As the sun sets on day three, the race has virtually been split in two, with the top three teams seemingly unstoppable. Propeller-heads, Nokia and The Science Team were the only competitors able to beat the 8pm cut-off to the start of the rafting on the Rangitata River. The compulsory dark zone means teams arriving after 8pm are not allowed on this stretch of the river until 6am tomorrow, putting the leaders well out of reach.
The dark zone proved disastrous for teams Cromwell and inthepacific.com which missed the cut-off by mere minutes and now have no hope of catching the leaders; a bitter disappointment for these teams which have been highly competitive from day one.
The battle between the lead teams is shaping up to be a classic. All eyes will be on Team Nokia after member Jukka Pinola suffered a bad shoulder injury in a mountain bike accident earlier in the day.
Pinola struggled badly in the kayak section despite being treated by medics prior to the rafting. Pinola was given pain killers and anti-inflammatory shots. "He is tough, strapped up and raring to go," the nurse who treated him said.
The Science Team has shown very little emotion over the last few days but look strong — though the team may be hampered by the extra equipment it is carrying as "living experiments" into the effects of the extremes on competitors for the Discovery Channel.
| At least four teams...are barred from kayaking the river until 6am tomorrow. |
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With teams spread out over hundreds of kilometers, the resources of event organizers are now stretched to the breaking point. A cut-off time of midnight was placed on the mountaineering leg at transition 4. After advice from mountain guides, the five teams gathered at this point made the decision not to venture into the mountains, opting instead to finish unranked on a shortened course.
Also pulled from the course this evening was the female member of the Canadian Team Voyager. She suffered a knee injury high in the mountains and was medi-evaced to Christchurch hospital.
Dark zones are also playing a major role on the course here at Mount Potts. At least four teams, with others arriving through the night, are barred from kayaking the river until 6am tomorrow. Team Buff Mexico arrived at this transition full of praise for the course, commenting: "We have loved this course and we have seen some amazing things...the only thing we want to see now is a smooth road here somewhere to walk on!"
The last team on course Team Location from Queenstown which is stuck way back at Lake Coleridge waiting until daylight to continue.
If estimates are correct and the lead teams can continue at this pace, we are on track for a finish at Lake Tekapo sometime late Thursday night. But still ahead of the top teams is 66km of mountain biking throughout the night, followed by yet another 40km of mountain trekking, capped off by 34km of paddling before the glory and the cash.
Also at this rate it seems only a third of the teams which started will actually complete the course, although many will go on to complete a shortened version.
– Chris Vile, MountainZone.com Correspondent
