Contributed by James Wong

sart expedition adventure racing world champs

SART-Expedition team for ARWC 2011 (left to right): Ng Chee Koon, Chris Yeo, James Wong, Wilson Low. (Photo courtesy of James Wong)

The all-male SART-Expedition team comprising Chris Yeo, Ng Chee Koon, James Wong and Wilson Low are deep in training for the 2011 Adventure Racing World Championships (ARWC) scheduled to be held from October 31st to November 11th in Tasmania, Australia.

The 2011 ARWC comprises of a non-stop, expedition-style multisport endurance competition hosted by XPD, Australia’s premier expedition adventure race. The ARWC expects 90 international teams of four that will trek, kayak, mountain bike, and navigate cross-country across 700+ kilometres for up to 10 days across the state before ending in the northern Tasmanian city of Burnie.

SART-Expedition will be pitted against the world’s best adventure athletes — all vying for the chance to cross the finish line — where teams must race together throughout the entire course, day and night, amidst all weather conditions, across various harsh wilderness terrain, ultimately testing the limits of human endurance.

The pitfalls are many, especially given the last XPD in Cairns, Australia, where 23 out of 47 starting teams did not finish. Of the 24 teams that did complete the race, several were missing team mates due to fatigue, injury or illness.

SART-Expedition’s training regime now sees the regular Tuesday Crossfit and run session supplemented with a once-weekly gym session. July is a busy month for members, with various weekend activities — work, school lessons, family time and vacation — limiting the scope of overnight and kayaking-specific training.

The team has also taken to long night rides and hikes which have yielded them steady gains in terms of conditioning, endurance, and tolerance for sleep deprivation.

SART-Expedition aims to get a solid block of kayaking achieved during August, a crucial month for training, before the penultimate final preparation weeks of October roll around.

SART-Expedition recently saw the departure of Caroline Tan who took up a full-time position with the United Nations in Afghanistan. James Wong has taken her place in the team.