Since Geocentric Outdoors have taken over management of the world series at the end of 2011, expedition adventure racing has seen a resurgence internationally not matched since the early era of Eco Challenge and Primal Quest. This is evidenced by very competitive world championship races in recent times attracting a plethora of top teams from around the globe, the introduction of a relevant world ranking system, standardization of the equipment lists in the world series and even a move towards same nationality teams in world championship events. It would also appear that qualifying races on the world series are witnessing an international boost, with elite teams such as Seagate, Thule, Haglofs Silva and Tecnu travelling overseas multiple times a year in a bid to bolster their world series rankings. To top it off, expedition racing is now becoming more accessible to the general public through the Wild Racers series of documentaries.
As a spectator of adventure racing it is also encouraging to see the standard of online reporting for events is also increasing, with most races these days having an excellent live GPS tracking system of teams coupled with online reporting through sites such as Sleepmonsters and other social media outlets. To this end, I’ve drawn together a calendar of all the expedition races that will be running in 2014 throughout the world for your viewing pleasure. These are not just races that are members of the World Series but also stand alone events, particular within North America and the European AR Series. And who knows, perhaps something might catch your eye and the next minute you’ll be emailing team mates and booking flights.
(Note, for the purposes of this list, an expedition race has been defined as being 3 or more days long, non-stop, requiring navigation, in teams with two or more disciplines).
JANUARY
Desafio Aysen
Chile
January 13-18
Facebook
FEBRUARY
Raid 360
Poland
February 4-9
Facebook. AR Euro Series Memeber
Maya Mountain Adventure Challenge
Belize
February 13-16
Facebook
Sea 2 Sea Adventure Race
United States of America
February 13-16
Facebook. USARA National Champs Member
MARCH
GODZone Adventure Race
New Zealand
March 7-15
Facebook. World Series Member
APRIL
Portugal XPD Race
Portugal
April 16 – 20
AR Euro Series Member
Lycian Challenge Adventure Race
Turkey
April 29 – May 4
Facebook. AR Euro Series Member
MAY
E
xpedition Africa
South Africa
May 23 – June 1
Facebook. World Series Member
JUNE
Corsica Raid Adventue
Corsica (France)
June 7-11
Facebook. AR Euro Series Member
Red Fox Adventure Race
Russia
June 12-15
Facebook. AR Eurox Series Member
Untamed New England
United States of America
June 16-22
Facebook. World Series Member
Adventure Race Slovenia
Slovenia
June 20-22
Facebook. AR Euro Series Member
JULY
Cowboy Tough Expedition Race
United States of America
July 17-20
Facebook. USARA National Champs Member
Endurance Quest Adventure Race
Finland
July 21-27
Facebook. World Series Member.
AUGUST
Itera Adventure Race
Wales
August 9- 16
Facebook. World Series Member
Expedition Idaho
United States of America
August 9-16
Facebook
C
zech Adventure Race
Czech Republic
August 20-25
Facebook. AR Euro Series Member
SEPTEMBER
Gold Rush Mother Lode
United States of America
September 10-14
Facebook. World Series Member
Raid In France
France
September 13-21
Facebook. World Series Member
Ecomotion Pro
Brazil
September 19-28
Facebook. World Series Member
OCTOBER
Wildside Adventure Race
Australia
October 4-12
Facebook.
NOVEMBER
Huairasinchi
Ecuador
November 7-19.
Facebook. World Series Member
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The above list only covers expedition adventure races running in 2014. Note that many races take a rest for intermittent periods of time. Other notable expedition races not running this year, but which should hopefully make a return in the future include:
World Series Races
- XPD – Australia
- Costa Rica Adventure Race – Costa Rica
- Raid Bimbache – Spain
- Tierra Viva – Argentina
- The Apex Race – Switzerland
- Raid the North Extreme – Canada
AR Euro Series Races
- Kav Kaz Expediton Race – Russia
- Authentique Adventure – Reunion Island
- Aveyron Adventure Race – France
Miscellaneous Races
- Patagonia Expedition Race – Chile
- X-Adventure – Japan
- Tantauco Exploration Race – Chile
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With over 20 expedition races running all over the world this year, there is plenty of adventure to be had. If I’ve missed anything or made a mistake, feel free to drop me a line in the comments section below. It is interesting to note that Asia is poorly represented when it comes to expedition races, however China does have a number of big money stage races (for example the Wenzhou Outdoor Challenge) that attracts a top competitive international field.
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