The Poland Winter Challenge, Eastern Europe’s AR World Series event, is 3-4 days of skiing, mountain biking, orienteering, and rope challenges.  It’s hallmark is lots of snow and creative special rope tests (traverses, ascents, etc).  This year, the snow levels were less than expected but it’s proven a challenging race none-the-less.  The 2010 edition is  just wrapping up and the winning teams have arrived to the finish line:

1. It took 70 hours and 8 minutes for the Craft Ukraine team to win the race.  Congratulations to the winners!
2. 2nd place goes to AR World Series regulars AlpinePro Nutrend/Merida Czech Adventure Team, after 71 hours and 21 minutes
3. 3rd place has gone to Polish team Rakiety.pl (sponsored by a Polish outdoor shop — from what I can tell) 

This winter race had a decidedly spring feel as some of the cross-country ski sections saw teams carrying their skis instead of racing on them — a warm batch of weather prior to the race melted some of the snowy reaches of the southern Polish mountains.  This played in Craft Ukraine’s favor, apparently, as they confessed that they aren’t the strongest skiing team in the race.  Craft Ukraine earns the entry into the Adventure Racing World Championships, held in Spain in October 2010.

Complete results will trickle in over the next few days, so keep an eye on the Poland Winter Challenge website for more details and photos.  They also have some nice course profiles and English commentary about the race on their site, so check it out if you’re curious.

Additionally, they’ve just posted some YouTube videos and this one has an English interview with the Finnish team Omjakon about 4 minutes into it.  Anyone who has raced for a few days on very little sleep can relate to the quality of the conversation and the Finns sound like a team ready to reach the the . . . “finish” line.  Couldn’t help myself with that pun!
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Untamed New England is the mid-August race in the circuit of Adventure Racing World Series events.  One disclaimer before I continue: this race is near-and-dear to my heart as I’m closely involved with the organizing of Untamed New England.  I am biased.  The race is, however, next in line for my preview of the entire 2010 ARWS schedule of events and so I am skirting the line here between commentator and promoter.  On the bright side, I do know A LOT about this event!  Let me turn my focus, then, to August and what’s in store for the AR World series . . .

The Untamed New England adventure race takes place in a special corner of the United States, far from cities, highways, and the rush of normal life.  This race takes place along the border of the US and Canada, and thousands of acres of untouched wilderness form the backbone for this event.  Wildlife is also abundant; the largest species in the deer family, the moose, are found in large quantities here and teams at Untamed New England come across these large mammals every year — bear encounters are not unheard of, most notably when UK team EnduranceLife reported bushwhacking up a ridge and seeing a large bear about 75 meters away along the same ridge, to quote them, “it was the real trowser filler” for their 2009 race!
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Our Adventure World tour of the AR World Series for this year has covered all the events set through May of 2010; I refer you to the first installment in the series if you want to catch up on the earlier four entries.

I’m due to move this preview series on to Scandinavia and the Explore Sweden race, set for July 11-17.   Called “the Monster” by the race organization, Explore Sweden is a 6-7 day tour of northern Norway and Sweden — and one exciting dimension to this race is precisely how far north it is: there will be nearly constant daylight during the race, as this is the time of year for the Arctic “midnight sun.”  The race directors, Mikael and Helena Lindnord, joked that they should eliminate a headlamp from the required gear list . . . but a glance at the mandatory gear list shows a headlamp is still required!

The region is not only known for plenty of daylight hours, however, I’ve heard previous teams comment that Explore Sweden features the biggest marshes (and insects!) they’ve ever seen.

I shouldn’t focus on the negative; many Explore Sweden veterans hold the race up as a model for exciting trekking, biking, and paddling in adventure racing.  Sweden is a paddle-crazy culture, and the race provided boats here are arguably the finest in the world: there is a section where teams will paddle true performance boats, surfskis, and another paddling section with a fast model canoe.

Explore Sweden is a race full of imagination, and the 2010 course that crosses from Norway to Sweden’s Baltic Sea shore is no exception.  It’s a West-to-East traversal featuring wild tundra, glaciers,  and forests.  In a previous edition of Explore Sweden, teams were shuttled on chartered airplanes to hop from one part of the region to another . . . talk about a logistical circus and memorable experience!  One racer at the “airplane edition” of Explore Sweden commented that there were “several” airplane hops, the flights served hot meals and  beverages, and that getting on a flight packed with only adventure racers — muddy and tired from their exertions — and then literally racing off again once the plane landed, was an unforgettable highlight.  Imagine missing a time cut-off at that race!

