Land Rover G4 Challenge Starts Global Adventure Sunday in NY - Page 2 - Ford Forums

Stacy94PGT · 04-12-2003, 09:14

April 12, 2003

G4 Challenge Update: Defender 110 Td5 pulls U.S./U.K. team through South Africa's Caledon Hunter

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By NANCY OLSON

April 8, Bontebok, South Africa
If this were easy, what would be the point? Challenge builds character.

By the time we reached our first Hunter or challenge of the day, which required a serious dose of biking and scrambling, a small mountain storm rolled in, drastically decreasing visibility and making us extremely cold. We then proceeded back down the mountain, with the trip requiring GPS use and some pretty tricky navigation. I maintain that although GPS is extremely useful, I still hate it. No matter what method, it took my partner, Tim Pickering from the UK, and I a bloody long time to get down the Hunter.

Next was the challenge of driving our Land Rover Defender 110 Td5 to a remote Hunter, thankfully taking the driver's seat in a fresh change of clothes. We started out on a paved road, which turned into a dirt road, which turned into a narrow dirt path, which turned into a narrow muddy path that was heavily frequented by cows. We had to slow down and weave the orange Defender through a gigantic herd of dairy cows that were headed the same direction we were, just at a far slower pace. Made for an interesting slalom course.

As we approached The Caledon Hunter-a driving challenge that required one of us to employ navigation skills to direct the other�s driving skills up a painfully steep incline-the road was un-driveable. The road was so washed out that the original plan had to be changed, requiring a lot of time to complete The Caledon. At one point, we submerged the Defender into a pool of water so deep that the vehicle was submerged enough to clean the aft window, ironically allowing us to catch a glimpse of our registration point in the rear where we had to check in. Tim and I then poured out of the Defender and in the process I slipped and fell into the coffee-colored water, soaking my clothes.

Undeterred, I navigated the Defender up the steep incline while Tim delicately directed the way. When we summited the peak, people stood cheering our accomplishment as we were the first to complete it following two unsuccessful attempts by teams earlier in the day.
The first team to attempt The Caledon, Cuneyt Gazioglu of Turkey and Italy�s Alberta Chiappa, managed to stick their Defender in the mud and needed the assistance of the next team to arrive, Dutchman Erik den Oudenfammer and Shinichi Yoshimoto of Japan, to help winch the Defender to the summit. Gazioglu and Chiappa returned the towing favor, making for a long and exhausting Hunter for the quartet. By the time we summited unassisted, the crowd was itching for someone to show what the Defender could do, even as the vehicle plowed under the pressure of such intense demands. I�m very proud of it.

April 9, Oudtshoorn, South Africa

While the hill climb in the Defender netted us some serious fans and G4 points, it didn�t distract us from the next adventure: Bungee jumping. We were excited about this part of the day before we left the Strategy Pit in the morning. The jump took place at Gouritz Bridge, but in order to jump we first had to �jumar� 213 feet (65 meters) from the riverbank to the deck of Gouritz Bridge. Defined, to jumar is to attach specialized equipment to a rope, thereby securing yourself for the straight vertical ascent. Then, you muster every piece of leg strength you can find to walk up the rope while sliding the jumars, or handgrips along.
I actually did a lot better on jumar than I thought I would, reminding myself of a modern-day adventure Popeye carrying around a pair of massive arms because they were so worked and tired. Midway up, in fact, I was wishing I�d downed my morning dose of spinach,

As for the actual bungee jump, we were rigged in a way that forced us to jump headfirst off the bridge. I had jumped once before, in college, off a Navy destroyer in Virginia Beach. Following that episode, I didn�t feel the need to ever bungee jump again after that. During this jump, I thought my head was going to explode, because I was hanging by my feet for so long, Also, there was an audible smack on my left shoulder, leaving me in pain for several hours.

The feeling of hanging there, not knowing what had snapped and hit me, reinforces my not-so-crazy-about-it notions of bungee jumping. This is the lazy man, poser�s way of getting an adrenaline rush. I prefer to get my adrenaline rush through other activities that could be considered real challenges.

RPO83 · 04-15-2003, 09:12

SOUTH AFRICA, April 14, 2003-Sixteen days into the Land Rover G4 Challenge and the 16 competitors have now moved from South Africa to the remote Pilbara region in Australia with Rudi Thoelen of Belguim leading the competition. An intense week of competition that started in Cape Town with some words of welcome from Valli Moosa, South Africa�s Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, came to a climax on April 12, 2003.

U.S. competitor, Nancy Olson faced a week of adversity and misfortune with her UK teammate, Tim Pickering and ended the second stage of the challenge in thirteenth place.

The week began with the top eight competitors at the end of Stage One choosing a teammate from the remaining eight competitors thus creating the pairing for Stage Two.

The UK�s Tim Pickering, who was ranked third going into Stage Two, claimed U.S. competitor, Nancy Olson as his teammate. The Brit admitted that it had not been an easy choice, but was confident that he�d made the right call. "Nancy and I had so many laughs last week," he said, "and good humor�s really important in such a stressful competition." He chortled before adding, "I reckon that by the end of the week, we�ll either love or hate each other."

