Plett Adventure Racing Team heads out to the 2018 Expedition Africa
The Plett Adventure Race Team has left for Expedition Africa, one of the highlights of the Adventure Racing World Series. Cycling, running, paddling and navigating through unfamiliar terrain is just one aspect that these super athletes have to conquer.
Plett is once again immensely proud to send into battle the Plett Adventure Race Team: Drew Scott, Andrew Damp, Petrus Maree and Sarah Hearn.
The Namaqua West Coast is probably one of the Cape’s most unique travel destinations. It is a place of iconic beauty and evocative names. This year the Expedition Africa host town will be Vanrhynsdorp and race HQ and registration will be at the Letsatsi Lodge. Contestants from all over the world will compete between the 18th and 27st of May, in the Baviaanskloof Wilderness and surrounding Kouga area, in the Eastern Cape. This year’s Plett team is made up of the brave and tenacious Drew Scott, Petrus Maree, Andrew Damp and the newest and only female member, Sarah Hearn.
“It’s an honour to support these four dynamic and courageous adventure racers. They have been fantastic ambassadors for the area and continue to promote and encourage adventure lovers to visit Plett Throughout the year they fly the ‘Plett it’s a feeling’ flag as they train on local trails and mountain bike tracks from Tsitsikamma to George; and as they participate in the many adventure races throughout South Africa, says Plett Tourism Media Spokesperson Patty Butterworth.
The Plett Adventure Race Team members have proven themselves to be no strangers to digging deep. In the 2017 addition of Expedition Africa, they crossed the line in 10th place, after 105 hours and 514km of adventure racing. 2018 will see them in their third year of participating in this gruelling race. Adventure racing of this magnitude is a physically and mentally demanding sport combining two or more endurance disciplines and navigation to traverse an unmarked wilderness course. Expedition Africa is particularly engaging due to teams wearing tracking devices, allowing spectators from all over the world to track their progress live throughout the race. Spectators, called “dot watchers”, will spend hours watching their team’s progress and viewing photos and videos from the race on social media. That surely adds to the psychological pressure.
The 2018 edition of Expedition Africa will see 52 teams line up to test their mettle. These athletes are not only required to be of a high level of fitness but at least two members of each team must be capable of navigating by compass and map during the day and night. The teams must be able to orientate a map, identify grid references on a map, take a bearing between two points on a map, and understand the impact of magnetic declination. The teams must be able to describe what their team will do if it became lost. At least one member of each team must hold a minimum qualification of Level One First Aid. It’s safe to say that a certain level of competency is required in order to succeed in this race.
To follow all the excitement, thrills and spills of the 2018 Expedition Africa race, visit http://kinetic-events.co.za/Events/Expedition-Africa. Be sure to keep a close eye on the Plett Adventure Team, who will be doing their level best, and then some, to secure their place in the spotlight. Follow those dots and spread the word, as Plett’s adventure race lovers will be nothing short of super proud of their local offering. Happy trails! See you at the finish line, success in hand and sense of humour intact.
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