Itera Adventure Race 2022

So, finally getting round to writing up the Itera race. There's been a whirlwind couple of weeks since then to let things settle and crystallise a bit in my own head, which is probably a good thing!  When I've been asked about the race in the intervening weeks, there's been slightly different answers given each time, depending on how the question was phrased, so I'm going to slightly plagiarise a format from an Alan Affleck post about The Heb (which, incidentally, has been part of the whirlwind!):

"How was the Itera?"

Hard, but brilliant. Some absolutely gorgeous moments throughout the whole thing: seeing porpoises and a minke whale on the opening paddle; watching headlights on the hills and valleys around us as we bedded down for a few hours on our first night bivvy; the Via Ferrata up the Grey Mare's Tail at Kinlochleven was an awesome and (for me at least) pretty chilled-out stage; even the long, straightforward road ride from Glenuig to Fort William was enjoyable, working on the front of the team in a paceline, having a good chat with the Nav4 team through the roadworks, stopping at the 24hr petrol station in Fort William at god-knows-what in the morning for coffee, sarnies and ice cream before riding on. Some stuff anyone can appreciate, some stuff that maybe only makes sense if you've been there, I'll admit. 

"How did the race go?"

Pretty well, to be honest. We short-coursed just about everything, but that decision making meant we finished pretty well intact, in 18th place out of 32 starting teams. It's not like we were racing for a specific position though - the term got coined of it being an "activity holiday for adventurous insomniacs". As I said in a really short post afterwards, probably my favourite of our selection of pictures from the race is Ian, Jimmy and Jill sat in Oban YHA after the post-race ceilidh (the highest my heart rate got all week...) with tea, whisky and chocolate HobNobs, because it shows that we finished the whole things still smiling and still talking to each other. For me, and I think for all of us as a team, it was very much about just completing it together and about the journey. 

"That was a hell of a journey!"

Yep, some great sights, some hard ground to cover to see them - a proper expedition. Seeing Fingal's Cave on Staffa from a kayak was something I'd long hoped to do, but I always imagined it would be on a 'proper' sea kayaking trip, not in a Sit-on-Top during a race. I'm glad the 'Dougalfields' and vertical swamp of Mull came up early as that was some of the toughest terrain we crossed, though the notable exception to that would be the 30 yards of mud at the kayak exit after Castle Tioram... Ahem. While I think everyone on the team would have liked to take in the Ledge Route up onto Ben Nevis stage, seeing the stage times for that and the impact it had on the field, it feels like it was the right decision to short route - while the distance difference was negligible, the route we took has 2,000m less climb. Even just the last off-road bike section over the Bealach Gaoithe ('windy saddle' apparently) was a little bit of joy, even if I was focussed hard on the maps because a misplacement at that late a point in the race would have meant a proper sense of humour failure!

"You survived then?!"

Yeah, I survived. I had some pretty rough patches with indigestion in the middle of it, and I'm not hugely happy with myself for how I responded to that. I'd prepared well for a lot of the physical scenarios that have happened to me on races before - knee problems, knackered feet - but not for spending 48hrs feeling like I was about to throw up or explode, and for my head kind of falling apart with it. The discovery that the tiny village store in Glenuig had a pack of Rennies in stock may have been a minor moment of happiness when I felt pretty miserable, and I'll certainly note those as something to add to my First Aid kit for the future. That said, while that rough patch has coloured how I feel about 'how I did', it doesn't take any of the shine off 'how we did' as a team - because this is not an individual race. Jill, Jimmy and Ian were absolutely fantastic while I was being a grumpy, melodramatic mess, and pulled me through my weak stages so I could contribute more on my strong suit stages. Hopefully I made up for the rubbish bits and didn't mar the race for them. 

"What were the best bits, then?"

Ooh. There's a lot to choose from: The porpoises and the first night bivvy I've already mentioned; discovering that all of the team are sci-fi/fantasy fans and that "one does not simply walk into Polloch"; stopping on the West Highland Way - both at the Glen Nevis Visitor Centre for coke and Magnums and near Lundavra at a point where people have obviously camped previously to have a quick break and get some food down; bedding down in a cattle pen in Fort William Auction Mart was bizarre and a little chilly but wonderful in its own right. 

For me personally though, the best part was the last bike stage, even extended as it was with the cancellation of the kayak finish - I felt vaguely human again, I'd recovered a bit on the Via Ferrata, the climb and descent of the Devil's Staircase was rough but we'd stopped for some sleep, we hit the Kingshouse Hotel for their marginally-expensive-but-completely-worth-it Breakfast Buffet, the WHW ride passed fairly smoothly and Loch Dochard and Glen Kinglass were phenomenal if a touch damp. I'd ridden that section 20 years ago on my first ever bigger AR, the Salomon X-Adventure 36hr in 2002 and remembered the lovely granite slabs and sections of technical riding in the middle of it with a bit of fondness. The orienteering was a great little break - and timed perfectly so we got to the cafe at the Smokery well before it was due to close and ate well again! - Jill and I trotted round the shorter course, having a bit of a chat with two of the Sweco team on the way. The long tarmac ride to the last transition point wasn't the most interesting but it was pretty and we worked well on it (and included a pause to eat the chocolate brownies we'd bought at the Smokery cafe as well. Maybe that was why I enjoyed it, we ate a lot...)

"Would you do it again?"

Always going to be a leading question, and never going to be a simple answer:
- Did I learn a load of stuff about myself and how I handle things on an Expedition Race? Yes, a massive amount, some good and some bad but all learning.
- Are there things I/we could have done better, or at least differently? Yep, certainly. No race is perfect.
- Would I race as part of Rebel Talent again? Yes, if they'll have me, though I'd understand if they wouldn't!
- Would I race an Expedition AR again? It would depend entirely on the race and the team, but it's likely to be a yes. 

"So, what's next?"

I've had a few weeks off, photographed The Heb, spent some time meeting up with old friends, and now I need to get myself in a fit state for the OMM in October. Jill and I are entered in Medium Score, and I think both Ian and Jimmy are as well with different teammates. That will be a couple of long days out as well, but not 109hrs of long...





Thanks for reading. I have to give huge thanks to James Thurlow, Paul McGreal and Tom Gibbs for creating and organising an amazing event; to all the Open Adventure volunteers and staff for making that event run so smoothly for those of us in the racing seats; to Jill, Jimmy and Ian for being an amazing team to share the journey with; and to Jimmy, Ian and Eddie Winthorpe for pics. 

Until next time!