PATAGONIAN EXPEDITION RACE 2004

From PC8: CMT Deseado the forests continue, but now along steep mountain sides, up to an altitude of 600 m, where they begin to disappear, giving way to rock and the peat bog. The slopes become less steep as the route nears PC9 Valle Cascada, but changes quickly to rocky terrain over the pass with a spectacular view of "Paso de Las Lagunas" and Lago Fagnano... weather permitting, of course! The route continues down the Rio Alonso valley to CP10 with the same name.

PC10: RÍO ALONSO
Position	Arrival time	Arrival day	Team
1/2	22:36	17	Adventour Uruguay
1/2	22:36	17	AXN Meridianoraid.com
3	22:40	17	Xinix Water Purification
4	02:53	18	Reebok Adventure
5	08:56	18	Adventure Bosi Colombia
6	13:56	18	Corredor Topsy Salomon
7	15:11	18	Tscherning-Loberen
8	10:03	19	DAP Antartica Expedition
9	resigned at CP8		Simbad
10	disqualified		Tierra del Fuego

The route continues southwards through the valley and crosses dense forests covered in moss, opening onto the peat bogs on the north side of Lago Fagnano, and ending at PC11: Río Azopardo. The organization has a Tyrolean cable to cross the river where Rio Fagnano meets the Almirantazgo bay. The race route continues in the water, peat bogs, and forests on the south side of the lake to start the ascent of "Paso de las Lagunas", the Laguna Pass, part of the trek through the Darwin range.

PC11: RÍO AZOPARDO
Position	Arrival time	Arrival day	Team
1	05:54	18	Xinix Water Purification
2	06:39	18	Adventour Uruguay
3	06:42	18	AXN Meridianoraid.com
4	11:37	18	Reebok Adventure
5	15:13	18	Adventure Bosi Colombia
6	19:54	18	Corredor Topsy Salomon
7	20:43	18	Tscherning-Loberen
8	19:09	19	DAP Antartica Expedition
9	resigned at PC8		Simbad
10	disqualified		Tierra del Fuego

February 18 at 13:30

This morning the team Tierra del Fuego from Argentina was disqualified, for arriving late at CP6 Almirantazgo W. The team arrived at 8:20 AM and the CP was closed at 6:00 AM.

From PC15 CARABINEROS, at 09:10 am, 7 out of 8 teams in the race begin the historic crossing of the Beagle Channel. Throughout the race weather conditions have been very favorable for the racers. Today they are expected to reach the finish line at PC 17 Puerto Williams.

Crossing the Beagle Channel from Carabineros to Yendegaia and Puerto Navarino is a 47 km voyage. There is immense tension and worry connected to the historic crossing. The day starts off with very good weather forecasts for the trip. The organization is able to fly over the Darwin range by helicopter very early in the morning. Various trips are required to carry all the teams’ equipment, while the racers nervously wait to get into the channel. Before the start, the Race Director meets with the team captains to inform them of each team’s accumulated times. In general the differences are extreme, but Uruguay and Sweden have only a 31-minute difference. The struggle for third place is now on! Despite Uruguay’s time advantage, it's clear that Sweden is much stronger at paddling; they obtained an hour's advantage over Uruquay at Bahía Inútil.

February 21 at 19:00

At midday today 7 out of 8 team in competition arrived at the FINISH LINE at PC17 Puerto Williams. All participants were warmly received by the community and authorities in Puerto Williams.

Due to the fact that the 7 teams left simultaneously from PC15 Carabineros, only the partial times for this section are shown.

PC17: PUERTO WILLIAMS - FINISH LINE edition 2004
Place	Time accumulated to PC15	Time racing from PC15 to PC17	Arrival day	Equipo
1	84:19	5:43	21	Xinix Water Purification
2	100:58	6:22	21	AXN Meridianoraid.com
3	102:48	6:02	21	Adventour Uruguay
4	103:19	5:33	21	Reebok Adventure
5	116:50	7:03	21	Adventure Bosi Colombia
6	119:09	6:19	21	Corredor Topsy Salomon
7	123:13	6:11	21	Tscherning-Loberen
8	171:30	8:03	23	DAP Antartica Expedition
9	resigned at CP8			Simbad
10	disqualified			Tierra del Fuego

With a great advantage over the other teams, Xinix Water Purification from New Zealand ended up the winners of the first edition of PATAGONIAN EXPEDITION RACE.

