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On an early Sunday morning, 10 awesome teams from Republic Polytechnic Adventure Racing IG embarked on a journey along the western coasts of Singapore that would not be forgotten easily. They were among 274 adventurers who took part in SAFRA Avventura, widely acknowledged to be the most gruelling adventure race in town.
Armed only with their wits and months of preparation, the adventure races were faced with 14 checkpoints across 51km of difficult terrain and fiendish obstacles. The Youth category racers got the opportunity to test their marksmanship with the SAR21 rifle and later had to navigate through tunnels, abseil off a 15m wall and kayak 6km across a reservoir. The Open and Novice teams faced similar obstacles and had to clamber up high walls to get to the finish.
The racers were well prepared for the race having gone through many months of
intensive training that brushed up their technical mountain biking skills,
achieving certifications in kayaking and sport climbing that put them in good
stead in their respective categories. This prepared them well to tackle the 30km of off road biking and 15km of running with confidence.
Delon Chen (SEG), a member of one of the Youth teams, felt that the race taught him and his teammate much about themselves and adventure racing in general. Though his team was unable to complete the race, they were not disappointed but instead were inspired to continue learning and training to better approach future races.
Lim Kai Xiang (SIT) and Jeremy Tong (SHL) emerged 2nd runner ups in the Youth Men category, completing the race in 6hrs 40 mins. “This race was an eye opener for both of us and is all about mental power!” said Kai, who was also part of a podium placed team in the previous year’s race.
In spite of the inevitable muscle aches, sunburn and assorted cuts and scratches that are a matter of course in adventure races, the members of the IG are unfazed and looking forward to their next race and the new set of challenges for 2010.
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