2007 Report - Race 1 - New Forest, 31st March
Race Report
Over 300 adventure racers enjoyed near perfect racing conditions for the first Questars event of the 2007 series. It turned out to be a record breaking event.
After all the winter rain, the last few weeks of early Spring sunshine had dried out the ground and the numerous cycle ways across the Forest were in great condition making for some exceptionally fast bike stage times. Whilst some early morning winds created some white horses on the kayaking lake this did not appear to daunt early racers who posted some remarkably quick times paddling to and fro from the central ski jump to the checkpoints distributed around the lake's perimeter. The bright yellow Start/Finish arch on the lawns of the delightful event base at Moyles Court school and the Quest fleet of orange and red double open kayaks gleaming in the sunshine throughout the day.
As adventure racers from all over the UK were welcomed to the event in the spacious new school sports hall, the course director explained that many of the checkpoints had been placed in particularly scenic spots to ensure racers gained the most from their day out in this England's newest national park. Dummy checkpoints were revealed only when checkpoint values and descriptions were handed out - along with a welcome energy providing 'Mule bar' - on the start line. Teams were thus able to do a certain amount of pre planning of their chosen courses in advance. And it was soon evident that good route choice was going to be as important as speed in today's race.
Many newcomers to the sport joined the Novice class for their race briefing just as the more experienced Masters class were getting underway. It was the first adventure race for many and so when it was highlighted that few Masters would get close to clearing all the checkpoints there was an audible sigh of relief around the hall and rapid revisions of route choices commenced. Questars flexible format allows teams to play to their strengths - be it running, or biking or aiming to clear all the paddling checkpoints - there are endless choices of routes and race strategies. Advice was to hand to help in planning and navigation and judging by the smiles and cheers at the end all the newcomers had enjoyed their first event enormously. To view images of competitiors taking part in the race you can go to the Sleepmonsters website where there is a large selection of photos available for purchase. Please click here to go to view images.
Many of the eventual event leaders decided to bike first tempted by the extensive options of off road cycle ways through the western heaths and woodlands of the Forest. After speedily completing the kayaking course on the nearby water ski lake, they headed off on bike determined to cover as many of the bike checkpoints as possible. Each of the top four finishers took different routes. Many racers like to see how their fellow competitors tackled the course. You can view their respective route choices and split times (along with every other teams) by clicking on the scores button above.
It was a record breaking day. Over 50 teams visited all the kayaking checkpoints. Nine teams cleared the whole of the biking course to earn the maximum 450 points on this stage of the event and three teams visited all the trail run checkpoints. And overall the highest cumulative points scored in a Questars event ever were posted by two seasoned campaigners each earning a staggering 895 points. Only separated by a matter of seconds, Andy Goss won out over rival Matt Leathwood. Andy was the fastest overall on the bike stage, Matt fastest on the trail run. They were 45 points ahead of third placed Simon Proud who did record the fastest clearance of the kayaking course.
Congratulations to them and to all category winners, all of whom were presented with their prizes by fellow competitor and around the world yachtswoman Dee Caffari who took part herself in the Mixed Team class. Whilst she will not be able to compete in the next Questars as she'll be sailing around the coast of Britain and Ireland on 2 June many of today's teams will be returning for more adventure racing at the next Questars.
This will be in a new location within the spectacular Brecon Beacons National Park. The event base will be near Crickhowell with a superb kayaking stage taking place on the Brecon & Monmouthshire canal. Expect a few more hills on the trail running and biking stages than in the New Forest - and you'll be pleased to hear that the course lengths will be shortened to match the tougher terrain. Team Quest greatly enjoyed hosting the first event in the 2007 series and look forward to welcoming you to the next Questars event on Saturday 2 June.
Top Scorers in Categories
Questars Trio - Masters : Men's Solo and overall event leaders
- 1st 895 Andy Goss
- 2nd 895 Matt Leathwood
- 3rd 850 Simon Proud
- 4th 840 Imperial College Union - Daniel Carrivick
- 5th 820 Clunk - Patrick Muldrum
Questars Trio - Masters : Ladies :
- 1st 755 Rachel Leathwood
Questars Trio – Masters : Mixed Teams :
- 1st 645 Team v250 - Mark Sweatman, Elizabeth Ormsby
- 2nd 595 Phaedippas - Martyn & Amanda Wiley, Dean Johnson, Roger Peters
- 3rd 570 RAAR 2 Kiwis can Fly - Richard Foster, Rebecca Harold, Deane McIntyre
Questars Trio – Masters : Men's Teams
- 1st 760 Dynamo Duo - Paul Pickering, Tom Staunton
- 2nd 715 3Men and 2 Tow Ropes - Paul Duffy, John Gibson, Matthew Smith
- 3rd 700 Clowns Utd - Ryan Copeland, Robin Jordan, Khairy Mabruk
Questars Trio – Masters : Veteran's Teams
- 1st 795 Peg Leg - Simon Thomas
- 2nd 695 Dockers Armpit - Ashley Cooper, David Salter, Pete Foster
- 3rd 680 Amphibians 2 Tri Club - Tony Harris, Ray Powell
Questars Trio – Novices : Ladies
- 1st 440 Las Cheeky Chicas - Lorna Connell, Selina Dicker, Sarah Gebbett, Lizzie Stileman
- 2nd 370 Team 49b - Lauran Whitmore, Lauran O'Toole
- 3rd 370 Team 49a - Pippa Grey, Suse Hughes, Jane Grewer
Questars Trio – Novices : Mixed Teams
- 1st 505 Fit to Function - Sally Dutson, Aaran Eade
- 2nd 455 Detica - Paul Scott, Amanda Challans
- 3rd 450 Lobster 4 - Andrew Bower, Chris Chilton, Dawn Jones, Simon Jones
Questars Trio – Novices : Men's Solo :
- 1st 439 Mighty Mouse - Ben Bingham
- 2nd 383 Shawn Duffy
- 3rd 350 Marco Antonio Barrera Fan Club - Nick Clemons
Questars Trio – Novices : Men's Team
- 1st 580 You Know Its Clart - Geraint Forster, Will Hayden, Adam Roberts
- 2nd 515 Ultimate Mayhem - Frank Burton, Mark Rogers, Jason Aveirad
- 3rd 490 Horsepower - Andrew Henning, Kevin Beese, James Butterworth
Questars Trio – Novices : Veterans :
- 1st 465 Royston Riff Raff - Mark Thompson, Ian Stubbs, Christoffer Arvidson
- 2nd 415 Team We Don't Do Hills - Mark Hindry, Trevor Gregory, Michael Gregory
- 3rd 350 Total Madness Torre - Maggie & Phil Wilson
Questars Duo:
- 1st 615 Weekend Pass - Jonathan Fairhurst
- 2nd 475 Go East - Andrew Dowle, Richard Gormley, Katie Sparks
- 3rd 360 Mad Bustards - Jonathan & Nicola Bird