Godzone Adventure video and photos

Here are some photos of the course and Team Blackheart at the The new AR World Series race in New Zealand, the Orion Health Godzone Adventure. Thank you for the fantastic photos from Green Pixel.

		Godzone Adventure VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

And if you haven’t already watched them, here are the Wild Racers summary for each day. I can’t wait for the full series which starts screening in Australia on Fox on 23rd May.


Day 1 http://vimeo.com/40006975


Day 2 http://vimeo.com/40084929


Day 3 http://vimeo.com/40154523


Day 4 http://vimeo.com/40228708


Day 5 http://vimeo.com/40290236


Seagate win http://vimeo.com/40280504

Team Blackheart- What have we been up to over summer?

With the impending Orion Health Godzone Adventure starting next week, you may have been wondering what we have been up since the ARWC last November.

The Adventure Junkies X-marathon race held in late December was a great race for the team(s) with the pairs format enabling a rearrangement into 3 teams. Rob and Kathryn, Damon and Fleur and Josh and Chris Mucha teamed up to take on a small but quality field including Peak Adventure (Jarad Kohlar and James Pretto) and Thule Adventure (Jacky and Mimi) the recently crowned world champions. The course centred around Lake Nillahcootie in Central Victoria was picturesque and challenging, and the low 30’s temps made it ever tougher. Peak Adventure took the overall win in 15hrs 10mins, with Rob and Kathryn coming in just 30mins behind and 1hrs in front of 3rd place Team Thule. Josh and Chris finish 4th, and Damon and Fleur 5th (2nd mixed). Full results

Rob and Kathryn’s Wedding

On New Years Eve, the social event of the millennium took place at Mt Baw Baw in Victoria- Rob and Kathryn’s Wedding. A perfect weekend in the beautiful Victorian Alps was enjoyed by the cream of Australia’s Adventure racers and orienteers.

Damon’s running adventures

Damon continues to add to his already impressive Ultra-running resume. At the Bogong to Hotham race in the first week of January, poor weather caused the cancellation of the race at half way. Damon was leading the race at this point, 9 mins faster than his previous best time, but he didn’t feel right about keeping the winners trophy so will return next year for another go.

Then Damon headed overseas for the The Coastal Challenge, an annual 6 day, 225km adventure run through Costa Rica. After a very tough battle with a local athlete, Damon won the race. Damon's Coastal Challenge race report

Orienteering season begins

Rob, Kathryn and Josh have been keeping busy with orienteering races, both on foot and mountain bike. The first round of the SILVA National Orienteering League was held in Ballarat on the Labour Day long weekend. With 3 races over two days, and some very close and fast racing, it was great start to the season.

The following weekend was the SILVA Duo at Silvan in the Dandenong Ranges. This race involved a short scatter-o on foot (choose your own order), then MTB, then again on foot. Aaron Dodd (Melbourne Forest Racers) had a great race to defeat Rob in his first Du-O from 5 starts by about 30secs. Josh continues to improve his nav skills and was satisfied with 3rd place.

And not to be forgotten, Kim and Dave Provan teamed up with Rob Davis to win the Melton Meanders 5hr MTB rogaine.

For the first time in many years Rob and Kathryn will miss the next round of the SILVA National League, the Easter Carnival in Queensland to compete in the Orion Health Godzone Adventure.

Snowy Hydro Upper Murray Challenge

Josh Street has smashed the previous course record in the Masters Class by over 20mins to set a new mark in 6hrs2mins57secs. Josh finished outright 5th place, and spent most of the race in sight of 4th placed team mate Rob Preston.

Jarad Kohlar (www.peakadventure.com.au) put together an amazing race, starting with a course record on the bike leg. Extending this lead on the Murray river kayak leg he was able to cruise a the line in 5hrs28mins beating Jeremy Ross’ previous record by 4mins. Two time UMC winner Luke Haines (www.train4adventure.com) was satisfied with his race, setting a personal best time and comfortably in 2nd place 4mins behind Kohlar. John Kent from Bright had a very consistent race to take 3rd place in front of Blackheart.com.au boys Rob and Josh. 

Kathryn Ewels (6hrs51mins43secs  finished in 3rd place in the Women’s category, behind one of the best female multisport athletes in the World- Mimi Guillot from France, and Australia’s #1 athlete Deanna Blegg. Kathryn overcame a mechanical on the bike- a bolt fell out of the shock in her brand new Gary Fisher Superfly 29er. After some very grateful help from a course official she was back on the bike battling the super hilly mtb course. She improved her kayaking time by 10mins from her 2008 race, and then smoked the final run leg in 2hrs13mins- taking back 10mins from Mimi and 16mins from Deanna.