AXN MERIDIANORAID.COM from Spain took second place.

ADVENTOUR URUGUAY from Uruguay with only a two minute lead managed to get third place. The team Reebok Adventure from Sweden got fourth place.

February 23 at 15:00

The arrival of the Chilean team is expected, DAP ANTARTICA EXPEDITION, at about 21:30 this evening. The community prepares to receive the only Chilean team that accepted the tough challenge of this 520km race through some of the most remote territortiesin the world, the mystical Tierra del Fuego and the fearful Beagle Channel.

At 21:23 the team from Chile DAP Antartica Expedition, arrived at the FINISH LINE at PCP17 Puerto Williams. They were received warmly by the authorities, the community, the other racers, and the organizers.

The final results for the first edition of the PATAGONIAN EXPEDITION RACE.

PC17: PUERTO WILLIAMS Lunes 23 de Febrero 2004
Place	Total race time (hr:min)	Team
1	90:02	Xinix Water Purification
2	107:20	AXN Meridianoraid.com
3	108:50	Adventour Uruguay
4	108:52	Reebok Adventure
5	123:33	Adventure Bosi Colombia
6	125:28	Corredor Topsy Salomon
7	129:24	Tscherning-Loberen
8	179:33	DAP Antartica Expedition
9	resigned at CP8	Simbad
10	disqualified	Tierra del Fuego

During the award ceremony and closing of the first edition of the PATAGONIAN EXPEDITION RACE, the race director, authorities and winners shared the following words:

Stjepan Pavicic, founder and director of the PATAGONIAN EXPEDITION RACE
“...today completes what we started over two years ago when we made the first crossing of the Cordillera Darwin...”

“...the race continued thanks to the will of the people who accompanied me during all this time, you all know that we have accomplished the race with very few resources and we stand here today, thanks to everyone who in recent weeks has worked up to 18 hrs per day...”

Neil Jones, a member of team Xinix Water Purification New Zealand, winners of the first edition of the PATAGONIAN EXPEDITION RACE
“...For us the location was what drew us to the race and the route was everything we expected, very beautiful and these places will remain in our memory and the memory of the other teams, how close we came in the race and for our team that was the highlight of our career...”

Antonio de la Rosa, Captain team AXN Meridianoraid.com of Spain, second place winners in the first edition of the PATAGONIAN EXPEDITION RACE
“...Thank you Stjepan for everything you had to do to make the race happen even with a lack of sponsorship. I hope that next year there will be more sponsors and more publicity and we can all be running next year here and enjoying a 1000 kilometer race. Well for me this has been the highlight of seven years of racing, the most spectacular and most authentic race I've run..." (translation)

Rubén Mandure, Captain team Adventour Uruguay, third place winners of the first edition of the PATAGONIAN EXPEDITION RACE
“...I agree with Antonio. I think we were in places and situations that for all teams, from first to last, is the real adventure race we ran, or expedition to be more specific. We also believe that in our particular situation with the Swedish team who had an incredible performance, especially on the last day of the race when it was even more incredible that the outcome of a weeklong race came down to the difference of just a minute and a half at the finish line. So we are very honored to have won against some of the best teams in the world...” (translation)

Eduardo Barros, Governor of the Chilean Antarctic Province, stressed the importance of the project PATAGONIAN EXPEDITION RACE and the possibility of sharing not only the southern tip of Chile with the world but also the pioneering spirit of Patagonia expressed for more than 7000 years first by Aboriginal people who have survived the harsh conditions of this region, the first settlers, and finally in these days the people of this southern town... As the pioneering spirit of the competitors in this “loca aventura”...

February 23 at 15:00

The organization begins to fly racers to Punta Arenas for their return home.

February 23 at 15:00

The organization flies the remaining racers, press and volunteers back to Punta Arenas.
We'd like to thank la Fuerza Aérea de Chile for transporting the last bicycles and equipment to Punta Arenas.



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The environment.

84 km of gravel road awaited the racers on their mountain bikes. The route required a total climb of 500 meters but both the beginning and end of the section at at sea level.
The Patagonian steppe landscape is very dry, with very little vegetation. The route through the Río del Oro provides an historical context; this river was where the 1878 Gold Rush took place, but unfortunately all the hard work and investment never paid off and so the expensive settlement was abandoned. The natives from the area were the worst to suffer, almost being totally exterminated by white man's invasion.