The G4 Challenge is, of course, about much more than brute strength or stamina. An ability to think quickly under intense pressure is critical, as is an ability to navigate. As the convoy of Tangiers Orange Defender 110 TD5s left camp on day one, furtive activity could already be seen in the passenger seats as the navigators struggled with maps and GPS (Global Positioning Systems).

Over five days, the competitors traveled southeast to Cape Agulhas, the southern most tip of South Africa, then on to the spectacular coast of Kranshoek for the final Maximizer of Stage Two. Along the way they battled it out through beautiful but challenging terrain as they strove to visit as many Hunter (daily competition elements), locations as possible in the order they predicted. Hitting the Hunters in order provides points that would elevate them into contention for the top-eight ranked competitors at the end of the stage.

It was the third day of the South African stage provided that was the toughest test yet for the Land Rover G4 Challenge competitors. But the Caledon Hunter proved to be no match for the talents of the USA�s Olson. In true off-road form, Pickering assumed the role of directing Olson from the bank of the driving course. The obstacle had left other teams to winch their vehicles out, but with more than a little bravado, Olson slotted the Defender into the second of its low ratio gears and pummeled her way through the course amid a round of applause.

Although the Anglo-American pairing of Pickering and Olson worked well together, they had suffered some misfortune earlier in the stage. Pickering lost his identity tag on Day One, which cost the team valuable time. Misfortune also struck Canada's Jim Kuhn, who would retire due lacerations to his left elbow, left knee and right wrist after a high-speed tumble off his mountain bike and who would be replaced later in the week by the Canadian runner-up from International Selections, Kitt Stringer. Such incidents provide a reminder that in this sort of adventure anything can happen and competitors must sometimes be patient and always be prepared.

A 65metre bungee jump off the Gouritz River Bridge on Day Four was one of the more interesting Hunters. Having driven off-road to the start point, the teams had to prepare their own equipment and run to the base of the bridge. Once in position, they had to attach their jumar equipment to a rope, before starting the 65meter ascent. Jumar is a strange technique, which requires the athlete to "walk up" the rope, while sliding the handgrips or �jumars.� It�s as technically difficult as it sounds, and an exhausting test of leg and forearm strength. Olson was visibly shaking when she reached the top. "It took me ten minutes to jumar up here and now you�re asking me to descend again in half a second."

Competitions Director Simon Day explained the culmination of the week's activity would be a final Maximizer that would involve a six-kilometer mountain bike trial, a four-kilometer cross-country run, followed by a sprint across a rocky beach and finally, a steep, rocky scramble to the finish in what Day described as "not a long test, but a difficult one." It proved tough for a number of competitors, and had started to take its toll.

"It was really, really hard," said Olson, "I just didn�t have the strength in my quads and calves today. I pushed really hard yesterday, and I guess I paid for it today. But I have a couple of days rest now, and that�s all I need to get my legs back in shape."

At the end of the event, the top eight competitors at the midway point of the Land Rover G4 Challenge were announced as follows:

Rudi Thoelen � Belgium
Franck Salgues - France
Chris Perry - Arabia
Erik den Oudendammer - Netherlands
Paul McCarthy - Ireland
Guy Andrews - Australia
Tim Pickering - UK
Inigo de Lara � Spain

After the dramatic landscape of South Africa, the competitors will complete five days of remote activity before flying to New South Wales for an Urban Maximizer held around the famous landmarks of Sydney. Following five days in the Pilbara Region of Western Australia and one day in Sydney, the teams will move to Las Vegas and the Moab trail for the final stage of the Challenge which will finish on April 26th.

Stacy94PGT · 04-18-2003, 07:58

April 18, 2003

G4 Challenge Update: Competition leaves behind South Africa for Australia

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By NANCY OLSON

Kranshoek, South Africa, April 12
Going into the final day of competition in South Africa, the fatigue was beginning to set in and we were looking forward to the few days of rest we�d get between Stages.

Yesterday was the last day of South African Hunters, or individual competitions staggered about the countryside, and today the entire South Africa Stage concluded with a single event, which along the way has been called a Maximizer. The Maximizer includes about a four-mile mountain bike trail and a 1.5-mile cross-country run that�s followed by a sprint across a rocky beach. The Maximizer then concludes with a steep, rocky scramble to the finish. As Land Rover officials put it, it�s not a long challenge, but difficult.

The Maximizer was made even more difficult due to the long, difficult bike ride on the last Hunter of the day yesterday. Overall, yesterday was really good for us, both in terms of points and activities. We started on a really positive note and carried that momentum through to the end of the day.

Although my teammate, Tim Pickering from the U.K., has proved a great teammate, sticking by me and helping me mentally during the Maximizer, it hasn't been easy. Physically, I just didn�t have the strength in my quads and calves to perform up to spec at all times. Nevertheless, I pushed really hard yesterday and I guess I paid for it today. Tim and I finished eighth out of eight teams in the Maximizer. But I have a couple of days rest now, including a 36-hour flight to western Australia. That rest is all I need to get my legs back in shape.

South Africa has been unforgettable and I�ve been carrying around a video camera so that, win or lose, the memories will stay with me after the competition is over.

