More Hints for Newbie Adventure Racing teams

Gary Davies, Team EnduranceLife

• Try other events which complement Adventure Racing e.g. Orienteering, Mountain Bike Orienteering, Mountain Marathons

• Develop common goals/objectives for the race in advance e.g. 1. finish the full course as a team of four, 2. be competitive and target top 10, 3. take it easy or hard during Leg 1

• Rule #1 - look after your feet. Bad feet = painful & slow race or potentially DNF

• Rule #2 - look after each other. Ask each other how they feel frequently. 

• During the race, try to keep moving (i.e. not stopping ) as much as possible. It's generally better to go slower but keep moving to keep the average speed up and intensity down.

• Have an open and honest communication policy in the team. Share low and high moments. Don't bottle up emotions/issues.

• Develop a culture of 'no blame.' If the navigator makes a mistake, don't make them feel worse. Support them and work with them e.g. estimating distance travelled, feeding and hydrating them, altimeter support...

• Each team member should have a role e.g. primary navigator, back up navigator, team captain, rule book/punch card owner, logistics manager... These should generally be agreed in advance of the race start but could potentially chaneg during the race.