If you haven’t done the Upper Murray Challenge before then you should really put it on your must do list for 2012. The course is fantastic and the community support behind the race really makes the trip to the Towong Shire worthwhile.

Full results Race website

Rob’s full race report to follow

Josh is happy with his new paddle thanks to Meek Kayaks and free 1 on 1 training session with Jarad Kohlar

Kathryn collecting her medal

Team Blackheart heading to Upper Murray Challenge

3 Blackheart team members are in the car heading to the Upper Murray Challenge, one of Australia’s premier multisport race. The race consists of a tough and hilly 38km mountain bike, 26km downriver paddle on the Murray River, and finishes with a 25km run.

Rob and Josh will be out there trying to keep race favourites Luke Haines and Jarad Kohlar honest. Though Josh insists he is racing in the old-man category so he doesn’t need to get caught up in any grudge matches with the young bucks.

Kathryn is also racing, and hoping to repeat her podium finish from 3 years ago.

Check out the race at http://uppermurraychallenge.com.au/

Live results- from 8am

Course map- http://uppermurraychallenge.com.au/UMC2009V4.pdf

Blackheart members competing in SILVA National Orienteering League

Round 3 of the SILVA National Orienteering League and final World Championship selection races are on this weekend in Tasmania. Team Blackheart members Rob Preston and Kathryn Ewels are hoping to continue their recent good form this season.

First up on Saturday morning is a sprint race on University of Tasmania’s Launceston campus. A quick recovery will be followed by a short drive to Benbullen for the Middle distance race. This map was previously used for the 2009 Easter Carnival and features a mixture of open farmland, plantation and native forest with a scattering of granite boulders. Sunday’s Long distance race is on Lively’s Bog near St Helens, and with recent heavy rains the marshes could be more boggy than ever.

In the women’s series, Kathryn holds a small lead from Victorian Nuggets teammate Jasmine Neve and SA’s Vanessa Round. Kathryn’s Victorian team is leading the National League and look confident of retaining their 2010 title. In the recent competitions in WA, Kathryn picked up 2nd in the 2011 Australian 4-days Championships, and also the Australian Sprint Distance Championships. 

In the men’s series, Rob is currently sitting in 3^rd place behind SA’s Simon Uppill and Canberra Cockatoo’s Grant Bluett. Rob has had a consistent start to the season, winning race 3 and not finishing worse than 6^th in any race.  The  competition will be tough this weekend with the return of NSW’s star Julian Dent. Dent missed the last round of races due to commitments with his Swedish club Malungs, but his form shows he is the hot favourite. NSW Stingers are looking to extend their lead in the team competition, with the aid of Dent and Ian Meyer who is returning from an injury induced break.

Next week the Australian team to compete at the World Championships in France in August. 

Rob finishing the Aus Sprint Orienteering Champs in Mandurah

Kathryn on the podium at the Aus Sprint Distance Champs

Abu Dhabi Adventure Challenge- Team Blackheart Report

Well better late than never. We've been pretty busy since returning from Abu Dhabi over a month ago. Here is Damon's report from the race. Thanks again to the organisers of the Abu Dhabi Adventure Challenge for a fantastically well run event. Thanks to our sponsors who make it possible to travel the globe chasing the dream. 
Over to Damon...

With 2010 fast coming to an end, Rob  decided that he wanted to fit one more race in for the year and convinced me to join him for the Abu Dhabi Adventure Challenge (ADAC), a 6 day race in the United Arab Emirates. Over the last 3 years, the ADAC  has established itself as one of the premier races on the calendar, attracting the best teams from around the world. I was struggling to justify the trip to myself (and Fleur) after having moved from Sydney to Melbourne, enjoyed a 3 week holiday in the Swiss Alps, buying a house, car and starting a new job, all in the previous 3 months – but I somehow managed it! (She has just informed me that I never actually got permission from her, must have forgotten to have that conversation…). Rob had an easier solution to the leave pass dilemma, he invited his partner Kathryn to race with us. Our fourth member was Luke Haines, a mate from Geelong, who would be new to our team.

Unlike most adventure races which are non-stop, the ADAC is considered a staged raced with breaks at the end of each day. The first 2 days would consist of a mix of disciplines including cycling, swimming, running, canoeing and rope work, with the final 4 days including some monster 100km+ desert trekking and kayaking.