In a change of pace, the 2010 edition of this race will not have inline skating — which is another traditional hallmark of Nordic racing.   I can hear the cheers from North American racers already . . .
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Australia is a captivating country and one, for many, synonomous with adventure.  Hot on the heels of the announcement that XPD Australia will host the 2011 AR World Championship, let me preview their 2010 race scheduled for May 19 – 28, 2010.  This is the 4th installment here at Adventure World examining the full calendar of races in the 2010 Adventure Racing World Series (start with the first post in the series if you need to catch up).

The Australian race in the AR World Series delivers everything you would think of when you imagine adventure racing in Australia.  While they base their race acound to a core of trekking/mountain biking/paddling XPD Australia has been known to include fun disciplines like snorkeling, 100 meter rappels, and geocache segments.

The winning team will cross the XPD Australia finish line in 4-5 days, while slower teams may take up to 10 days to reach the finish.  In an interesting twist, the race always includes a 6 hour mandatory rest stop mid-way through the race — this guarantees teams will sleep more than in a typical non-stop race, but doesn’t turn it into a stage race since it’s just once and there is no mass restart.

In terms of the broader AR World Championship qualification, this race is vital.  There are no other “close” races in the World Series for teams from Australia, New Zealand, or places like South Africa to earn their ticket to the Championships in Spain this October.  XPD Australia is the only World Series event south of the Equator after February 2010, so ambitious teams will turn out for this May Australian event.  In fact, the race is already sold out so teams recognize this as a special opportunity to compete in a beautiful area and seize the chance to race in Spain this Fall.

With that in mind, we can peek at the list of registered teams they’ve posted online and hazard some predictions.  Blackheart.com.eu is a very strong team and, I might add, quite friendly — I had a quick chat with them in the Portugal airport last November; Blackheart won this race last time and will be looking to defend their title.  The OrionHealth team, the winners of XPD Australia in 2007 and AR World Champions in 2008, will challenge Blackheart at the front and should be considered the early pre-race favorites . . . one caveat being there will be a shake-up in the OrionHealth roster with the announced retirement of one of their key players.  The Kiwis have a deep pool of adventurers to pull from, though, so keep your eye on Orion at this Australian race.

Merrel and Robyn Benincasa will be racing XPD Australia this May, also.  It will be interesting to see Robyn’s rebound from surgery last summer, and I expect Merrell to be a better organized team than the one that came to New England last July.

Other teams coming “down under” for the race from North America include the Dancing Pandas, Dirty Avocados,  and Western Canada’s Race the Rockies team.  No doubt there are others, my apologies, but I can’t tell for sure from just the team name on the roster!

The producers of the TV program for the 2009 AR World Championships in Portugal have published their program to YouTube . . . check it out over at www.untamedadventure.com/post/World-Championship-TV-Program-Now-Online.aspx

My previous two pieces in this series (part 1 & part 2) looked at the early 2010 races in the AR World Series.  I’m continuing into the Spring with the events in May, starting with the race in Portugal.  XPD Australia is also in May, but I’ll save that race for next week since I’ve been informed that a big announcement is coming from the Australian AR World Series race in the next few days.

To preview the May XPD Portugal race, I should start with a caveat:

The Portuguese  haven’t officially announced race dates or confirmed that the event is going to happen.  Remember, this is the organization that just finished hosting the World Championship in November, so it’s understandable that they’re late getting 2010 events firmed-up.  I’m thinking they must be a bit burned-out!

I spoke with the leadership in Portugal last week and they indicated they were “very likely” to run a smaller, 3-day, race in May 2010; they were making sure sponsorship support was there etc.  Unofficially, talking with some friends inside the organization, they told me they were fairly certain that there would be an XPD Portugal race in May and that I should look for firm details in the next few weeks.  They also told me Portugal is beautiful in May, and that I should come race . . . and I just might.

Having disclosed the fact that there isn’t truly an official confirmed race date or specifics for Portugal, I do know conceptually that XPD Portugal would like this 3-day race to showcase some of the course alternatives that were left out of the 2009 World Championships.  This likely means a combination of mountains/beaches with some historic castles and quaint villages added for spice.  Sounds pretty good to me!