Karijini National Park, Australia, April 15

Unlike the previous two stages, which had each started with a Maximizer event, the Australian Stage started with a full day of individual Hunters staggered about in western Australia. Despite the long plane trip, my legs are still hurting and the fatigue is playing a role as I compete. The span of miles, sometimes hundreds, that separate the Hunters in Australia, give time to reflect and relax but tempt the body and mind to stagnate a bit.

On day one of Australia, my new partner, Irishman Paul McCarthy, and I finished two of the six Hunters (no one finished all six, the most finished by a team was three and some only finished one), and we finished them both on schedule so we scored maximum points for them. We had planned our course during an early-morning Strategy Pit session, held on a rocky hill overlooking Karratha and the Indian Ocean.

The day saw many teams get their newly-issued Range Rovers stuck and, consequently, other teams have to wait behind the such teams. One such team that had to wait, Team Canada/Netherlands, had Canadian Kitt Stringer and teammate Erik den Oudendammer had to scramble to make up points because of the delay waiting for Belgian Rudi Thoelen and Germany�s Dirk Ostertag, who made the mistake of following team UK/Italy into the mud flat. Both teams had to winch their Range Rovers to safety.

Stringer and Den Oudendammer had to make up points and ended up engaging in one of (what Land Rover guys are calling) "the most dramatic finishes to a Hunter so far in the G4 Challenge." Stringer and Den Oudendammer were chasing McCarthy and myself at The Hunter at Python Pool which ended with a long abseil, after a mountain biking trail and uphill hike. They were at our heals and if they managed to finish in front of McCarthy and myself, they would hit their prediction. The trouble for them was that we were trying to hit our prediction first.

Stringer and Den Oudendammer were within reach as Paul reached the abseil lines first, thereby securing the abseil for us as the Canada/Netherlands guys stood in our shadow. �It was incredibly frustrating to have to sit there and watch them finish in front of us,� Den Oudendammer was quoted as saying. For us, it was the thrill of competing.

So far Paul and I have gelled well together. We easily slotted in together as a team, and very little verbal communication is necessary between us as we seem to be able to read each other well.

The main stumbling block for us has been that we initially underestimated the distances that we would have to travel within Australia. On the first two stages, most of the Hunter locations were fairly close together. In Australia, as I wrote above, they are often up to a hundred miles apart and anything can happen to slow you down or throw you off course.

Over previous stages with former teammates Sergey Polyansky (Russia) and Tim Pickering (U.K.), I�ve always done the driving, while my partner navigated. For Paul it has been exactly the opposite. So when we ended up as a team, however, we decided to swap roles, and we are both really enjoying the change.

The lack of sleep and many hours of travel between South Africa and Australia are really taking toll. Many of the competitors have been nodding off at every opportunity, and we can all do with a bit of a rest. Luckily a �chill-out� day at 80 Mile Beach is fast approaching. First, we have to conquer the Maximizer slated for tomorrow.

Stacy94PGT · 04-22-2003, 06:33

April 22, 2003
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G4 Challenge Update: Australia Maximizer proves to be ultimate challenge for the G4 field

By NANCY OLSON

Olson pairs up with Paul McCarthy from Ireland for Stage 3.
Karijini National Park, April 16
They say the three-hour Maximizer challenge course through Karijini National Park in western Australia the gorges of the was designed to test team strategy and we set off straight to work early Wednesday morning as we had to choose one of the two challenges, both of which concluded a the foot of Joffre Falls. We were told to pick our challenge based on our strength; I would do one, my teammate for Australia, Paul McCarthy, would do the other.

Apparently I took the hard one, but not on purpose (the choices were to either attempt a long mountain bike route, then a climb into a red sandstone gorge and then a shorter kayak/swim to the finish or take a shorter bike route that takes you to a long trek through the gorge that included extensive portaging of the kayaks over walls of slimy rock ). I did the shorter bike and longer kayak and that was a big mistake. Lifting the kayaks over the rocks was one of the worst things I have ever done. It was pure hell and it required incredible strength to carry the kayak over big huge rocks. I wasn�t ever sure I was going to finish.�

Meanwhile, Paul completed the mountain biking section in second to last place because he hadn�t done much biking. �I am not a cyclist in any shape or form,� he says. �But then, once we were on the rocks and in the river, I came into my own. I get a lot of practice scrambling over rocks when I�m surfing on the west coast of Ireland. I must have passed four or five guys.�

Going into competition today, I didn�t feel like biking� the two-wheel experiment hadn�t been going too well because the cycle and I weren�t getting along �so I chose the route with all of the straight-out runs. That part was fine as it was mainly scrambling over slippery rocks. By the time I got to my kayak, though, I was basically worn out.

The �kayaking� portion was a bit misleading because it wasn�t really kayaking � we had to portage more than half of the way, with long expanses of land, which was mainly boulders and mud. Honestly, for the first time in my life, I didn�t know if I would finish or not...I take that back, I knew I would finish, I just didn�t know if I would finish that day!

To sum it up, it was the Maximizer to trump all Maximizers.

The Maximizer was actually a killer for everyone. I can�t compare it to anything I�ve ever done. These kayaks weigh a ton, especially after you�ve been going for hours. Even my teammate Paul, who is really great at this stuff because he�s super strong, is actually super beat.