Day 1- 22km Adventure Triathlon

Starting with a canoe/run/swim prologue at the Abu Dhabi Corniche, we were to show our complete lack of canoeing skills, but luckily there was a bit of running also, including going through the sheik’s palace, a massive complex covered with manicured lawns and gardens, where we were able to make up some places. Only 3 of us had to complete the 900m swim, with Luke opting to walk around the beach with our gear while we swam. Halfway through the swim I realized I probably should have done some training for this as I tried to ignore the girl overtaking me breaststroking. We managed to hang on to our position after some more running and canoeing before finishing back on the Corniche in 20th place. We then jumped in the buses for a 3 hour drive out to Al Ain, Abu Dhabi’s 2^nd largest city, for the afternoon’s activities. We picked up our bikes, more water then headed off in a mass restart for a 30km ride to Jebel Hafeet. With 50 teams of 4 in the race all riding together, it was hard to keep track of teammates in the jostling of the bunch. Only a few km’s from the start, one rider went down hard and slid along the hot mix in front of me. I had just enough time to avoid him and think how much that would have hurt, before I realized it was Rob. He got back up relatively unscathed, but soon found he had a broken spoke and flat tire. Where was the donkey when we needed him? The next problem was that our main repair kit was with Luke, who was still with the bunch disappearing ahead at 40km/hr oblivious to our problems. Luckily we had a tiny emergency pump and tube and were able to get back riding, although we wasted at least 10 minutes in the process and more importantly, lost the comfort of the peloton. We managed to catch up with Luke who had dropped back and rode together for the remainder of the ride to the transition. The final section for the day was a rocky run up Jebel Hafeet and abseil back down and run into camp. We ran quite well and caught back up to a few teams, but still ended the day pretty disappointed with our result.

The camps were fully catered, both dinner and breakfast, and we were pleasantly surprised by the feed the put on. There was plenty of food and drink to go around for everyone. Camping the first night next to Jebel Hafeet, we could see the lights at the top, almost 1000m above us. Tomorrow we would have to run back to our bikes, ride up to the top, run and abseil down and then run back up again.

Day 2- 6km run, 20km MTB, 10km run and ropes

We struggled on the first 5km run, which included a neat crossing of a rocky ridge, and collected our bikes already 5 minutes back from the leaders. A short section of dirt road led us back to the bitumen and the big climb to the top, which would take us over an hour. On finally reaching the top, we filled up with water and headed off into the rocks. Our running form had returned and we moved quite well again to the beginning of the fixed ropes course. This was one of the highlights of the race for me, with fixed ropes installed down through a gully in the mountain and then up another. It was a spectacular descent, however the slow progress along the fixed ropes had caused some bottlenecks around teams and it was a relief to hit the final abseil and get some space at the bottom. Having little information about how long this section was, we had underestimated our water requirements and were running low. Now entering the heat of the day, we really suffered on the long climb back up. On nearing the top, we were all out but somehow managed a final burst to run into the finish to devour some cold drink and chips (thanks Chris). We had performed a little better today, finishing in 12 place and 15th overall, but our slow progress along the ropes had lost valuable time.

Day 3/4- 94km MTB, 110km Desert Trek

The next 2 days would see us trekking over 100km’s through the massive sand dunes in the desert, but first we had to complete a 90km ride to get there. We had to be self sufficient during this time and would only be supplied with water at checkpoints along the way. Starting at 4am, we rode the first couple of hours in the darkness, loaded with food and gear for 2 days of racing. Alternating between a good surface, to potholes and sand covered sections, to entirely disappearing at times, this ride took us 5 ½ hours to complete, over an hour behind the leaders. Now in the heat of the day, we ran off to collect 6 compulsory checkpoints, with the option of collecting a further 4 CP’s if we had the time. With a 6 hour bonus for every optional CP, they were worth going for, however there were cut-offs and a compulsory 8 hours break along the way you had to keep in mind. The dunes were like an oven and at the first opportunity to stop, we opted to have a 2 hour break. The 8 hours compulsory break had to be taken at a CP at a maximum of 2 locations along the way. Most other teams seemed to have the same idea and there were a few of us competing for the shade of the organizers vehicles. Starting off again in the afternoon, the conditions were much nicer and got better during the night, but we were still travelling a lot slower than I’d hoped. Navigation at this point wasn’t much of an issue as there were plenty of tracks in the sand to follow. The dunes were incredible, bigger than any I had run before, like mountain ranges with ridges, gullys and peaks, seemingly never ending. 

