Helly Hansen Adventure Race

21st October 2007

At the weekend 3 teams from Newmarket headed down to Hampshire to take part in the Helly Hansen Adventure Race at the Longmoor Army Barracks. The three teams were made up of athletes from Newmarket Cycling & Triathlon Club and Newmarket Joggers.
The weather conditions were good with warm sunshine greeting the competitors as they stood on the start line. Team NC&TC1 were expecting great things in this years race as they managed a top 20 place in last years event. They started off brightly as they ended the first 3km run in a strong position, but things changed rapidly as their inspirational leader Mark Hatley was struck down with mechanical problems as they set off on the first lap of the mountain bike course. With a broken chain there was nothing they could do but head back to transition to fix the problem. Team NC&TC2 took over as Newmarket’s top team and steadily negotiated the bike course, despite Steve Peck colliding with a tree and Lee Dickinson being felled by a fellow competitor. In the ladies race the Celtic Queens team made up of Nkt Joggers Jenny O’Callaghan, Carolynn Anderson and NC&TC’s Karen Payne were making steady progress through the field after starting at the back on the start line.
After the testing and technical 15 mile bike course it was back on to another run section which took the teams to a lake for some canoeing. The canoeing proved to be a nice break from the running but it was short lived as the teams headed off thigh deep across a swampy bog, over a couple of hills and onto the final obstacle course.
NC&TC2 were the first Newmarket team home after dragging their tired limbs under the final cargo net and clambering over the A frame and across the finish line to stop the clock in a time of 3hrs 20 mins which was good enough to finish in the top 25. 30 minutes later a dejected looking NC&TC1 crossed the line thinking what could have been if Hatley’s bike hadn’t let him down. One of the biggest cheers of the day from a large crowd of spectators was for Team Celtic Queens as they gracefully scaled the final A frame before descending to finsh in the very respectable time of 4hrs 20mins.

Result:
NC&TC2. Neil Payne, Steve Peck & Lee Dickinson. - 3hrs 20mins
NC&TC1. Russell Lewis, Mark Hatley & Richard Marshall. - 3hrs 50mins.
Celtic Queens. Karen Payne, Jenny O’Callaghan & Carolynn Anderson. – 4hrs 20mins.