Guy Andrews, the Aussie adventure race who�s playing on home turf would have probably won the stage if he hadn�t gotten lost. A little ironic, isn�t it? Man spends two weeks traversing foreign continents, comes to home field and gets lost. However, Andrews wasn�t the only one to misplace his bearings, he was leading the first pack of competitors into Knox Gorge at the end of a mountain bike and running section. A wrong turn at the foot of the gorge left him and three others heading away from the next challenge in the Maximiser-a combined kayak and swim. One of the competitors yelled out they were going the wrong way finally.

�Because the others were following me, I figured it was the right way. I was just in race mode and going for it,� said Andrews. �Only when I�d been going for an hour up the gorge and was out in exposed country did I realize I�d got it wrong. �At the same time I started running out of water. But the thing that really freaked me out was seeing a couple of snakes. One of them was a Taipan I think, and if you get bitten by one of those then that�s pretty well it. You have about three minutes to live.�

Several competitors went in the wrong direction, including Arabian representative Chris Perry. However, they soon appeared from the bush without Andrews who had continued for about six miles away from the gorge. All the competitors carried water supplies, essential as temperatures soared over 30 degrees. However, Land Rover G4 Challenge Competitions Director, Simon Day said, �We were concerned about Guy�s safety and ready to implement careful safety plans throughout the gorges.�

After the Maximizer, our convoy moved 120 miles northeast to the hottest town in Australia � Marble Bar � in preparation for the final day of West Australian competition. At camp, where it was 32 degrees Celsius, we received news that we took fourth place overall in the competition.

Stacy94PGT · 04-23-2003, 08:52

April 23, 2003

G4 Challenge Update: Cliffs, farmers and a chimney climb in Australia

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By NANCY OLSON

April 18, Marble Bar, Australia
This morning the teams were given six possible locations between Marble Bar-which is the edge of the Great Sandy Desert (to the east)-and the Indian Ocean to the West. So the desert and the ocean served as our boundaries. According to the map, the most remote Hunter, or challenge of the day, was a trio of kayaking, climbing and swimming in the depths of the Carawine Gorge on the fringes of the desert. The closest town to the East is Alice Springs, over 2,000 miles away.

Paul McCarthy and I started out our first Hunter by going deep into a mine shaft that forced us to rappel down parts of it. There were no bats or anything, but it did smell kind of odd. In the instructions for the Hunter had mentioned a �chimney� climb at the end. We thought that chimney simply meant rock formation, just in different terms. Only one of the team members had to climb the chimney, and, Paul not really being a climber, we decided to rely on my climbing experience and put me down for it.

Then we saw something we didn�t expect�it was a real chimney�a 250-foot smokestack. So I had to climb it, that�s all there was to it. By the time I maneuvered up all the steps of the climb, it was like that bridge climb back in South Africa where I had to jumar 213 feet to the deck. My arms again were pumped up like Popeye�s. But the view from the top was worth any of the strain.

The scenery and people of Australia are incredible. Along the way, we met a fascinating Australian farmer. The route we were taking on this road led right up to his farmhouse, so he came out and we were talking to him, and showed him where we wanted to go. He said, �that�s all right,� opened up his gate, and the road just kept right on going. Before we left his property, we saw about 80 kangaroos on his property and ostriches and emus as well.
At the end of today, our Hunter stage was worth 45 points, so it was really important that we do well. For the most part, Hunters are worth a maximum 20 points, with lesser scores awarded based on physical performance and the accuracy with which we planned our strategy We decided we had to go there and go for it!

The Hunter was characterized by The Cliffs of Despair, which is a huge lake area with cliffs shooting straight up out of the water.. We had to kayak across, then free-climb up the cliffs, with nothing but our helmets for gear.

We had two teams working together the entire time: Myself and Irishman Paul McCarthy on one team and Alberta Chiappa of Italy and Tim Pickering of the U.K. (my South Africa mate) . We knew that one of the teams would be the fourth team through and the other would be fifth, although both had predicted to be fourth, so winning was essential to scoring the full amount of points.

Tim Pickering told Paul that we should go ahead, because the points would mean more to Paul than to him, because Paul was leading in the overall points. They want to see Paul do well, because Paul is the only one of us who really has a chance to win. The camaraderie, the scenery, the challenge made this the most fun we�ve derived from a Hunter yet.

Paul said it was his most difficult Hunter yet, because he doesn�t really climb and he was kind of afraid up there. Yes, there was only water below us, but Paul was justified in his hesitations as it would hurt if you fell because the cliff was so high. The day over and a day of rest ahead of us before the next day-long Maximizer challenge, we�re already looking forward to the United States. There, the distance between legs is bound to be shorter than the hours we spend driving between points.

Then again, they started upping the ante in South Africa. They upped it again here, perhaps it can indeed get more difficult. Nevertheless, I�m really looking forward to it � home turf! I�ll have to get used to driving on the right side of the road again! We do drive on the right, don�t we?

