Outdoor Nova Scotia: "The Best Way to be Informed."

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by Diana Lynn Tibert

May 26th, 27th, 2001 Digby, N.S. -  During the last weekend of May while many Nova Scotians relaxed and enjoyed the beautiful weather, dozens of adventurous souls gathered in Digby for the Raid the North Adventure Race.

Thirty-one teams, consisting of four members each, challenged their mental and physical abilities against 150 km of unknown terrain. Teams had a cut off time of 36 hours to reach the finish line. Trekking, biking, paddling and ropes were all part of the course.

Raid the North is organized and staged by Frontier Adventure Racing Inc.  Participants come from across Canada and the United States. Teams must be of mixed gender.

The race began at 4:00 am on Saturday morning in a clearing off Victory Road, north of Kejimkujik National Park. In the dark, teams trekked 17 km through the woods to the first check point where they picked up canoes for a 10 km paddle. After traveling through a series of lakes, they were forced to carry the canoes up a hill through heavy brush to reach a logging road that would eventually lead them to a transition area.

The next leg of the race was said by many teams, to be the most difficult.  The planned 76 km bike ride found teams lost in the dark on a maze of logging roads.

Those who found their way to check point eight reached one of the highlights of the course. Teams rappelled 150 feet across a gorge at the waterfall on Sloan’s Brook. After this adrenaline rush, teams pressed on for a 10 km hike along the shores of the Bay of Fundy.  Although only a short distance, it was made difficult by the rocky and slippery shoreline.

Once again, at check point nine, teams found themselves on the ropes.  This time, they rappelled 400 feet across a gorge. Teams arriving during low tide easily glided across the ropes and remained dry. Those arriving at high tide, around 3:00 am Sunday morning, were not so fortunate. They plunged into the cold waters of the Atlantic as the ropes dipped. Fortunately for them, the next transition area was only a few hundred feet away.

With one check point remaining, teams climbed onto their mountain bikes for an 18 km ride along the beautiful Annapolis Basin to Port Royal. The final leg of the race was a 20 km paddle to the finish line. Depending on the tides and the winds, teams either found themselves making good time, or struggling to break through the white caps. On occasion, several canoes battled for position approaching the finish line.
 
With an amazing time of 19 hours, 13 minutes, Jayme Frank (Captain), Sara Vlug, Simon Donato and  Derek Caveney of Team Eastern Outdoors.com were the first to cross the finish line. Their early finish, one of the fastest in Raid the North history, was well under the estimated time by race organizers. Team Outdoors.com received a cash prize of $1,500 and free entry ($2,500 value) in the series championship race which will be held in Ontario on September 28 to 30 of this year.

Second place went to Team Spirit, who finished with a time of 21 hrs, 45 min while Team Eureka! Ranch finished third with a time of 24 hrs, 5 min.  Brian Weir (Captain), Dan Lamoureux, Steve Rutt, and Roxanne MacLaurin of Team Waterbury Newton(Osprey) were the first Nova Scotian team to finish at 27 hrs, 9 min.

From 31 teams, only twenty finished the entire race. Three of these teams were unranked due to various reasons. On Sunday evening, teams gathered at the Digby Fire Hall for the awards ceremony.

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Material protected by copyright. Last revised: December 12, 2003