XPD Portugal is also considered the first race to use the 3-wheel “Trikke” bikes (they started including them in their races about 5 years ago), so it’s a safe bet that you’d see them again in 2010.  There are actually some “Trikke clubs” springing up around the USA, apparently, such as this one in Colorado.

Much has been made over the last few months about the creative XPD Portugal race format, and I won’t cover that topic in detail here.  Instead, I refer you to the summary of the rules I compiled at Adventure World Mag back in November (unfotunately, these were rules many learned during or after the race — including myself!).  Some call it a modified “rogaine” format.  No matter what you label it, I think it’s critical for any team racing an XPD Portugal event to know the rules and strategy implications before lining up at the starting line.  ‘Nuff said.

As for the broader AR World Series picture in 2010, XPD Portugal in May would be the first European non-winter race in the Series for 2010 and I suspect it would be well-attended because the World Championships are close by in Spain this October.  Plenty of regional teams would be eager to earn their place in the World Championships and see Portugal as a warm-up for the Championships.   If the race is announced at 3-days in duration, which all sources are pointing to, you could brace for a fast and furious 3-days of racing in Portugal because the competition will be fierce.

My next instalment in this series will be on the other World Series race in May, way on the other side of the planet in Australia.  As I mentioned earlier, I’ll wait to publish that piece until later on next week.

This is my 2nd installment in the Adventure World Magazine preview of the Adventure Racing World Series.  If you haven’t already, be sure to check out post #1 providing a broad overview for 2010 and a look at Ecuador’s race in the World Series.

February has three races in the World Series, the two I haven’t discussed previously are the Poland Winter Challenge and the Xtremo6000 in Argentina.  The two races are vastly different; the race in Poland emphasizes winter skills like skiing and biking on snow while the Argentine race is in the middle of the warm months for the southern hemisphere, and “traditional” disciplines like paddling, trekking, and regular mountain biking are on the agenda for Xtremo6000.

The Poland Winter challenge has a long history; formerly the Bergson Winter Challenge — and before that the Lion Winter challenge — the race is currently without a title sponsor hence the generic “Poland Winter Challenge” name.  It’s a 5 day race advertising cross-country skiing, trekking, mountain biking, and ropes as the main activities.  They pepper their course with many smaller “special task” challenges such as a tyrolean traverse with your bike, rappels/ascents, or a zip line.  The reports I’ve heard are that these special tasks are very popular and break up the race nicely — not like the “stupid human tricks” some races occasionally include (like this race in Florida had me throwing potatoes in a bucket 20 meters away . . . but I digress).

John Laughlin, racer with the World Champion Helly Hanson/Prunesco team, explained that this Poland Winter Race is a mix of skiing on and off groomed ski trails (“often not groomed” to quote John), mountain biking on snow and ice, snowshoeing, and dramatic rope challenges.  In warm years, there is less snow and it resembles a traditional adventure race a bit more — you might have to hike with your skis a bit — but in most years there is lots of snowy fun.  Furthermore, John remarks that the race “is very affordable, very well organized . . . I’ve done it 3 times and thoroughly recommend it!”
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This is the perfect time to look over the 2010 AR World Series calendar and highlight the events comprising this circuit of international races.  There are 10 races in the Adventure Racing World Series this year (11 if you include Ecomotion Brazil that took place at the end of November 2009).   I have inside information suggesting there may be another race added to the World Series soon, but the official announcement hasn’t been made yet so I’ll leave everyone in suspense over where/when this 11th ARWS event will be in 2010 (expect an announcement soon, however).

Let me summarize the 10 races in 2010 that comprise the AR World Series:

• Huairasinchi (Ecuador) Feb 13-15
• Poland Winter Challenge (Poland) Feb 21-28
• xtremo6000 (Argentina) Feb 25-27
• Portugal XPD (Portugal) May ???
• XPD Australia (Australia) May 17-28
• Explore Sweden (Sweden) July 11-17
• Untamed New England (USA) Aug 12-15
• Costa Rica AR (Costa Rica) Aug 23-27
• Raid in France (France) Aug 27-29
• Bimbache Extreme (Spain) – AR World Championship Sept 30-Oct 9

This is the first installment in a series with Adventure World Magazine where I’ll examine each of these races and share a bit of what I know about each one.  I’ll approach these races chronologically, so the first race on the list is just 1 month away . . .
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America’s Qualifier for the Adventure Racing World Championship in 2010, the Untamed New England,  is now accepting team registrations.