As for today, I feel great! I just had a shower and two steak-burgers at camp on the beach � and I don�t have to do anything tomorrow. The dubbed the day �Chill Out� at 80-Mile Beach. I�m not a lay-out-in-the-sun type of person, but tomorrow, I might just spend the whole day on a blanket on the beach, for the first time in my life.

Stacy94PGT · 04-24-2003, 09:38

April 24, 2003

G4 Challenge Update: Olson makes most of Sunday in Sydney

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By NANCY OLSON

April 18, Eighty Mile Beach, Australia

Today�s report begins with a brief comment about our chill out day at the beach. I ended the last report with speculation that I may actually lay on the beach all day due to how tough this Australia Stage has been (1,250 miles through Karratha, Mount Florence, Karijini National Park and Marble Bar), in addition to the fact that we�ve bulleted through 19 straight days of competition and airplane-confined travel.
I didn�t end up lying on the beach. I was playing in the water most of the time. I hate sun bathing � I can�t stand just lying around. We had toys � Frisbees and stuff. Relaxing indeed.

April 20, Sydney, Australia

It took two flights to get to Sydney making for a really bad, exhausting day of travel. Still, it was nice to step off the plane into Sydney�s nice cool weather; in Western Australia, temperatures hovered above 100 degrees consistently.

Today, we wrapped up the Australia Stage of competition with The Sydney Maximizer, which was designed to wind us through some historic Sydney land marks�the bridges and opera houses of postcard lore.

As for the competition, it was just a paddle across Sydney Harbor, and then a run, which was a substantial breather compared to the Maximizer we labored through at mid-week in Karijini National Park: �It was like dragging a dead Great Dane on a leash over boulders,� I wrote, specifically referring to the kayak I had latched to my frame for much of the day-long Maximizer competition.

As for kayaking in the Harbor, I don�t have a great paddle technique, but I developed a technique that works for me. They had these sit-upon kayaks and they were very tippy (extreme body roll, literally)� a lot of people had trouble with them. Mine was especially tippy, because of the way the seat was placed on there. I had my feet tucked up underneath me. Once I strapped my feet in, I was pretty comfortable that I wouldn�t tip over-my parents have surf skis, and I�ve used them, so I was kind of used to the concept.
It was really windy. Half the time we had a crosswind from the left � the rest of the time it was a headwind. About halfway through, the sky began to pour down a blinding rain.

I didn�t have the best start and I was a little behind at the beginning. I had to work past several people who were having trouble. Dirk Ostertag, taking a tumble, nearly tipped me over when he flipped.

But I was able to get past them, and then I held my own for the rest of the way. It was a good 3,000-meters (nearly 10,000 feet) or more of paddling. I was just concentrating on making my stroke as efficient as possible � I tried faster strokes, longer strokes, whatever. I was just having fun with it and had 33 football fields worth of water to perfect technique.

I think I was probably in ninth or so, behind Brit Tim Pickering, when we hit shore. I jumped out of the kayak, jumped out of my life jacket and started running � I already had my shoes on. I think my run was pretty good. I was a runner in college, so it�s one of my strengths. I was able to pass Tim and I was closing in on Kitt Stringer from Canada. I know he knew I was there, and he was running scared a little bit.

If I had known exactly where the finish line was, I might have been able to pour it on a little bit more and catch him. As it was, I wasn�t wiped out at the end � I still had energy left. I think I surprised some people on that Maximizer. It�s what I should have been doing all along!

I�m able to run or bike through pain � as long as I�m not on rocks. I�m real conscious of the chance for an injury. The only time I slowed down during the Sydney run was when we had a bunch of stairs to navigate. The worst thing would be to twist my ankle or something like that � especially after what happened to Jim Kuhn of Canada, having to leave the Challenge due to injury and have to be replaced by Kitt.
I�ve been nervous for the Maximizers lately. I feel there�s a lot riding on them, and they�ve been really tough.

Leaving Australia, one thing�s clear: If you�re expecting a Camel Trophy proas a competitor, you�re dead wrong. We�re not professional drivers, and we�re not relying completely on our driving and our equipment to get us through remote areas where no one has ever driven before. We�re doing a wide variety of things, and we�re mainly going on existing roads and trails � sometimes though, we go where only a few people have gone before�and those excursions come thanks to the Land Rovers we tool use.

I�ve been pleased with my performance so far, for the most part. I knew the G4 Challenge would be tough. And I knew all of the competitors would be tough. People are watching and it�s head-to-head against the other competitors. If you screw up, everyone sees you screw up � it�s obvious. I�m not really worried about screwing up, but you never know how you�ll feel on a given day.

I�d like to work my way into the top eight of the field of 16. I�m No. 12 now as I�ve moved up one position since the start of Australia. I don�t have a clue what to expect from the stages in the United States. I hear that there�s snow in Utah, where we�re headed next.

(Photo)G4 Challenge went off-shore for the competition's latest Maximizer. Eight teams had to navigate around a floating obstacle course as part of the Maximizer.

