Training Log Archive: nmulder

Drove home from Eden Challenge. 15 hour drive on 2 hours of sleep. We took it in turns doing 1 - 2 hour shifts in each car. If we'd known that the race would be so long and gruelling we'd have taken another day off and stopped in Beaufort West for another nights rest.

0600 - This was my 6th consecutive year racing in the Eden Challenge. Team Cyanosis was composed of myself, Arrie, Ryno and Susan. Race started on Rooiberg Pass, near Van Wyksdorp in the W. Cape at 6am on Friday morning. We got a good 5 hours sleep before the race. One the first 25km mountain trek, my left knee gave me problems, but managed to contain it. We finished with a 7 min lead which we then opened on the next 60km bike leg through the Little Karoo. Temperature got hot here (above 35'C) and on the next hike Arrie got a heat illness. We nursed him through the afternoon and he was able to recover. A further bike leg took us out of the Karoo, over the Langeberge and into the Overberg, where we hit the first dark zone at the start of a canyoneering leg. We got a further 4 hours sleep before restarting with Kinetic, who were unofficial after loosing Heidi and Stefan to heat. Next team had only just arrived and were sleeping. The abseil and canyon were superb, a good start to a much cooler 2nd day. After another monster bike leg we realised that the course was going to be well over 300km instead of the advertised 250km. We got onto the 35km Breede River paddle in the mid-afternoon, but doubted that the 2nd place team would be able to do likewise. We were off the water in a slow 4.5 hours (portaging many of the serious rapids to be safe). The next bike leg to the coast near Witsand was a long, undulating slog. The penultimate leg was a 15km coasteering leg. Luckily, despite the spring tide, it was low tide for most of the way and we were able to pass underneath some serious 40m high sea cliffs. It ended in a 200m swim across the Duikenhoks River lagoon just as the tide was coming in... at 3am in the morning it was distinctly unpleasant. A final 8km bike leg to the finish did not give us time to get over the chill! We finished at 4.30am, the only official team to do so by prize giving at 9am. Later found out that the Team USN men's pair were the only other team to do the complete route, minus a CP on the coasteering. Would have been nice to have more competitive teams to race against (no McCains and Red Ants teams), but we're still happy with our own racing form. The feeling is it was a good final training session before Portugal XPD in December. Bike info was Tm 14:42:40, Dst 222.80, Av 15.1, Mx 60.0.

Drove down to Eden Challenge. Stopped for the night near Beaufort West (Olive Grove Guest Farm). Arrived nice at relaxed in the middle of nowhere, somewhere near Rooiberg in the Little Karoo.