Adventure Race 3
13 August - Vale of Pewsey, Wiltshire

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Race Report

Over two hundred adventure racers converged on Pewsey in the heart of north Wiltshire for the third event in the Questars 2005 adventure race series. With eight of the ten leading teams in the series present and many new faces the scene was set for strong competition in the Questars Duo and Trio Masters categories. In addition a warm welcome was extended to the many Novice teams and in particular those teams that were trying adventure racing for the very first time.

The Vale of Pewsey sounds a tranquil calm location. As the teams were to find out the terrain is not to be underestimated and the weather added another challenge too. Above the wide valley with its myriad of quiet lanes, bridleways and footpaths is the steep chalk escarpment of the Marlborough Hills. At the Race Briefing in the spacious sports hall of the event centre teams were advised to gain this height in order to obtain some of the magnificent views of the surrounding country including the World Heritage Site at Avebury with all its Neolithic remains including the enormous man made Silbury Hill just a stones though from the furthest checkpoint on today's course.

As teams crossed the start line they collected checkpoints details including their respective values and which of the pre marked locations on their race maps were 'dummy' checkpoints with no value. Rapid reviews of planned routes followed as teams set out. The Men's Masters teams headed straight along the towpath of the Kennet and Avon canal and under a bridge to the kayak transition point just 300 metres away. In response to requests from previous races the kayak stage was longer this time with up to eight locations to visit to earn a total of 230 points. This posed the first decision - whether to head east along the canal for three widely spread checkpoints worth 120 points or west and five closer locations worth a total of 110 points. Some adventurous teams decided to go for all of them and two teams succeeded - Simon Proud and Jonathan James - albeit they both were just over time back at the transition point and picked up a 50 penalty which was hard lines for all that effort.

Meanwhile other teams were well dispersed across the Vale and hills. Those that chose to bike early in the day had the advantage of dry and very fast conditions through the many leafy lanes and hard packed bridleways. Rewarded with stunning views and high scoring checkpoints many teams especially enjoyed the open country once they had gained the height onto the chalk hills. No less than eight teams cleared the entire biking stage and there were several others that achieved all bar one.

The trail run stage was all contained on the eastern part of the race map with again many route options. Some checkpoints were near at hand along the canal towpath where runners along with bargees shouted encouragement to the kayaks searching out their bankside controls. Other checkpoints were scattered across the Vale and hills along avenues, footpaths and through some splendid countryside and villages. Five teams recorded maximum points on this section of the adventure race.

Nettles provided an extra challenge to the runners, but it was the change from a dry and calm morning to heavy rain and wind in the early afternoon that provided the real test. With the storm only abating as teams completed the weather made for a significant additional challenge - albeit one perversely 'enjoyed' by many teams according to their post race feedback! Despite the wet conditions many teams timed their return to the event centre to perfection with just seconds left within their allotted race time. All teams were glad to be back to the warmth of the sports hall with shower facilities and to be greeted with a welcome hot chocolate.

Soon after the last Masters teams finished the prize giving revealed that this event had seen the highest scoring results in the series to date. A closely contested Novice category was won by the Cheddar Gorgers who were one of the teams to visit all the bike checkpoints. Neville Baker running under the team name as Dogend had a terrific day visiting all but two checkpoints on the mountain bike stage and all the trail run checkpoints to gain 725 points and win the Questars Duo category by a significant margin.

Notable in the Questars Trio Masters classes were the winning team in the Veterans class Christine and Michael Lawton (Mid Life Crisis) who moved up from previously competing in the Novice category to record a score of 690 points, 55 points ahead of their nearest rivals. So there's encouragement to all the Novice teams - do consider entering one of the Masters classes next time. Another very strong performance came from the winning team in the Mixed Team category - Fiona Spotswood and Gary Bridgeman racing together as the Epic Adventurers gained 740 points and indeed were 7th overall. The top six places all went to Men's Solo racers with the top four all recording higher scores than the previous record. Second placed Andrew Wood well exceeded his team name of 'Lost in the Trees' and also sportingly assisted the winner who's marking of the dummy controls on his map had rubbed off in the rain. Chris Volley lived up to his team name of Total Fitness Bath to win overall event with a staggering score of 930 points out of a maximum possible of 1000.

So now the scene is set for some more close competition and fine adventure racing in the final race in the 2006 Questars series in the New Forest on Saturday 8 October. The contest for the series cash prizes for the top three teams in the Trio Masters and the top Questars Duo team is still wide open. Remember its the best three race scores out of the four event series that count. Will anyone be able to gain that elusive 1000 maximum score? Who will have the satisfaction of leading their class over the series. Do come along to the New Forest to take part and find out.

Top Scorers in Categories

Questars Duo:

Questars Trio – Novices :

Questars Trio – Mixed Teams :

Questars Trio – Ladies :

Questars Trio - Veterans :

Questars Trio – Mens Teams :

Questars Trio - Mens Solo and overall event leaders