Stacy94PGT · 04-27-2003, 22:07

Belgian Wins Land Rover G4 Challenge
American Chris Perry Finishes Close Second

MOAB, Utah, April 27 -- Belgian fighter pilot Rudi Thoelen bested competitors from 15 other nations to win the first Land Rover G4 Challenge. Thoelen, 31, rappelled, mountain biked, kayaked, navigated and drove a difficult off-road course to ultimately claim the grand prize, a $71,200 Range Rover in the unique competition. The victory was narrow as Thoelen edged out the four top finalists from France, Arabia and Turkey. American Chris Perry, who works as a water park manager in Dubai represented Arabia and narrowly missed winning the grueling, month-long event by seconds.

The victory for the personable Belgian capped four weeks of adventure racing, on-and off-road driving in various Land Rover models that covered more than 4,000 miles through four seasons on three continents.

Reacting to the win, Thoelen said, "We got to drive four Land Rover vehicles in four weeks, on three continents. This is an experience of a lifetime, and since it's the only adventure competition I've ever entered, I'm extremely excited and proud to have represented my country."

The U.S. entrant, 29-year old Nancy Olson of Arlington, VA, one of only two females in the event, finished 15th having encountered a number of setbacks over the course of the competition. In today's finale she was twice pitched out of her small kayak while navigating the swift currents of the Colorado River, which cost her 2 places in the final results.

"The inaugural Land Rover G4 Challenge which combines urban and rural locales was the most ambitious undertaking of its type in Land Rover history. We congratulate all the competitors for their outstanding efforts," said Matthew Taylor, Land Rover managing director.

The Land Rover G4 Challenge began March 30 in New York City with a novel, four-wheel drive course set up on a six-block stretch of Broadway. It then spent a week traversing snowy New England in Land Rover Freelanders with the competitors using a variety of adventure skills to accumulate points at widely spread remote locations.

From the US, the entire crew, upward of 120 persons in total moved to South Africa where over five days, the competitors drove Defenders from Cape Town southeast to Cape Agulhas, the southern most tip of the African continent, then on to the spectacular coast of Kranshoek. From Africa it was off to the remote North West Australian outback where they spent the third week of the event, finishing in spectacular form, kayaking across Sydney Harbor, before driving Range Rovers on a specially constructed track built upon the world's largest ocean barge. With the tension increasing, and the field of potential winners decreasing, the sixteen competitors returned to American soil for the final cross country trek in Discoverys starting in Las Vegas and moving eastward through the incredible scenery of southern Utah.

"We're proud to have staged an event that brought together 16 people representing 23 nations in a spirit of friendly competition and cooperation that tested endurance, athletic ability, strategy, and driving capability," added Taylor.

The ambitious Land Rover G4 Challenge will be featured in two, one-hour television specials to be seen this autumn on the Outdoor Life Network.

Land Rover North America, established in 1986, imports and distributes Range Rover, Discovery and Freelander vehicles manufactured for sale in the U.S. by Land Rover in Solihull, England. Land Rover's worldwide operations are wholly owned by Ford Motor Company, Dearborn, Michigan.

Stacy94PGT · 04-29-2003, 07:08

April 30, 2003

G4 Challenge Update: Belgian fighter pilot takes crown; Olson finishes 15th

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By JOHN D. STOLL

To be honest, when AutoWeek signed on to cover Land Rover�s inaugural G4 Challenge, we greeted the opportunity with a pinch of hesitance, if not skepticism. Land Rover was taking its challenge to places where 0 to 60 mph times and agility through the slalom mattered little, a place where performance was more about physical grip and emotional clarity than it was about horsepower.
Adding to our skepticism was the fact that as G4 commenced, a war broke out in Iraq. Even Land Rover officials admit that in the light of world events, their Challenge risked the fate of appearing frivolous to onlookers, including the media. Nevertheless, one must admit that a healthy bit of frivolity does the soul good, coming as a welcome hiatus from the weighty matters of sagging economies, outbreak of disease and even war�all of which overshadowed Land Rover�s adventure race.

Our hesitance aside, G4 Challenge accomplished what it set out to do, all while AutoWeek was given a bird�s eye view thanks to the journal of Nancy Olson, the U.S. Marine picked to represent the States in the 16-nation competition. She went head-to head with the likes of fighter pilots, Ironman champs and even a gutsy competitor born in Chicago who now runs a water park in Dubai. Along the way, we found that even though G4 had none of the high-performance track antics we normally cover, it did accomplish much of what international racing is about as it brought together people from all over the world to share a common interest: The automobile.

Olson�s last journal entry came as G4 was moving to the fourth and final stage out west in Nevada and Utah. She entered Stage Four in 12th place amongst the field of 16, and she set the goal to get into the top eight by the event�s finale challenge, the Seperator in Moab, Utah, on April 26. Guy Andrews, who had picked Olson as his teammate for the stage, would be Olson�s fourth and final teammate (Sergey Polyansky from Russia was her teammate in Eastern USA, Tim Pickering from the U.K. in South Africa and Paul McCarthy from Ireland in Australia). The teammate is plays a major role in how well competitors do as this competition forces challengers to rely on the strengths and work through the weaknesses of the teammate. Guy was in the running to win the competition, so Olson saw the pairing as a positive turn towards her snagging a spot in the top eight.

We pick up the story where Olson�s journal concludes.

