one of these local farm races to compensate for the social chatting that carries on through the entire race. Much better than running next to a Joburg boy with his ipod plugged in!
 

Start! Ready to run



Keane in action

Adri in action



Altitude profile



Dinner for eight

Last night we had a lovely team braai at Adri's place. Since we normally see each other at races and for paddle sessions, it was nice to get together in a social environment.

Team www.AR.co.za and supporters: Lizelle v/d M and Wiehan (her husband) at the back; Adri, Lizelle Smit, Keane (centre), Lisa and Steven in the middle row; Charl (Lizelle S's partner) right in front.

Race Schedule

The race schedule for this year's event has been updated on the race website. It really is a flip-around from the previous two years.

Wednesday, December 8th

Arrival of the teams.
Night in Abu Dhabi (included in the entry fee).

Thursday, December 9th
Team Briefing: 8.30AM to 10.00AM
Technical verifications: 10.00AM to 2.00PM
Opening ceremony: 6.30PM
Location : Hotel in Abu Dhabi

Day 1, December 10th
Start of the race
Prologue (paddle, running, swiming): app. 20 kms
Mountain Bike section: app. 30 kms
Running section: app. 6,3 kms
Camp and dinner set up by the organisation.

Day 2, December 11th
Mountain Bike section: app. 20 kms
Mountaineering section: 9,8 kms orienteering + Rope Activities
Camp and dinner set up by the organisation.

Days 3 & 4, December 12th & 13th
Mountain Bike section: app. 52 kms
Desert orienteering section: 121 kms with all optional CPs (app. 70 kms with no optional CPs)
Teams will be self sufficient on Day 3 in the desert.
Camp and dinner set up by the organisation on Day 4.

Days 5 & 6, December 14th & 15th
Sea Kayak section: app. 128 kms with all optional CPs (app. 110 kms with no optional CPs).
Teams will be self sufficient on Day 5 on an island (day 5).

Day 6
Finish of the race in Abu Dhabi.
Prize giving ceremony in Abu Dhabi: 6.00PM
Night in Abu Dhabi (included in the entry fee)

Thursday, December 16th
Teams leave Abu Dhabi.

Challenge goes from strength to strength

Media Release: The record number of teams registered for the 2010 Abu Dhabi Adventure Challenge confirms the international status and unique appeal of the world’s premier event.

Since its inception in 2007, the Abu Dhabi Adventure Challenge has built on previous accomplishments, bringing ever-increasing numbers to its ranks further cementing its position as the world’s premier adventure race. 2010 has not only confirmed this trend but also surpassed all expectations, as teams hailing from around the globe have hurried to sign on for what has become - among the adventure racing community - the most significant race on the international circuit.

Of the 48 teams certain of a place on the starting line in Abu Dhabi City, 16 have already competed in the Challenge. Some of these top-flight contenders have undergone subtle changes in the hope of adding the world’s most coveted AR prize to their list of credentials while others are returning hoping their previous experiences could give them the competitive edge.

The most successful combination to date, New Zealand’s Richard and Elina Ussher, whose teams have won the event every year, are certain to make their new-look ‘Thule Adventure Team’ a four-time favourite but, as in the past, they will be up against some serious opposition.

Marc Balaskovic heads up the French presence with Vibram Lafuma, who are aiming for another crack at the top three, while Marc Pschebizin has joined forces with Swiss team Wenger. Expectations are understandably high for Coming Soon, an enigmatic amalgamation of nationalities featuring France’s Myriam Guillot, Jacky Boisset and Kiwis Jacob Roberts and Marcel Hagener - three of whom have never finished outside the event’s top five.

Spain’s Salomon Santiveri has lured the multitalented Monica Aguilera back into the squad while local heroes, Al Moughamiroun, with Eric Jeanne at the helm, will draw on their past experience in a bid for glory. Back again is Germany’s Abu Dhabi Triathlon Team, led by ace triathletes, Faris Al-Sultan and Werner Leitner, while a handful of Russian teams can look to Artem Rostovtsev and Chasing Daylight to lead the way.