The 2010 Untamed New England race will run August 12-15, and be hosted from the famous Balsams Grand Resort in the extreme north of New Hampshire.  The race course features 3 days of non-stop paddling, biking, trekking, ropes,  orienteering, and environmental conservation projects.

Only 4-person coed teams are eligible for the Adventure Racing World Championships, but teams of 2 and 3 people are permitted to join in the race.  Support crews are not permitted for this race, so the race organization handles all gear staging.

Inquiries have already come from teams in Denmark, Sweden, the UK, South America, and Australia . . . all indications are that this will be the most international race in the US for 2010, and not to be missed.

The course for 2010 will be even more rugged than previous editions, and while exact details remain a closely guarded secret, racers can expect real back-country navigation to figure prominently in the event.  In the words of one journalist at the 2009 Untamed New England,   “I had no idea that this was such deep country!”

Untamed New England is your chance to race where there is no mobile phone reception, no condominium complexes, no street lights.  More moose than people; more bogs than towns.  Untamed New England is an event that is more an adventure than a race.

Details on the race are available online at www.UntamedNE.com.

Ocean waves crashed to my right; more waves to my left.  I sat on a narrow spit of beach with the Atlantic to either side.  The beach landscape here was stunning, with sandstone formations and pillars of rock jutting up at extreme angles.  It’s as if rock structures from the Utah desert had been magically  transported to the ocean side.  This was the scenic finish to the 2009 Adventure Racing World Championship, and while the race organizers took heat for their unorthodox race format, nobody can question their selection of dramatic race finish locations.

For a specific look at the race format, see this piece published earlier today.

The real racing started on Monday morning Nov 9, with teams battling through the tallest mountains in Portugal and reaching over to the Spanish border.  Besides the furious pace set by the race leaders, the early highlight had to be the medieval castle that served as an early transition area for the course.  Teams made their way through the course, struggling through cold, wind, and dense fog much of the way.

Early reports had Nike firmly in the lead, and with the withdrawal due to medical reasons of several top Scandinavian teams, the race looked like it was Nike’s to lose.  However, quietly at the transition area of the first paddle leg, the Helly Hansen/Prunesco team from the UK took their time and made decisions worthy of a future World Champion.  In the words of Tom Gibbs, navigator for the team,

“We set out the maps to see the next 2 legs (65km trek, 160km bike) and we knew we couldn’t do it all before the cut off. The run was very linear so that only left the bike as having opportunity. We worked out we could cut 3 Cp’s and 80 km off the route with an easy 35km ride on road. A quick look at a road atlas showed us the key town name we had to head too. No other team did this in transition and I think it is where our victory charge started.”
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One of the big stories of the 2009 AR World Championships was the style of the race.  I had the opportunity to see the event myself, and it took me a few days of asking questions to piece together how this race worked.  Let me share with you what I learned.

Instead of the traditional “first team across the finish line wins” race format, this Portuguese organization is known for an alternative style where the team who obtains the most checkpoints is the winner.  The main rules are easy to summarize:
-The team who visits the most checkpoints wins
-The race is divided into several Stages
-Each race Stage has a set cut-off time and no team will get credit for visiting checkpoints on a Stage after the cut-off time
-If a team is still on a Stage after the cut-off time, they will be routed on a shorter course for the next Stage and have significantly fewer checkpoints available to them for that next Stage

This all doesn’t sound too strange, but consider that in a regular adventure race if you miss a cut-off, you’re forever ranked below all the teams who successfully made the cut-off; it has a permanent impact on your race result.  At this race, when you missed a cut-off, you are penalized by having fewer checkpoints available to you for the next section of the race . . . but it’s not permanent, and you end up spending less time on this next section because you’re on a shorter course.  At the end of this shortened section, you resume racing on the “full” course again and can obtain as many checkpoints as you can again.  In practice, missing a cut-off can be a jumpstart for teams to speed past parts of the race that don’t suit them or are particularly tough; teams who realized this early enough during the race decided to intentioanlly miss cut-offs and strategically decide to focus on specific parts of the course.

