Huge swell forced the cancellation of the water jump, but the rope sections were challenging to even seasoned competitors and waves that sprayed competitors more than 10m up the rock face made for some spectacular visuals.
Competitors were unanimous about the splendor of the course, but many were shivering with cold at the finish line, delighted to have finished. "There was a lot of good feeling between teams," Matt Robertson said at the finish line. "It didn't feel too competitive."
Of the teams competing, the most highly qualified were probably MTI-Formosa Star, which is preparing to represent Taiwan in the Mild Seven Outdoor Quest later this week. Despite assurances that they would not be trying too hard, they placed second and third in the two-man category.
Band of Mostly Brothers, despite and age profile of 59, 43, and 37, considerably older than most of the local teams, posted a highly respectable time, overcoming a few difficulties in the off-road cycling leg. As always with adventure racing, it was the teams that had the greatest team spirit that did best, and Huang Yiu-chin, the female member of the Baliyos Team, said ecstatically at the finish line that they would never have made it if her teammates had not helped in some of the more physically demanding sections of the course.
While plenty of racers were very enthusiastic about the race, a sour note was struck with the fall of a member from the In Nature team who fell from part way down the final rappel and had to be sent to hospital. Competitors at the finish line said that the medical response was far from adequate.
One expects some confusion during an adventure race and most of the problems that occurred during this third Action Asia race were relatively minor. Still, the race has many challenges of its own to overcome if it is to establish itself as a regular event in Taiwan.
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