The overall figures are impressive, 48 teams representing at least 20 different nations with two thirds of them coming to the Challenge for the first time. This is further proof of the event’s established international profile and enduring importance. Some countries with strong adventure racing roots, like USA, Sweden, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Poland, all have three teams in this wide-ranging field while UK and France are upping the ante with four teams each.

Inspired by the excellent performance of the Dragons last year, China is sending two teams. By far the most impressive contingent is from the UAE, with no fewer than eight teams eager to measure themselves against all comers on what is essentially home territory. Turkey, Spain, Denmark, Germany, Switzerland, Canada, Norway and Italy complete the list.

Live race coverage and information at http://www.abudhabi-adventure.com/

Swazi X vs ADAC

I asked Christiaan Greyling (Team AR for ADAC 2008) to compare his memories of the pace and intensity of ADAC 2008 to his experiences at the recent 3-day Swazi Xtreme, which each of the new team members also raced. Chris' comments are below:

How would the Abu Dhabi Adventure challenge (ADAC) compare to the Swazi extreme? The best way to explain this will be to break it up in smaller chunks/stages and disciplines.

There is a time in every multi-day race when your physical ability reaches the limit and you are only pushed forward by your mental ability. This is when the well-known questions fly through your head like screensavers: “Why am I doing this?”, “Is this even possible?” and “This is insane!”.

Let's start off with my most unforgettable stage at ADAC – a 87km, 10.5 hour of sea kayaking the Arabian Gulf! Maybe the fact that I did not paddle more than 12km at a time before the race made this the hardest stage in my racing career. This stage was on day three of the 2008 ADAC following a 14km and a 30km paddle on the two days prior (prologue on Day 1 and first part of the paddle stage on Day 2).

After day two (50km Mtb & 30km paddle) it felt like my shoulders were lying beside me on the island sand where we camped the night. It took me an hour of sleep, a team picnic in the tent and lots of food before I felt like I will be able to complete three times that distance the following day.

The best part of an AR is when you wake-up the following morning to a sunrise on an island to see 80 kayaks lined up on the beach, ready to break the still water. To my surprise the pain was gone, but I soon realised that I would I have to battle with my own worst enemy – my mind.

How do you keep on paddling for ten and a half hours without seeing land to measure your progress? Left, right, left, right and so it went on… And I did the maths - we used more than 28 000 strokes to get us to the finish line! It seems like my team mates were fine with this fact. I was used to progress on foot or on a mtb, so “this was totally insane” kept appearing in my mind. What can be compared to this monster paddle stage?

Probably, my longest non-stop stage in AR was the last MTB stage in the Swazi Xtreme, which we started just before sunset and finished just before sunrise – a 12 hour 87km MTB, or, as all competitors would say later, it was a hike-a-bike rather than a MTB stage. It is difficult to compare apples with onions, but if you were a non-biker attempting this last stage of Swazi you may have a feeling of what to expect in Abu Dhabi. Funny enough, I enjoyed this stage because of my mtb experience and the previous night’s sleep. So the moral of the story is – be prepared!

Beside the intensity of the stages in Abu Dhabi, I think it depend on your previous experience in each discipline. The fact that you sleep each night makes it much easier to compete the next day for 12 hours or more. The MTB in 2008 was no major challenge, but I know the introduction of a full day of mountain biking and a big sand storm changed the picture in 2009. The hiking leg was long and an even longer one can be expected, but I am sure with Swazi Experience the new Team http://www.ar.co.za/ will be able to cross that bridge.

Being out in the desert with only your team in the middle of a moonlight night is definitely the most unforgettable experience. This race was a highlight in my AR career. It created great opportunities and gave me a solid benchmark in life towards what I aim to to accomplish with the power of our Creator.

Go out, seize the opportunities in life, make the best of it and when the going gets tough, the tough race even harder.