The satellite photo’s we were given to navigate by showed sections of salt flats and it became obvious to join the dots between the CP’s and salt flats to travel faster, but that usually meant a huge climb back up the dunes at the end of each flat. We stopped earlier in the night than hoped for our remaining 6 hour break, sleeping in our tent and bivvys. There was a cut-off at 10am the next day at the final compulsory CP if you wanted to go for the last optional CP. Several hours before this cut-off it looked like it could be a close call for us to make it so we picked up our speed a bit, but as the sun rose, so did the heat. We made some good time, but the dunes coming into the last CP were enormous and we ended up missing it the cut off by over an hour, meaning we had to head straight to the finish. Only 9 teams made it to the CP in time to go for the last optional. It was now stinking hot and we’d been trekking for over 24 hours. Kathryn opted for a “short cut” over a final, massive dune range she could see in the distance at the endof a salt flat, which would lead to the finish. In a bit of a low spot, all I could see was a wall ahead of us and I got a glimpse of Rob’s future life as I pleaded with her to take another route and was promptly put back in my place and told to harden up. It felt like the biggest, steepest dune we had crossed so far and I was on hands and knees to get up it, but I did what I was told. On rounding the top, we found some energy and were able to jog in to the finish at 3pm, in 34 hours, in 9th place, now 12th overall. Our trip across the desert had been about 105km. Helping ourselves to the cold drinks and pasta supplied at the finish, we jumped back in the buses for the 3 hour ride to the Maffi coast, where we would be sea kayaking over 100km back to the finish.

Day 5- 130km kayak over two days

We were woken early in our tents by strong winds and the announcement came over that the start would be delayed. Not long after, the decision was made to cancel the days kayaking stage due to the strong winds. With much of the route being off shore it seemed like the right decision was made. The day was spent hanging around the beach and local shops, which sounds much more relaxing and enjoyable than it actually was. We were notified in the evening that the kayaking would restart the next day back in the city after another bus trip.

Day 6- 33km kayak

The wind had only died down slightly the next day as we drove back to town. The new kayaking course was going to be 3 laps of an 11km course along the Corniche. We had about a 10 minute gap to catch the French team Vibram Lafuma in front, with a lot more time to the next team behind. We had a crack at catching them but they were too aware of how close we were and kept a close eye on us for the 3 laps and we ended up maintaining our relevant positions.

After the 6 days of racing, we finished in 12^th place. Having the kayaking cancelled was a disappointing way to finish what was an excellent event, but the fixed ropes course over Jebel Hafeet and desert trekking made up for it. Our result was not what we’d hoped, but it was a very tough race and competitive field. The catering was fantastic and I think I may have actually put on weight during this race. Thanks to my teammates for racing with me. Apologies to Kathryn, who was amazed/disgusted that I’d still not had a shower the whole week, even though they were provided for us every day. I was just trying to make Rob look as good as possible before he finally seals the deal!


Thanks to Shotz, whose electrolyte tablets proved a winner once again as we popped them into litre after litre of water to keep hydrated in the extreme heat. Thanks also to our other sponsors – Blackheart, Salomon, Aussie Butt Cream and SILVA.

Team Blackheart at the finish

The Winners- Team Thule Adventure

The Mexicans return to Geoquest Adventure Race for the 9th time

Damon and Kim return to the start line of Geoquest for the 9th time. This year they are joined by Big Dave Provan and Andrew "Wol" Wolstencraft. Kim and Dave recently moved from the famous CIS training facility in Carrum Victoria to the warmer training grounds in Brisbane. Geoquest will be the first opportunity to test the effects of the new training environment.
The race coverage can be found here, and again includes GPS tracking and the popular Trail Mail message board.

Meanwhile Rob and Kathryn have been in Norway for the World Orienteering Championships. If you missed all the action there is plenty of good entertaining reading on the Aussie team blog. I raced the Sprint Distance and Long Distance Qualification races finishing 25th and 27th in heats which wasn't good enough to qualify for the finals. But with only 2months to prepare since XPD in Cairns this wasn't a bad effort and up toying with the idea of a better focused attempt at the 2011 WOC in France.

And another race of interest on this weekend is the Inaugural Vanuatu Adventure Race. Several friends and family are racing, with Peter Preston and Ben "What injury will it be this week" Rattray racing as NSW Stingers. Also Steve Todkill and Dave Meyer are racing as Team Stingers. Vanuatu looks like a fantastic location for an Adventure Race even better place for a holiday so I'm sure they will have a great time. The "Supercrew" Julia and Robert Preston have also jumped Geoquest support duties in favour or a pacific holiday. Checkout the race at http://www.racevanuatu.com