Salomon Adventure Challenge
Kimberley Alpine Resort

July 26, 2003

Hot, Hot, HOT!

Finally breaking the streak of wet weather, the Salomon Adventure Challenge Kimberley Alpine Resort was met with clear skies and a hot, sunny climate. The racecourse itself was set amongst British Columbia's Purcell Mountains to the west of Kimberley and to the north of Cranbrook - incredibly scenic and abundant with wildlife!

Twenty-seven teams from as far as Edmonton, Alberta and Vancouver, BC began on mountain bikes at the west end of Hellroaring Forest Service Road (FSR). From here, the peliton rushed west along a bumpy Meachen FSR, skirting St. Mary Lake toward the transition to trekking. The top ten teams arrived within 8 minutes of one another an were off toward a set of two washed out bridges - ropes were strung across for extra aid. Team Appetite for Destruction of Canmore, Wonderers of Cranbrook, and Mad Cow of Edmonton were the first to negotiate the cool water along this quick trek to the canoes.

After swimming across the St. Mary River, teams ran 600 metres north to where their canoes and transition bags awaited. Rather than turning around and portaging right back to the put in, a few of the front running teams decided to bushwhack their boats on a southeasterly bearing, hoping to cut off some of the distance - not quite the quickest method as a few teams admitted later on.

None the less, the leaders rushed downriver toward St. Mary Lake with Team Talus of Kamloops and Pinnacle Ridge Forever Lost of North Vancouver clocking fast paddling times. Special mention must be made to Team Cowtown Chix of Calgary who had the most original third seat in the history of the Salomon AC Series - an inflatable man! This was a particularly scenic paddle with Bootleg and Pyramid Mountains overlooking the meandering river…a bald and golden eagle were also spotted overhead.

Taking out at the east end of the lake after an 11 km paddle, Team Appetite for Destruction widened their lead over Team Wonderers and Talus by 11 minutes and was away on bike in short order. Teams were very sure to fill up on water due to the rising temperatures (30+C) in the valley and because the rest of the course was particularly dry.

This second biking route took the St. Mary Lake Rd. eastbound toward Matthew Creek FSR and CP4/TA4 - an 11 km ride on paved, gravel, and sandy roads. The lead teams blazed through this ride in 50 minutes while the mid-pack and final teams began to struggle in the heat of the day. Special mentions go to Team Coast Mountain Gonadz of Port Moody who after leaving CP3/TA3 in 8th headed off up the Hellroaring Valley for over an hour. Realizing their mistake, they blazed back to the TA and were off in the correct direction in no time. Yes, we have our winners of the Suunto Survival Award!

Once the final biking section was complete, all that remained was a 7km trek - trails were abundant as were large tracts of bush so it was up to teams to use both to negotiate a route to the finish line at Kimberley Alpine Resort. The paths taken were incredibly varied and teams rushed to the finish in all sorts of directions. In the end, no one could catch Team Appetite for Destruction who were victorious by day's end. All in all, coed teams ruled the race as the top five teams were in this category…clearly, not having women on your team put you at a great disadvantage!

Congratulations to all teams as everyone reached the finished line within the 8-hour time limit.

See you in the Kawarthas!

TOP TEN RESULTS

For Full & Detailed Results CLICK HERE! Make sure to click through each page in the spreadsheet to see all sorts of statistical information.

Rank  Team Name  Location Finish Time
1st (Coed)    Appetite For Destruction Canmore, AB 4 hrs, 15 min
2nd (Coed)    Talus Kamloops, BC 4 hrs, 43 min
3rd (Coed)    Wonderers Cranbrook, BC 4 hrs, 46 min
4th (Coed)    Two Bi&*?es and a Girl Calgary, AB 5 hrs, 24 min
5th (Coed)    Synergy Calgary, AB 5 hrs, 35 min
1st (Open)    Pinnacle Ridge Forever Lost North Vancouver, BC 5 hrs, 39 min
2nd (Open)    Pinnacle Ridge Tippers Burnaby, BC 5 hrs, 44 min
3rd (Open)    Bloody Stumped Edmonton, AB 5 hrs, 46 min
6th (Coed)    Lost & Confused Cochrane, AB 5 hrs, 52 min
4th (Open)    No Beer Kelowna, BC 5 hrs, 55 min


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