Team Vail relaxes

Eating, sleeping and lounging poolside is the order of the day for these guys, and of course the air is filled with constant chatter as competitors relay their experiences over the last week.

"When they reached the top of Mgoun at 3000m they built a small shrine with a photo of their good friend Lyndon Ellefson...killed recently in Switzerland while training for the World Mountain Running Champs..."

The cool thing is that although 55 teams competed in this event on the same course, everyone has come away with a different experience and a different story to tell.

I asked Team Vail to recount their experiences.

The Highlights.
Obviously for Team Vail it had to be winning the event. The team was not shooting for 1st place at all, but as only the second Eco-Challenge they had competed in, coming in, they were relatively inexperienced compared to many of the other teams. A top-10 finish would have been fine by them.

The preparations that Team Vail put in were huge and they all agreed that over the last year, family, work and social lives took a definite back seat to the Eco-Challenge.

What were the factors that led to Vail's win?
Luck...
They felt that the race cards had been dealt extremely well to them.

The team's weakest discipline, the ocean kayaking, was on days one and two of the race. Obviously the mountain biking was always going to be their strongest point and it was a definite advantage having this as the last leg.

Altitude...
Almost more of a factor was Vail's performance at altitude. Many competitors had a very hard time making the climb to over 3000m, and altitude sickness caused daily evacuations and disqualifications. As a result of actually living and training in the Colorado Mountains, Team Vail found this leg to be a breeze and it gave them a distinct advantage.

Food...
Through pre-race research, these guys decided it was not worth risking the local food and instead opted to bring absolutely everything with them. This proved to be an extremely wise decision that played a big part in their success. On course, there were very few people, including competitors and the 100s of staff, who did not get sick.

The most memorable moment from the race...
The whole team was in agreement as to the one moment in Morocco they will never forget. When they reached the top of Mgoun, at 3000m, they built a small shrine with a photo of their good friend Lyndon Ellefson, who was killed recently in Switzerland while training for the world mountain running champs.

After a small ceremony, the team began their descent into the valley, emotionally charged and knowing that once they got on the bikes they could have a good chance of winning.

Another memory, though not such a pleasant one, was discovering that it was possible to go to sleep shivering uncontrollably and to wake up in exactly the same state.

What Next?
The first priority is getting home to their families. It has obviously been a big strain over the last year and before making any plans, life at home is the most important thing.

Having said this, Argentina does look very attractive. Team Vail is a winter team and with the conditions in Argentina very similar to a Colorado winter they feel they could once again do very well.

A quick tally of the prize money equates to each member of the team earning around $2.50 per hour during the race — so the motivation to compete is not a financial one. After chatting with the team, something tells me that there is no doubt we will see them on the podium again in Argentina.

— Chris Vile, Mountain Zone Correspondent

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