Adventure Racing News: GJ Off To Patagonia, Race Along The Gulf Coast, and More

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The adventure racing community is starting to spring into action for 2010, with races getting set to begin, and teams looking ahead to what appears to be a fairly full, and busy schedule of events. This bodes well for a sport that had a number of high profile races take a hiatus last year, when the economy was in the tank, and sponsorship dollars were at a premium.

The Gear Junkie posted a note to his Daily Dose Blog with information that he would be AWOL for awhile. He’s headed south, to Chile, to take part in one of the first epic races of the year, the Patagonia Expedition Race. This year’s race will push teams to the limit once again, as they deal with the unpredictable weather conditions that are common in the region. The 600km route will run the length of Tierra del Fuego, before sending the athletes out to the Isla Navarino, which lies beyond the world’s most southerly human settlements. As always, this should be an amazing race through amazing scenery. Check out the preview video below for more.

Meanwhile, Wade from Outdoorzy.com has announced that he’ll be headed to Ecuador in a couple of weeks to cover the Huairashinchi adventure race for Adventure World Magazine. The race will run from Feb. 13-15, and is held at altitude in the highlands of Ecuador. It is also part of the Adventure Racing World Championships, giving teams a chance to compete for a spot in that major event later this year.

Speaking of Adventure World Magazine and the ARWC, the website has been running excellent preview articles on the World Series for several weeks now, taking an in depth look at all the events that make up the series, while also touching on the top teams that will be competing, and a whole lot more. You can find Part 1 of the series by clicking here. They’ve already posted four more installments, so that should keep you busy for awhile.

Finally, my friend Dave Poleto is preparing to kick off his Gulf Coast Adventure Racing season, with a whole host of races on the schedule for the year. They’ll get things underway on April 3rd with a pair of adventure races, which will be held in Alexandria, Louisiana. From there, it only gets better, more races being held all the way into November. If you live along the Gulf Coast region, you’ll want to check out the entire schedule, found here, to find an event close to you. They’ve even got a race designed for first timers and families, so if you’ve ever wanted to give adventure racing a try, now is your opportunity.

It’s good to see so many big and small events back for 2010. Looks like it’s going to be a great year for the sport.

Kraig Becker