Allez Canada, con’t.—


their entry to the finals. The other Cana- dian team that qualified, Salomon Chlo- rophylle, is also from Québec. The seven members of team Saguenay–


Lac-Saint-Jean hold regular jobs ranging from teacher to fireman, but they are not new to racing by any means, with years of experience in adventure racing or triath- lon, as well other sports including moun- tain biking, long-distance running and sailing. Team member Pierre Lavoie, 42, has twice been world champion in his age category in the Hawaii Ironman triathlon.


The top Canadian team was a surprise to all—a group of amateur athletes who formed a team in honour of the Raid coming to their hometown.


Although many people think of ad-


venture racing as a sort of off-road tri- athlon, there are several distinctions. For one, racers cannot get by on speed and strength alone—they must be experts in all the race’s technical disciplines includ- ing trail running, mountain biking, rope- works (climbing, rappelling, or crossing canyons by zipline), whitewater canoe- ing and sea kayaking. Teams must travel together, so strategies for stronger team- mates assisting weaker ones are para- mount, as are interpersonal skills under conditions of stress, sleep-deprivation and physical pain. Teams aren’t told the order of events or the route until mere hours before the race, so they also must be adept at navigation and dealing with the unexpected—hence the “adventure.” The Raid World Championships run


September 10–16, 2006. Thirty-two teams are expected at the start line, including last year’s world champions Les Arcs Quechua (from France, but with Cana- dian veteran Yves Billodeau on board) and recent Primal Quest champions, the USA’s formidable team Nike. Check out www.theraid.org for more info and www. sleepmonsters.com for live coverage. —Jacqueline Windh


20 | | ADVENTURE KAYAK fall 2006


JACQUELINE WINDH


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