The Legend expedition adventure race was launched by Wild&Co in February this year as part of the Adventure Racing World Series. In the first race teams crossed the Alpine mountains, forests and lakes of the Snowy Mountains of New South Wales.
It was a spectacular 500km route undertaken on bikes, on foot and in kayaks and reaching the finish line was a huge achievement. However, it could be the start of a much, much bigger journey, taking racers to the most scenic areas of every state in Australia.
Race Director Chris Dixon plans to hold The Legend annually, with each race moving to a new location, in a new state, and the 2024 race will follow The Great Ocean Road in Victoria!
Adventure racing teams will have the chance to circumnavigate Australia, as Dixon explains; “At the closing ceremony of the 2023 event we asked competing teams where they’d like to race next. There was such a diverse range of responses from the south western tip of Western Australia to the deserts of central Australia, from the island tropics of far North Queensland to the forests of Tasmania.
“In order to deliver on our vision to establish The Legend Expedition Race as the quintessential Australian expedition race – one that sees teams competing in the toughest sport on the planet, in the most iconic locations in Australia, we realised we needed to do it all.
“’Doing a big lap’ of Australia is dream that many in Australia and around the world have, and the Legend Expedition Race will be a unique and exciting way to fulfil that dream.”
The 2024 race will take place from Feb. 24th to March 2nd, and entries are now open on the race website at; https://www.legendexpd.com.au/
The next destination for The Legend offers the chance to race in area which has never been used for an expedition adventure race before.
The race HQ will be in the town of Apollo Bay, which is only a 2 hour 40 minute drive from Melbourne, and is a popular stop for those following The Great Ocean Road. The town is renowned for its coastal location, magnificent beaches, tasty seafood and wildlife tours, and is the start of the 104km Great Ocean Trail.
The Legend will take a longer route, following the course of The Great Ocean Road, but going off-road, and exploring the National Parks, rivers, lakes, cliffs and beaches of the world renowned coastline.
Dixon said, “Teams will trek wild coastal trails and visit the iconic sights and cliffs near the 12 Apostles and Loch Ard Gorge. They will explore the Great Otway National Park, paddle remote inland waterways and rivers, and discover little known waterfalls. Depending on the conditions they should be prepared for an epic ocean paddle stage with a beach landing. They will mountain bike through ancient temperate rainforest along gravel roads, fire trails and ride some of Australia’s best mountain bike trails.”
The only adventure race to visit the area before was a stage race (with teams stopping each night). The Race Director was John Jacoby, perhaps the greatest Legend of Australian adventure racing and he said, “"We're excited to see what Wild&Co will do – it’s such an amazing region!"
Adventure Racing World Series CEO Heidi Muller commented, “The ARWS has had an Australian expedition race in the calendar almost every year and Chris is carrying forward that great tradition. His vision to take The Legend to every Australian state is impressive and going from The Snowy Mountains to The Great Ocean Road is a wonderful start! He is providing Australian racers with a unique opportunity to explore their country.”
The Legend format is a classic, non-stop 6 day adventure race involving trekking, mountain biking, kayaking and other adventure disciplines. The race is for teams of four and they must stay together and navigate their way unsupported through an epic 500+km course.
For those wanting to test out expedition racing there will also be a half course option next year. This will offer the same epic adventure and visit the most iconic locations, but teams will have the full 6 days to race half of the full course distance, allowing more inexperienced teams a greater chance of reaching the finish line.
Race Details
Date: 24 Feb – 3 March 2024
Location: Victoria, Australia
Duration: 6 days / 500km & 250km (full and half course)
Entries: Open Now! Early bird discounted entry ends August 30th.
Team size: 4 person
Website; https://www.legendexpd.com.au/
Photo of the 12 Apostles by IslandLady from Pixabay
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