Ian Adamson “While we were resting, Spie and Aussie we’re spending time trying to find that river. So we had more reserves the next day and night.”

The race reached fever-pitch yesterday as all three leading teams were within 13 minutes of each other at the Madai Caves, and at that point, it was still anybody’s race to win. Salomon/Eco-Internet held the slightest margin going into the jumar ascent. With only four ropes available, Spie was forced to wait at the bottom of the cliff while Salomon/Eco-Internet ascended to the top. Robyn Benincasa shimmied up like Wonder Woman, hurrying her boys along. After a long and difficult scramble over a spiney ridge that took 2 ˝ hours, Salomon/Eco-Internet pushing past their known limits, they reached the 600 foot rappel first. Said Ike Wilson, “We had to dig really deep there. Deeper than we wanted to dig.”

Yet there was Spie, at the top of the ropes, having drawn even again. But a tactic used the previous day likely sealed the victory for Eco-Internet, said Adamson. “The night before, we navigated right into the river at Port Madai (PC 24) and slept in the boat along the river. Well, we rested with our feet up more than really slept. There were heaps of mosquitoes in there." The team was rejuvenated by the short rest and with clear minds, they were able to race strong through the finish, making no mistakes. Said Mark Burnett “Looking at our time projections, it would have been humanly impossible for them to have gone any faster. They ran an absolutely perfect race.”

Michael Kloser Former member of Team Vail, this is Michael Kloser's first year racing with Team Salomon/Eco-Internet.

The members of what can now rightfully be called The World Championships of Expedition Racing think they won the race because of that extra rest, and Adamson’s spot-on navigation. “While we were resting, Spie and Aussie we’re spending time trying to find that river,” said Adamson. “So we had more reserves the next day and night.” Adamson attributes his uncanny navigational skills, especially at night, to twenty years sailing around, and kayaking, in oceans and mangrove swamps.

Once they hit the water again for the last reaches of the race, the ocean sections through PC’s 29, 30, 31, and home, Salomon/Eco-Internet had a lead, but they still did not think it was safe. Captain Adamson and his team made one last brilliant move, tucking under the wind, which was coming from the east, between Batik Kulambu and Timbun Mata. There, they were sheltered on the leeward side, while Spie went windward, north of Batik Kulambu, forcing them to buck a stiff headwind. By the time Salomon/Eco-Internet reached the “experiential scuba exercise” on PC 31, Sibuan Island, they had the race sewn up, the last paddle from Sibuan to Semporna something of a formality. Barring a capsized Perahu or some other act of God, they would win the Eco-Challenge.

Robyn Benincasa “Our feet were destroyed, and the race was difficult, not just an athletic challenge, but a test of attrition, a test of who is the grittiest. And that’s us.”

Mark Burnett, always an innovator, offered scuba for the first time in the history of an adventure race, and the winners praised him. It was a surreal sight last night at around 1:45 am, after nearly 6 days of racing, to see teams don their scuba gear. They waded out into the shallow water with their tanks and regulators, green glow-sticks on their backs, and the strobe of TV lights all around them. Said Salomon/Eco-Internet’s Ike Wilson, “That was very peaceful; I’m really glad that I was able to do that, because the only dives I’ve done have been in a cold, dark, murky freshwater lake. That was the best time I’ve had on this course yet.”

Once in the water, teams had to navigate a small course for about ˝ an hour, finding coins on the ocean floor and swimming a triangle that returned them to the point of origin. Safety divers were in the water to assist only in case of an emergency, or to tap and alert a diver if he or she was straying too far from course. Said Burnett, “the diving around here is world class, and I wanted racers to experience such an integral part of the region. It would have been a shame to come all the way to this destination and not dive, so I felt obliged to give them that opportunity.”

Isaac Wilson "That was very peaceful, I’m really glad that I was able to do that (scuba) ... That was the best time I’ve had on this course yet.”

Onlookers at Sibuan met a bizarre spectacle in the middle of the night when Team Salomon/Eco-Internet arrived, the naked Robyn Benincasa riding like a sea nymph on the bow of the boat. Said Benincasa, “We were paddling along, and I looked back to see my team all paddling naked. So I figured I would join them; we had a naked paddling bonding experience.”

On their victory, Benincasa mused. “Our feet were destroyed, and the race was difficult, not just an athletic challenge, but a test of attrition, a test of who is the grittiest. And that’s us.”

Team Spie paddled into the Dragon Inn at Semporna at 9:29 a.m., big cracked-lipped smiles throughout the whole team. Little Joey, the son of Karim Benamrouche, jumped into the water to greet the team in their Perahu. They had pushed their foes to the breaking point, and their collective heart helped make this Eco-Challenge one of the closest, and most memorable, on record. Said Eric Cassaigne, “I loved the variety of Borneo, and of the course itself. The rivers were fantastic, as were the ocean lagoons, the mangroves and the rainforest.”

He mentioned that another set of ropes might have helped them. “We had to wait for Eco-Internet to ascend, and to rappel. And each time we were tied, but had to wait. That was tough psychologically. But it’s o.k. We are happy enough. It was a great race.”

The plucky Australians of Team AussieSpirit.com came ashore at 11:11 a.m., lead by captain and Grande Dame of adventure racing, Jane Hall. Hall credits her team’s success to group dynamics. “Each time I race I learn more about how to interact with different people, and that helps. I’ve raced with John (Jacoby) for six years, so I understand him. But this was my first race with Nigel, and that took some getting used to.”

Said Nigel Aylott, “Jane Hall is fairly demanding as a leader, but that is good, because she’s very competitive.”

Hall had one of her best races of her career. “I was really surprised, because the boys had trouble keeping up with me in some spots.” Still, she was able to keep the quirky sport of expedition racing in perspective: “My primary consideration for doing these races is the cultural interaction, to come to a new place and experience a part of a different culture. I really do value that above anything.”