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Rebecca Rusch hadn't even heard of adventure racing before she was drawn into the sport. "I was working in a climbing gym . . . when some racers came into the gym to learn how to rappel. They talked me into doing my first 24-hour race even before I was sure what the sport was all about," says Rusch, a champion racer and one of the strongest women in the sport. "I was so nervous I was dry heaving before the race even began, and I just thought I was going to get killed."

Rusch didn't get killed. Instead, she went on to win many races, including last year's Raid the North Extreme in the Yukon as captain of Team Montrail.

Geoff Langford didn't spend a lot of time preparing for his first adventure race, either. "I decided the night before the race that I wanted to do it, showed up at registration and asked if there were any teams looking for another member," laughs the Calgary racer. You could say Langford liked the sport so much he bought the company. Last year, he capped off a 20-race season by purchasing Canada's Frontier Adventure Racing, which organizes three major adventure-racing series in Canada: the eight-hour Salomon Adventure Challenges, the Raid the North series of 36-hour races, and the five-day Raid the North Extreme expedition-style race.

The principle of adventure racing is straightforward: Co-ed teams of four (usually, but not exclusively, three men and one woman) must paddle, cycle, hike and climb non-stop across an unmarked course through the wilderness. Races can last anywhere from eight hours to 10 days.

For teams lacking the right chemistry and the right experience, those eight hours can seem like eight days, and eight days can seem like eight years. You barely sleep, you hardly eat, your feet are blistered and raw, your back aches, and personality conflicts are only exacerbated when a navigational error sends teams hours off-course.

To ease the pain, Frontier Adventure Racing offers both navigation and adventure-racing clinics across the country. "The clinics aren't about physical training," Langford says. "They're about giving people a greater comfort level when they race. We teach them how to train, what gear to carry, eating habits, navigational strategy and how to work as a team."

Finding the right teammates is paramount. Both Frontier Adventure Racing and Adventure Racing Canada allow racers to post biographies and "teammate wanted" ads on their sites, encouraging racers to meet on-line. Teams "have the same goal, whether it's to win or just to finish," stresses Vancouver veteran adventure racer Jim Mandelli, captain of Team Subaru Canada, the only Canadian team to finish last year's Eco-Challenge in Fiji. "And then you have to keep the team focused on the race."

Women racers have the added hurdle of being intimidated by their male competition. "I think one of the best things I did early on was race with other women," adds Rusch, who lives in Idaho and also teaches adventure-racing clinics. "I was able to compare myself with my peers. I had always thought, I'm so slow, I suck at this, but then I suddenly realized I was a good racer. I always tell women in my clinics to train with other women."

Once you've trained and found your team, you have to choose a race. The shorter five- to eight-hour races offer an introduction to the concept of multi-sport racing, without the hardships that come with racing for days without sleep. The pace in these events, however, can be quite fast. Then there are the mid-range races, such as the Raid the North series and the Adventure Racing Canada Overnight series, which last anywhere from 24 to 36 hours and cover 100 to 150 kilometres of terrain. The granddaddies of the sport, such as the Southern Traverse, Raid Gauloises and Eco-Challenge, cover anywhere from 400 to 600 kilometres, and can take five to 10 days to complete.

"A lot of people think of the eight-hour races as an easy introduction to adventure racing," Langford says. "But you have to go much faster in those races, so every mistake you make is compounded. In a 36-hour race, you can take your time, you can rest, you can make a mistake and still recover from it."

Mid-range events appeal not only to those looking for an initiation into the sport, but to competitors who have their eyes on the big international races

Jim Mandelli did a series of 36-hour races in his native British Columbia before attempting his first expedition-length race: the Eco-Challenge in Australia in 1997, which his team completed in nine days. Even so, he wasn't prepared for the shock of the longer event. "My feet got hammered in that race," he recalls. "In a 36-hour race, your feet can hurt, but never that bad. The pain became all-consuming in Australia. All my other instincts took over, and I just had to keep thinking, 'another 72 hours and this will be over, another 48 hours and this will be over.' I never lost the pain, I just figured out how to live with it."

Ultimately, only completing a race can truly provide a sense of what the sport is about, but Mandelli does offer one simple tip for beginners: "Forget about learning it on your own," he says. "Find someone with experience; talk them into training and racing with you. Use their experience, their knowledge, and their mistakes. You can shortcut years of training that way."

Susan McKenzie, a Montreal-based freelancer, has travelled from Malaysia to Mexico writing about adventure racing

Adventure racing essentials

What is adventure racing?

Adventure racing is a multi-sport event in which co-ed teams of three or four race non-stop on an unmarked course. It is most commonly characterized as an expedition with a stopwatch. Nowadays, it's also described as "you know, like the Eco-Challenge?" Disciplines can include paddling, cycling, hiking, climbing, rappelling, horseback riding and, above all, navigation.

A brief history

New Zealand is the home of adventure racing. Frenchman Gerard Fusil is considered the father of the expedition-length adventure race. He launched the first race, the Raid Gauloises, in 1989. British-born, L.A.-based entrepreneur Mark Burnett is credited with bringing the sport into the mainstream with his Eco-Challenge. He also went on to create a little something called Survivor.

Costs

Adventure racing is neither inexpensive nor lucrative, except for the few truly exceptional teams. Registration for a weekend race averages $1,500 to $2,000 a team. Expedition-length races can cost anywhere from $5,000 to $10,000. This can sometimes include a few nights' accommodation and some equipment rental (boats, for example). It does not include basic gear, such as bikes, food or travel expenses.

Gear

You can borrow gear for your first race, but a bicycle built for you is infinitely more comfortable after eight hours than one built for your friend. Every race includes a mandatory gear list for each racer and team. Your feet will suffer if you try to break in new boots during a race.

Where to begin

Frontier Adventure Racing offers a variety of races and clinics and a service that allows you to post your profile and find teammates. The FAR Web site (http://www.raidthenorth.com) includes tips for training and racing, a gear-swap and a resource centre for more information on the sport.

Contact Information

There are dozens of adventure races across Canada all summer, and hundreds more across the United States, many of which are listed at http://www.arextreme.com.

Frontier Adventure Racing Inc.: Web: http://www.raidthenorth.com; phone: (416) 783-4464 (Toronto) or

403-670-0466 (Calgary).

Adventure Racing Canada: Adventure Racing Canada's 2003 schedule includes an urban race in Toronto as well as traditional adventure races. It is also involved in the Eco-Challenge North American Qualifier in Sault Ste. Marie, July 18-27. Web: http://www.adventureracingcanada.com; phone: (416) 444-3899.

The United States Adventure Racing Association: on the Web:

http://www.usara.com; phone: 512-763-1050.

Southern Traverse: The 2003 edition takes place in Dunedin, South Island, New Zealand, Nov. 7-15. Web:

http://www.southerntraverse.com; phone: 64 (3) 441-8215.

Susan McKenzie