April 23, Coral Pink Sand Dunes

Andrews picked Olson for three reasons: She had a knack for relieving the stress of competition, she was as strong as most competitors and he figured that Olson�s being from the United States would contribute a level of local knowledge few of the other competitors could claim. His strategy seemed to serve him well, Olson and Andrews finished third overall of the eight teams competing in the April 22 �Maximizer� that kicked off Stage Four. The Maximizer was a day-long competition in Utah�s Snow Canyon Park with the goal of reaching nine different locations on foot or mountain bike (see journal entry).

On April 23, the G4 Challenge traveled to the Coral Pink Sand Dunes, which lies 12 miles west of Kanab, Utah, on the border of Arizona and within spitting distance of Utah�s famed Zion National Park. Over five inches of snow greeted competitors in the morning, which was unexpected in the desert. Olson reported feeling a bit drained, with her and Andrews fumbling a bit through the morning prediction session dubbed �Strategy Pit.� During Strategy Pit, the teams take a stab in the dark on what order they will complete the day�s six individual activities called �Hunters� in relation to the rest of the teams.

�Midway through our predictions, we really lost the plot,� Olson explained. �Guy and I both lost it and we couldn�t put a good strategy together. I think the fatigue is really starting to kick in now. We are tired, over-thinking things and making them more difficult than they should be. We learned a good lesson from it though and it will not happen again.�

A good amount of the Hunters were placed at locations higher than 6,500 feet and altitude, along with the cold weather and stress of competition, contributed further to the fatigue felt ubiquitously.

Olson and Andrews completed three Hunters, including Looking Glass Rock and a 45-minute kayak Hunter, and hit two of the Hunters at their predicted point, serving them well in the points category. At day�s end, it looked as if Andrews would have a shot at competing in the top four during the Separator and Olson would get a shot at finishing as high as fifth. The Saturday afternoon Seperator was designed to pit competitors against one another based on their scores following the Friday, April 25 Maximizer. One through four would be able to compete for the grand prize, a new Range Rover, while five through eight, nine through 12 and 13 through 16 would be quartered off into fours and compete for best in their respective class of four.

Arabia�s Chris Perry, originally from Chicago, started the West USA Stage in third and had his sights obviously set on competing for the truck. �We�re not going to take any big risks, he said at the end of the Coral Pink Sand Dunes Hunter. As long as I�m still in the top four on Saturday, I�ll be able to compete for the Range Rover in the final Separator.� The more time AutoWeek spent with Perry, the more we started to recognize the Midwesterner as G4�s untold story. Perry runs a water park in Dubai and by virtue of his residence was able to register for G4 as an Arabian. Nevertheless, Perry was as American as it gets, with a second-to-none determination to win and a personality as vivid as the competition.

After the competition was over, Perry recounted a day spent with teammate Sergey Polyansky from Russia. The two encountered a cave at one of the Hunters and upon entering, both competitors were startled at the sight of a mass of bats flying toward them. Perry, laughing hysterically during his account, could barely get the words out to describe Polyanksy�s reaction. The Russian called the bats �flying mouses,� because there is no direct translation for the word bats from his native language.

As it turned out, Perry would remain in third through the final days of competition and indeed compete for the Range Rover on the final day in Moab.

After a night spent at a campsite at Stanton Creek situated on the edge of Lake Powell�s Bullfrog Bay, which serves as Colorado River diversion in the heart of the mammoth Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, it was time the penultimate day of Hunters on April 24. Olson reported a heightening sense of tension among the field of 16 competitors, which was a stark contrast to the near-unanimous sense of teamwork that Olson had reported earlier in the competition. Land Rover officials were heralding the teamwork even at the end of the entire race, but a quick study of the faces of the 16 competitors told a story of ambition, exhaustion and even a bit of aggravation. No doubt, days spent traveling the world hoisting their body up cliffs and propelling themselves down rivers were appreciated and added a tune of optimism to life in general, but-for the time being-a tangible sense of Range Rover covetousness tainted the five or six grasping for top spot on the leader board, while a sense of disappointment could be detected in many of the competitors for whom the prize was out of reach.

Said Olson: �There has been a few politics between teams the last few days as the competition gets really hot. We are all a competitive group and I have been expecting this. The good thing is that it is all competition and when it is over there will be no grudges held.�

Or would they? We�d have to wait three more days to find out just how intense the competition and to see if international camaraderie could overcome personal ambition.

April 24, Lake Powell

The Hunters at Lake Powell would prove a pivotal day for Olson and Andrews. From Camp, most of the teams made their way to the White Canyon Hunter, which was described by some as the most spectacular scene of the entire G4 Challenge. Competitors pointed to this day as reason to award West USA as the best stage of all four. At the Canyon, competitors ran to the Canyon�s peak, then embarked on a abseil, or rope-guided descent, to the ravine below.

Andrews abseiled past a checkpoint. Polyansky dropped his GPS while descending, then was struck by falling rocks at another Hunter called Bear�s Ears Hunter��I�ll run it off.�

At the day�s end, all teams made their way to the Looking Glass Rock Hunter, close to campsite for the night. Conflict ensued because of the fact that most teams predicted they would finish the Hunter fourth or fifth, which prompted Australia�s Andrews to suggest he and Frenchman Franck Salgues would be hands-down winners had G4 only been about physical prowess. �But it�s not,� he said, �This really is a unique Challenge that also requires mental dexterity and powers of negotiation.� At that point, neither the Frenchman nor the Australian were leading, Belgium�s Rudi Thoelen-a fighter pilot-was.

