2005 Race
The 450-mile race in 2005 will take place in the Lake Tahoe area of the Sierra Nevada, and involved mountain mountain biking, rappelling, trekking, caving, and white water paddling. Elevations as as high as 11,000’, and competing in the event will be teams from the United States, New Zealand, Great Britain, Columbia, Costa Rica, Sweden, Spain, Finland, Canada, Poland and Brazil.
Though approximately 100 teams are set to participate, it is predicted that only about 40 or 50 would likely survive the 10-day race.
There is a slew of challenges facing teams during the Subaru Primal Quest, the world’s most prestigious adventure race. Even with the largest prize pool in the sport – i.e. $250,000 – on offer, it’s not all about crossing the line first to collect for most of the participants. Just finishing the grueling race is feat enough – and worth fighting for. During the 10 day event, racers will have to battle the elements, and surpass their own perceived physical limitations.
One of the biggest challenges of the race is body energy management. Consuming enough calories, water, and electrolytes, and managing sleep effectively are crucial. According to the team No Boundaries, the team logged in about 3 – 4 hours of sleep per day. And the winning team probably logged in closer to 3 – 4 hours of sleep during the entire 10 days.
No Boundaries is a notable mention for the 2005 race for several reasons: one of the team’s member is Erik Weihenmayer, a blind Everest summiteer. With tandem pedaling and kayaking on the Subaru Primal Quest 2005 roster, it be interesting to see how the team meshes together to overcome these specific challenges.
Also on team No Boundaries is Tony McEachern who was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor in April. Despite the diagnosis, Tony is in the race to win it. Winning medals, prestige and definitely some great gift baskets.