After 102 hours of racing, coral snakes and crocodiles, Canmore’s adventure racing queen Liza Pye and Team Tecnu Extreme Adventure Racing are tops again, crushing the competition at the 2012 Costa Rica Adventure race championship.
The team finished with an incredible 15-hour lead on their nearest competitors, earning a spot in the world championships in France on Sept. 14.
“It was different to be in a tropical climate. Just as every race presents challenges, this one was the heat,” Pye said.
The course, which challenged athletes with rafting, kayaking, trekking, horseback riding, mountain biking and climbing challenges, spanned 546 kilometres, with 7,370 m of ascent, plus 7,340 m descent. Many of the paddles were through crocodile-infested waters, where the racers were forbidden to swim. However, the team was undeterred by the tough conditions and managed to blow away the competition on every segment.
“Basically, we were going that much faster than the other teams the entire race,” Pye said.
Two days before the race, Pye was cycling through snow in Kananaskis Country, so her system was shocked when faced with humid temperatures in the 30 C range.
“At the coast, I wasn’t sure if I could handle this. That was the biggest concern,” Pye said.
Team captain Kyle Peters also struggled with the heat. Paranoid of snake bites, he wore extra thick clothes, which wore him down. It didn’t help that the team saw two pythons, two coral snakes and dozens of brown snakes.
“Kyle felt crappy on the first day. He recovered as we all managed to stay on top of the water. He hates snakes. It was actually an issue because he became stressed. He was wearing heavy gaiters on the first day because he was so worried about getting bitten,” Pye said. “He ran over a coral snake accidentally on his bike.”
She, on the other hand, was more worried about the crocodiles.
“On the rafting section, you could see them. You didn’t even want to dangle your feet in the water. The crocodiles would be there and then they’d disappear,” Pye said.
The biggest thrill for Pye was a canopy section of the race.
“In the middle of the tour, there was a wicked canopy tour with zip lines, where you had to fly across, then rock climb up the other side. After that, we were tubing down the river with giant inner tubes, hitting things and splashing around. Then we rode on horses back to the lodge. We were able to get them in a trot,” Pye said.
Most of the course was spent on the water, which Pye worried could put her at a disadvantage. However, she borrowed a kayak trainer from a friend and set it up on her porch, which she used diligently through snowstorms in preparation for the race.
Although the course was difficult, she said getting an early lead made the race easier. After the first leg, they had an hour lead on the second place team. It only grew from there.
“It felt like it was easier, but I think that’s because we got out front at the beginning of the race. You have control over the race at that point. You know there’s a gap and you can make better decisions and take some sleep,” Pye said.
The team only slept for six hours during the 104-hour race, however Pye said she’s getting accustomed to that level of deprivation.
“The further you go with adventure racing, the less sleep you need. I was able to save my mental energy and knew I could rely on the team. We managed to get through this before, so we’re more relaxed. And you know what you need to do to stay awake. I became a human juke box.”
Team captain Peters posted a message part way through the race.
“(It’s an) epic course. True adventure. Tons and tons and tons and tons and tons of snakes and spiders. Did I mention tons? I killed a coral snake – kill or be killed. Our only real navigational error was on the long mountain bike ride to Checkpoint 22. Marco was a stud and carried the mandatory gear all the way. I got heat exhaustion on the long trek, team carried my gear, towed me, took me awhile to recover, but by nightfall I was 80 per cent, then soon leading the charge up the hill. We used the sail on the rafting section and crushed it. The course and organization was awesome. It’s going to be a great world championships next year. Team’s health is great. Everyone held up well, had fun, laughed our butts off. Got sick, couldn’t pee, felt like I had to, but was too dehydrated. Recovered and was 100 per cent and leading the charge again,” Peters wrote.
The team will now ready for the world championships in France. Last year, Pye and her team placed ninth at the world championships in Tazmania, Australia, but were the top North American team. This year, their goal is to win.
“We’re totally psyched. Marco taught me a lesson. I’ve always been conservative with my goals. But the guys said there’s no point thinking of anything but winning. We may as well believe we can, so we’ll go thinking we can win it,” Pye said.
They have a small two-day race in Pennsylvania and Pye will enter the Salty Dog Mountain Bike race in Salmon Arm, but the main goal is the world championships.
“We’re going in to win.”