This is compounded by the fact that teams were not given a clear and concise explanation of the race format, so many teams were learning as the race went on.  Even worse, at the pre-race briefing teams were told that it was a key idea *not* to miss any cut-offs, and if teams were confused by the format, that they should keep that one concept in mind.

One final complication with the race format was the inclusion of “clustered” checkpoints on the race course.  Some checkpoints would be labeled 56A, 56B, and 56C on the maps.  In order to get credit for checkpoint 56, teams would have to visit 56A, 56B, and 56C — and if they just obtained 56A, for example, they would get no credit at all.  I spoke with several teams that didn’t know this until the final day of the race, and so they may have visited 56B and 56C, but bypassed 56A and not gotten credit for anything.

I can see the attraction of a race style such as this: all the teams crossed the finish line within 4 hours of one another, and throughout the course teams were grouped much closer together than at a conventional race.  Considering most expedition adventure race winners cross the finish line days before the last teams, this format in Portugal has appeal in that regard.

There are other positives, too, such as forcing teams to evaluate their route options closely and really understand their strengths and weaknesses.

Unfortunately, the absence of communications about the race format is more an issue than the particulars of this race style.  If all the teams understand how the race is operated, it’s a level playing field where everyone has the same information.   Then the focus on the race course can be on out-racing the competition, instead of figuring out how the race operates.

This race format is not the norm in Europe, and besides some races in the United Kingdom and this one race in Portugal, there are no other organizations I know of hosting events in this style.  There were many sighs of relief when the 2010 Adventure Racing World Championships in Spain announced that their race format would be “traditional, first across the finish line wins.”

It’s been a challenge following what’s going on with the AR World Championships.  I won’t personally arrive in Portugal until Thursday, so I’ve been in touch with our Untamed staff person at the race and I’ve been trying to keep track on Twitter and the race website as best as possible.  Caveats apply: this is pieced together from fragments and could be off-base, but some news is better than no news — even if it isn’t 100% confirmed and verified, right?  This is a blog, after all, and not the NY Times!

It was a cold, windy, and foggy night for all the teams as they worked their way through Portugal’s tallest mountains.  There was a chance of snow up top.  I’m told there was hot soup served at one of the Checkpoints in a small village up in the mountains last night; you’ve got to love the cultural experiences you can get with adventure racing!  With the sun coming up, and just over 24 hours of racing in the books (not counting the now controversial prologue), I can share the following:

At the front of the race pack, it sounds like Nike and OrionHealth are really pushing the pace.   Lundhags is not far behind.  To illustrate the pace at the front, I understand Nike actually sprints their way into and out of a Transition Area — where a more mortal team might slow up and jog the final stretch or resume their race a bit more slowly, they are going 100% apparently 100% of the time.  Just amazing intensity but the race is still early!  

Nike certainly has been aggressive, feverishly going after bonus checkpoints.  This puts pressure on teams like OrionHealth and the others vying for the victory, forcing them to make tough decisions to try and beat Nike at their own game (speed!) or bypass some of the early bonus points to conserve energy and time for later in the race.   As one friend of mine observed, “Nike knows how to work a complex, rule-heavy course” and so Nike could be laying the foundation for a win at this race.  Conversely, they could be opening the door for other teams to out-wit them and there is some very smart and speedy competition in Portugal.  It’s too early to have any perspective on what strategies are paying dividends.
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I’m saving some final thoughts on the World Championship race course for tomorrow, letting the 2 pieces from earlier this week (here and here) simmer.  I’m turning my focus instead to the teams racing in this AR World Championship, and with 59 high quality teams and adventure racing being such an unpredicable endeavour . . . you must take any prediction with a healthy dose of salt.

Another complicating factor, and I’ll be honest with you here, is that half of these teams are unknown to me.  The sport is truly global and in the absence of an international ranking mechanism (that I’m told Adventure World will be addressing as we move into 2010!), or an easier way to know the backgrounds of all the teams, it is very challenging to foresee who has the endurance, speed, and intelligence to claim the World Championship in Portugal.  I’m not even mentioning injuries or bike mechanicals or any of the other factors at play on an adventure race course.

