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Getting into the action

BY Ian Bartholomew
STAFF REPORTER
Monday, Apr 25, 2005, Page 16

Action Asia has met with mixed fortunes in Taiwan, and of all the areas in which the foundation has sought to establish its adventure race format, Taiwan has offered the greatest potential and also probably the greatest difficulties.

With 35 local teams already registered to participate in this year's event, along with over 30 coming from Hong Kong, Singapore and other countries, this year's race is set to take the Action Asia Challenge Taiwan to a new level.

Michael Maddess, the driving force behind the race, is returning to Fulung, the scene of the 2003 race, where he hopes to exploit Taiwan's fabulous, but under-utilized, resources for outdoor sports.

The Action Asia Challenge is an adventure race that involves a number of outdoor disciplines ranging from running to rappelling, kayaking and mountain biking.

Aimed primarily at the so-called "weekend-warrior" set, the race provides a stiff challenge for semi-professional athletes, while also allowing for participation of those who are simply excited by competition in an outdoor environment.

Contestants in previous competitions work the ropes above the waters near Fulung, Taipei County in the Action Asia Challenge. PHOTOS COURTESY OF ACTION ASIA

In the past, Action Asia has been held in a three-person format, in which teams of three need to complete the course to place. Since the challenge held in Macao last June, the race has adopted a two-person team format.

According to Maddess, this has greatly enhanced interest. "Most people have one training partner who they can rely on, but when it comes to getting three people together, this can often be a problem of logistics," Maddess said. "Now registrations are completed much earlier, and our team quota for the race is usually filled very rapidly."

The two-person format will doubtless also benefit participation for local participants. In addition, the Taiwan race this year will be the first occasion on which the race map has been released prior to the race.

This violates the basic tenets of adventure racing, in which racers normally going into the race with no idea about the route and only a vague idea of the disciplines that may be involved. But Maddess emphasized that this is just an experiment.

"When we first announced that we would be revealing the route, many of our seasoned competitors e-mailed to protest," he said in a telephone interview with Taipei Times, but added that this might help less experienced competitors.

Introducing the race to people new to adventure racing has been a major goal for Maddess and the Action Asia team ever since they brought the race to Taiwan.

Local participation has been patchy, with many locals untried in sports such as kayaking and ocean swimming. Maddess's response: "There are just so many really fit people in Taiwan (referring especially to the well-established triathlon and marathon circuits), that there is really no excuse."

In the past, local participants have excelled in all but the water disciplines, and generally fallen down in the transitions, largely due to unfamiliarity with adventure racing.

But the outdoor scene in Taiwan is changing rapidly, with more and more people getting seriously involved in mountain biking, rock climbing and even boating than ever before, that Maddess's contention that Taiwan is an ideal location for such a race seems to be well founded.

"Compared to places like Hong Kong and Singapore, where one has to be really creative to make a race route that hasn't been used before, Taiwan has so much potential," Maddess said.

In 2003, the Action Asia team had thought to bring a race to southern Taiwan, but Maddess said that the previous Fulung Race had not fully showcased the potential of the area for adventure racing.

"We shall probably stick to northern Taiwan for the moment," he said, "and only move south when we need to find fresh routes."

The race was held in Sun Moon Lake in 2002, but this so far has been the only venture outside northern Taiwan.

Information about the Action Asia Challenge Taiwan 2005 can be found on www.actionasia.com and can also be obtained from Teng Shan You (登山友) at (02) 2311 6027.
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