Training Log Archive: nmulder

Event: Bull of Africa Adventure Race
 

0900 - The Bull of Africa Expedition Adventure Race (570km) in the Eastern Cape and Transkei, South Africa. Raced with Team Cyanosis (Jen Segger - Canadian from Team Dart-NUUN, Eugene Botha and Clinton Mackintosh).

Race started off really well for Cyanosis when we took the lead on a 10km mountain bush-wack / trail run in the Katberg Mountains. We were caught in transition by Teams Buff (ESP), USN (RSA) and Feed the Machine (USA). We settled down in the next bike leg to Seymour, where we had a paddle-rogaine. We lost a few more spots due to bad nav and a misplaced CP. From there it was up Mitchells Pass to Hogsback, where we arrived in approx 6th place.

The first night hike through the Amatola Mtns went very well for Cyanosis as we made up places all the way to 2nd, about 1hr behind Team USN. It was extremely cold and exposed on the mountain ridges, which would leave us with hacking coughs. We then settled into a head-2-head battle with Team McCains for 2nd on the subsequent biking and paddling legs through Wriggleswade Dam, the Kubusi River and onwards to the Kei River crossing.

The constant battle with McCains took its toll on the team as we lost focus on chasing down USN for 1st place. We eventually got our sleep strategy wrong when we tried to push on whilst McCains slept, loosing big time in doing so. Arriving at Mazeppa Bay, 4 hours behind USN, McCains once again caught us, with them probably feeling fresher. Our race ended however 2km outside transition on the next coasteering leg when Eugene succumbed to a viral infection in his lungs that resulted in asthmatic-like conditions. It took us about 4hrs to get him the short distance back to the village, without any help from the medics. He spent the night in hospital but made a good recovery. It also turned out to be a good decision to set off our emergency transponder then-and-there as his condition would have gone critical shortly according to the doctor.

Dissappointing result for Cyanosis. However, we were much higher up the field than we originially expected, despite us still having the win as our main goal. It was very positive to be racing in front of international teams such as Buff, Bjufors, Lafuma and Black Heart. The South Africans in general put in a good showing, helped of course by a good understanding of what to expect in the Transkei. USN went on to win, but McCains were relegated down the field from 2nd when they went straight past a CP on the last morning. Jen was a great team mate... she fitted in superbly with the team dynamic and is an incredibly strong racer, especially on her feet.

Looking forward to Portugal XPD now in December... bring it on!

0730 - Another quick run with Team Cyanosis down to the beach and back, with a bit of extra distance along the road.

Driving down to Bull of Africa, 570km Expedition Adventure Race... www.bullofafrica.com but also www.sleepmonsters.com and www.ar.co.za There'll also be live tracking of the teams.

1820 - Went for a quick jog from Belugha Inn down to the beach and back with the rest of Team Cyanosis.

1430 - Pre-Bull ride with Mac and Jen to Emmarentia and Delta. Things are looking good... Av 20.2 Mx 57.1

1545 - Paddled with the Cyanosis Bull of A team, trying to work out best possible combinations. Ended up paddling with both Jen and Uge, but it looks like I'll be stuck with 'Twitchy' again... damn. Training session ended when Mac tipped us out of our boat. Revenge will be sweet.