Words by Sarah Hearn
“50m above a mountain stream, perched on a 1,5m wide ledge at 2am with no obvious, safe way back up or down. Exhausted. Alive! This is the Good Zone.”
So, the big question for those who watched those who took on the inaugural Vasbyt100 is…did you have FOMO or ROMO (Relief…)?
Compare the Good Zone to the Comfort Zone; that place where you wallow in apathy, waiting for someone to change the channel.
Vasbyt100 2019 was designed as a linear expedition with teams moving steadily across mountain ranges from start to finish, uninterrupted by detours to checkpoints. They were free to make their own decisions and route choices unless landowners had threatened to shoot them, in which case they were channelled elsewhere.
“I’ve only done adventure races where there were breadcrumbs laid out for us. To not have a dotted line really stepped it up to actually having to make decisions.”
Experienced team Cyanosis, currently rated 6th in the ARWS rankings completed the course in 71 hours – just 2 hours off the predicted fastest time. They were the only team to do so.
SKOI floundered on Leg 3 and spent 38 hours getting to transition, forcing them to be short cut.
“Although this race kicked me in the balls, I had the best 38hours of my life on that hiking leg. It became about survival, doing what needs to be done. There was no panic, just determined effort after our wrong call. Without risk of failing greatly, can there ever be true adventure?”
Two other teams gave in and gave up at the end of Leg 6 after 70 hours, forfeiting the unique opportunity to traverse possibly the wildest expanse of land in our country in exchange for beers and blankets.
“Sometimes the course must be victorious, so you stay humbled and respective of the fact that this is the toughest sport bar none.”
Mark Loftus wanted otherwise and so one of the race organisers Hanno Smit accompanied him on foot over three mountain ranges to get to the finish. Just 12,5 hours later he had the same beer and blankets along with a sense of accomplishment so whole and so powerful that we are reminded yet again that our sport can only be dominated by those holding the strongest head and fiercest heart.
“You’ve given us a platform for exceptionally strong athletes to push themselves. You learn so much by being pushed.”
Still in a form of lockdown as the finish venue had no cell signal, the group did not disperse immediately to tell their stories online, instead they sat and discussed everything in the social atmosphere.
However they had felt in the bad moments, no matter what words were spewed out in despair, what bikes were thrown down in disgust, what curses were aimed at the course and the course maker, when sitting around a fire with mugfuls of sherry, every person that had done a part of the race was positively reflective.
“That rawness is what made it so special. Normally we dictate to the world. This time we were the little thing in Nature, and she was stronger and bigger than us.”
“I can appreciate the value of what you exposed us to and how much we grow when stretched to the extreme. The boundaries of what is possible and what we are capable of was recalibrated for me.”
“One of the most enjoyable and interesting legs I’ve ever experienced on an AR”
(The same leg where the idea for next year’s AR calendar was incubated. Look out for Naked In Gaiters 2020.)
“I totally get what Tweet was trying to get back to.” (This comment not related to next year’s calendar)
Vasbyt100 challenged conventions and inadvertently raised hackles and sparked many conversations. Lost in a society that values exposure above excellence, Vasbyt seeks passion over Likes and as such, the bar will remain high.
“If this race continues, and keeps the same ethos, we’ll be there.”
Don’t be scared of a DNF if you run out of time trying to make it happen, but be aware of the regret if you are too scared to even start.
With thanks to all the private landowners and public land managers who did grant permission and promised not to shoot our teams
– Frontier Medics, willing, able and properly prepared to assist in the wilderness and wash the dishes
– Xavier Briel Photographer who we kept reigned in so as to give the teams the maximum amount of authentic adventure experience without paparazzi popping out at them
– SANParks honorary rangers who warned the buffalo that grumpy teams were headed their way
– Merrell South Africa, our long term sponsor who trust us with their brand’s reputation. We share the same commitment to integrity
– And most importantly, the true band of brothers (and sisters, yes) who took on the challenge and had faith in us arranging an adventure for them.