As for Olson, she was focused on the finish: �In the U.S. Marines, we call this �op-tempo,� which means full steam ahead.�

April 25, Moab, Utah

Depending on who you talk to, Moab is the center of adventure in the United States. Motorcyclists, mountain bikers, hikers and everyone in between take a Mecca to Moab for the ultimate challenge and we were fortunate enough to join the G4 cast as they did just that.

Friday, April 25 would prove to be Olson�s undoing, as her and teammate Andrews arrived at the Crows Nest Hunter five minutes behind Chicago-native Perry and his Spainish teammate Inigo de Lara. In the fury to catch the Spain/Arabia team, Andrews drove off in the USA/Australia-issued Land Rover Discovery without reading the guidelines, leading to the team commencing the Hunter from the wrong place. Perry and Co. finished the Hunter in 40 minutes, despite a wrong turn that side-tracked them about a half-mile. Andrews and Olson spent about 90 minutes, the extra time was needed because of their having taken a wrong road, according to Andrews.

April 26, Moab, Utah

The misstep knocked both Andrews and Olson off the pace of their goals, Andrews finishing fifth going into Saturday�s Seperator (his aim was to finish in the top four) and Olson finishing 13th (instead of in the top eight), which placed her at the front of the bottom pack of competitors. By this time, Olson�s countenance had noticeably slipped from upbeat and jocular when we first met her in New York, to a bit disappointed and anxious for the event to conclude when we talked to her on the final day in Moab.

�I�ll be happier when this is over,� Olson remarked, obviously shaken by the elements of competition, which included 14 plane flights. As for Perry, he was placed in the top four, at No. 3 behind the competitors from France and Belgium who were seperated by only four seconds after four weeks of competition. The top group settled in for the long wait for the start of the competition, the Separator. The event was organized to send competitors off in teams of four, the bottom four competing first with an allotment of an hour to finish the Separator.

Here, we were given a first-hand look at how difficult the competition was and reason for Olson�s despondency and exhaustion. It was hard work that quickly snatched the wind from competitors lungs and forced them to rely on a reservoir of grit that had been gradually spent in days past. The Separator offered no relief, forcing Olson and the other 15 to first navigate a Discovery up an off-road course while squeezing the vehicle through narrow gates. Hitting a gate cost time.

Once through the off-road course, competitors attached themselves to a cable and launched off a wooden platform. Olson would launch off first and had a head-start over Kitt Stringer from Canada, placed No. 14. After abseiling down a 52-foot drop off the platform, competitors piloted a mountain bike over a long course of soft red sand as fast as they could, stopping at the edge of the Colorado River at which point they dressed in a life vest and kayak skirt and paddled down and then back up stream at a pace of about 10 minutes.

Kayaking was followed by a run to the matrix point, where mental dexterity was the name of the game. By now, competitor�s energy stores were severely depleted. It didn�t help that the matrix mental exercise, in which the competitor wound through a life-sized maze of sorts, was in sight of the finish line. Once the matrix was completed, a sprint to a Range Rover was required and then another drive through an obstacle course. Arms, brains and legs drained of energy, competitors concluded the Seperator with a 52-foot jumar climb up to the starting platform. The finish line was defined by a slap on the bonnet of an orange Range Rover that sat just beyond the platform.

Olson, knew to piloting an enclose kayak, capsized her boat and missed two buoys, costing her a six-minute penalty and dropping her back to 15th place in front of Shinichi �Yoshi� Yoshimoto from Japan, and behind Alberta Chiappa (No.14) from Italy and Kitt Stringer (No. 15) from Canada. Olson had recovered her spirits by competition�s end: �My legs had just gone today,� she explained, but I�ve had the time of my life over the past month. Now I want a week off and then to start it all again. The real drama was preserved for the competition�s end, as Rudi Thoelen, an affable 32-year-old fighter pilot from Zoutleuw, Belgium, competing in his first adventure race, held off the three others grouped with him to win the Range Rover. It wasn�t easy.

Salgues only had a four second head start over the stoic 27-year old geographical engineer Franck Salgues from France going into a competition expected to last between 35 and 45 minutes. Perry started more than a minute off the pace, but would give Thoelen his toughest competition.

After leaping from the platform at nearly the same time, Salgues had overtaken Thoelen by the time the mountain biking portion was complete. But, like Olson, Salgues would go over in his kayak and have to walk the boat about 50 yards to shore and to remount. Thoelen saw his opportunity feverishly paddling down stream to pick up nearly two-minutes worth of advantage. Chris Perry would also pass Salgues during the matrix and move on to nip at Thoelen�s heals, but his plunging of a Range Rover into a pool of water, which set off a massive-intake monitor and shut the vehicle down, and Thoelen�s lead were too much to surmount. Thoelen rapidly climbed the 52-foot cable, pulled himself onto the platform and lurched for the bonnet of the Range Rover.