Winter Challenge Edition 4 - August, 2014
ADVENTURE TO THE MAX!
The sun came out, the winds were light, and the teams took off with gusto after the gun.
The fourth edition of the Winter Challenge Adventure Race wasn’t to be as wet and cold as the previous ones, and we all breathed a sigh of relief, despite the forecast of showers for the Nagambie area. Phew!
Over sixty brave participants locked horns at 8.30am on Sunday 17th August, from HQ, at the magnificently beautiful, historical estate that is Tahbilk Winery, by the banks of the Goulburn River.
The previous night, teams were able to register, get their maps and gear ready, and enjoy a lazy coffee and a chat with most of the other racers. Some teams, of course missed this down time (due to their arrival at the very last moment, meaning they had to get themselves organized in a very limited amount of time).
There were two divisions - the Pro Course for the super serious contenders, and the Lite Course for those less experienced.
First-up, the Kayaking leg where Pro Course teams had to collect four checkpoints located in creeks and inlets off the main body of the Goulburn River, and two checkpoints for the Lite Course competitors.
Team Peak Adventure consisted of elite athletes, Jarad Kohlar and Elizabeth Dornom, who took an early lead and decided to cut across land at one point, leaving their kayaks on a bank, instead of paddling a river loop around inlets. It was definitely a shorter option, but it meant they had to swim across the river to reach one of the checkpoints. Most of the other teams followed suit.
The Mountain Biking leg led teams to the heart of Rushworth State Forest, with the Lite Course teams following a slightly shorter course than the Pro’s, who scored by having to climb a few additional hills. Naturally there were some mechanical hiccups (all part of the Adventure Junkie fun), with a few flat tyres and busted chains needing a quick repair by the side of the road. The last biking trail was supposed to be a straight forward section back to the winery, but quite a few teams missed a final turn and raked up a few extra kilometres .
Another opportunity to ‘get lost’ came for some of the teams in the Trekking leg, the most challenging part of the course, with a lot of navigational route choices between checkpoints.
The overall Pro Course winners, Team Peak Adventure, finished the whole course in 5 hours 20 minutes. Jarad Kohlar said, “The race was great, the course was challenging and interesting, and I’m expecting some of the NSW, SA and QLD teams to come up to the Grampians Winter Challenge Edition 5, and race against us again next year - in the new format of a two day race.”
Well done also to the fastest Lite Course team, Team Last Ditch Effort, with a result of 4 hours 59 minutes.
And to close the event, Tahbilk had the fire on, the wine poured, and dinner ready in their café, where we all congregated, shared our smiles, our triumphs and muck-ups, and congratulated the winners throughout the presentations.
We’ve waited four years for such a beautiful winter’s day for this event. Great job everyone. Thank you to our volunteers, our supporters, and of course all of the Adventure Junkie Competitors. Keep an eye on our websites and watch out for our Newsletters.
Hope to see you all again next time!