Before I get into my summary of teams to watch, I’ll offer you a chance to weigh-in and pick the results of the World Championship.  Visit www.UntamedAdventure.com/ARWC to pick your top 10 teams, earn points for those you select correctly, and the winner of this “fantasy” adventure racing experiment will get some cool equipment from Ultimate Direction.  Give it a shot and see if you can beat me at this — it’s a tough challenge to predict the outcome of an expedition adventure race!  My precise picks won’t be unveiled until Sunday, but in the meantime I’ll offer up some food for thought.

Let me go down the official race roster from www.arwc2009.com/en/teams.php and touch on the teams that jump out at me.  Going in the order of their official team race number . . .
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There are only a couple more days until the World Championships!  This is a great time to be following adventure racing, and an even better time for somebody with a ticket to Portugal . . . but I digress. This is my second installment in the pre-race coverage for Adventure World on the Adventure Racing World Championship; in case you missed our first piece, we outlined what the first part of the race course will consist of and what teams could be facing.  This post will finish our summary of the course — as compiled from the many team bulletins and other public notices send out by the race organization.

Just as a quick review:

1)  Stage 1 is a short variety show to start the race off; lots of photo opportunities and fun on the beach.

2)  Stage 2 has a long trek and a long bike leg, delivering 11,000 meters of elevation gain and probably culminates on top of something pretty tall!

And now for new material . . .
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The 2009 AR World Championship starts this coming Sunday; as I write this, teams from around the world are making their way to Portugal, where the weather forecast looks downright perfect for a race such as this (sunny each day and around 60 degrees).

The race organization in Portugal has been very open about the layout of the race, and we can share some observations about the flow of the course and what teams can expect.  All of this is gathered from public sources, so I’m not spilling the beans or anything . . . but a very interesting picture can be developed from all the various tidbits of information out there.  This is the first of a multi-part series I’ll be posting as pre-race coverage here on the Adventure World ARWS blog.  Be sure to check back tomorrow for the next installment.

Let me begin with a few basics: the race is roughly 5 days in duration, starting on Sunday Nov 8 at 10 AM and the course closing on Saturday the 14th (but the race winners, the future Adventure Racing World Champions for 2009, finishing earlier on lucky Friday the 13th).

Moving on to some more interesting material, I’m going to review the race step by step using the information at my disposal.
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We’re aiming to get interviews with each North American team competing in the AR World Championships in Portugal this November. Cyril from the California based team “nuun-FeedTheMachine” is usually busy training or growing his endurance sports nutrition store, FeedTheMachine, but he carved out some time for us earlier this month . . .

nuun-FeedTheMachine was impressive in 2008, finishing in 6th place at the World Championships in Brazil.  How psyched are you to race in Portugal this year?

Cyril: “The World Championships regroup the highest concentration of the best international teams. The energy that results is incredible and it brings out the best in our team. We love to race against the best, because it clearly lets us know where we stand. There is no pretending at the World Championships!”

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An amazing field of talent is assembled on the team list for the 2009 Adventure Racing World Championships in Portugal this November. Adventure racing luminaries such as OrionHealth (fresh off their impressive victory at PrimalQuest Badlands and the defending 2008 AR World Champions), Quechua (a very strong European team), Lundhags Adventure (a Scandinavian force to be reckoned with), and Blackheart (a top Australian team) jump out at you . . . but there are also some fantastic teams from North America that are going to join the party!

ATP-Salomon, fresh off their victory in North America’s Qualifying race Untamed New England 2009, will be representing Canada and the USA at the World Championships (their team is composed of racers from both nations). Team Kinetic will also be there from Canada. The eastern United States has a couple dynamite teams joining the fun in Portugal, with NYARA and Berlin Bike also earning entrance into the World Championships based on their performance at the New England race. From the West Coast, Team Sole and nuun-FeedTheMachine will also be racing, bumping up the participation of North American teams to a significant level. Add to this mix the organization team, Untamed New England, and the tally comes to 7 teams from the USA and Canada! I don’t have the complete rosters for all the World Championship events through the years, but I suspect that the last time so many teams from North America participated in the World Championships was when the race was held in Canada . . . back in 2004. The 2009 Adventure Racing World Championships begin on Sunday Nov 8th, from Portugal’s beautiful Estoril Coast on the Atlantic Ocean. In the intervening 10 weeks, we’ll take a closer look at the teams representing North America in this race and delve into some of the history behind the AR World Championship.