© Wenger Patagonian Expedition Race
INSIGHT
Team Helly Hansen-Prunesco: from left Andy Wilson, Mark Humphrey, Nicola MacLeod and Bruce Duncan
The Army’s adventure seeker D
Major Nicola MacLeod reveals how she juggles work in some of the world’s most dangerous war zones with playtime as a World Champion adventure racer. BY WILL GRAY
eep in wild and remote country, army doctor Nicola MacLeod urges her team on. After five days
of mental and physical endurance they are exhausted, nursing injuries and keen to get back to base. But this is not an army tour in Iraq, it’s the Wenger Patagonian Expedition Race, one of the toughest and wildest races on earth. And for MacLeod, this is a holiday. MacLeod joined the Army on a school
scholarship and after 14 years she now works as a regimental medical officer for 1st Battalion, the Royal Irish Regiment, ensur- ing soldiers are medically ready for opera- tions at home and overseas. It was her pas- sion for adventure that drew her to the job, and it is that same passion that inspired her to become one of the world’s leading female competitors in what is a uniquely challeng- ing sport. ‘In my job I work with a motivated group
of people all trying to achieve the same aim. Every day we’re thrown into challenges you
wouldn’t experience elsewhere and that’s similar to adventure racing,’ she says. Adventure races generally involve four-
person mixed-gender teams taking on a combination of kayaking, climbing, trek- king, mountain biking and orienteering.
It’s about pitting your wits against the elements – huge seas, snowy mountains and incessant wind – in an absolutely stunning environment
The toughest races can last up to 10 days and are non-stop, endurance challenges against the clock that often take place in the mid- dle of nowhere. MacLeod’s Helly Hansen- Prunesco team won the legendary Wenger Patagonian Expedition Race this year.
A PERFECT MATCH The Army and active adventure sports go hand in hand. MacLeod’s first adventure race came in 1999, when a group of army
friends who needed a female member to make up their team asked her to join them and try it out. ‘I have raced in some incredible places
like Patagonia, Newfoundland, Costa Rica, New Zealand, Utah, Portugal and the Alps,’ said MacLeod. ‘Patagonia is the classic ex- ample of an adventure race, it’s about pit- ting your wits against the elements – huge seas, snowy mountains and incessant wind – in an absolutely stunning environment.’ Experiencing true wilderness is part of
the lure for many adventure racers and MacLeod, who is a member of a collabora- tion of athletes, tries to take on small week- end races when she can as well as one or two epic events each year. Her training regime is intense, but the
job helps and she adds: ‘The Army creates opportunities for both physical and men- tal training because you need to be fit and strong to do the job, so they are comple- mentary. ‘I used to do mountain marathons with
www.armedforcesday.org.uk SHOW YOUR SUPPORT 57
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