http://patagonianexpeditionrace.com/

After a hiatus that marked the end of a ten consecutive year cycle (2004-2013), the Patagonian Expedition Race will return in February 2016. The registration and selection process for the teams is now open.

The return of the Patagonian Expedition Race will start a new exploration cycle, which will search to discover new places, new mountains passages, and include new experiences that will strive to the limits and extremes of the possible. “The Last Wild Race” will continue with the same mysticism that has come to define the previous events, maintaining the structure of true expedition defined by a unique and authentic experience since its inaugural edition in 2004. Thus, the route for 2016 will delve even deeper into the wild and untouched Patagonian Region of Chile’s Extreme South.

In continuing with the mystic theme of previous editions, the route details are only revealed twenty-fours before it’s commencement. However, according to the event’s founder and race director, Stjepan Pavicic, “we will move between mountains, fjords, and glaciers towards the western sector of southern Patagonia, an inhospitable territory, to which never before has a race gone.”

The next edition will take place between the 13th and 26th of February 2016 in the southern Chilean Patagonia, whose capital is the city of Punta Arenas. The race will follow the structure of expedition, where teams comprised of four people are autonomous between the changes in the different manners of competition, while also having the ability to chose and navigate their own route to the finish. Even though trekking is the primary challenge that will highlight the greatest difference among the competition, the MTB and kayaking sections also have the ability to define a team’s position throughout the race. Race strategy and teamwork are the key factors in the Patagonian Expedition Race.

The teams are composed of:

Four people, including at least one man and one woman.
One group member should be elected as team captain.
Group members are allowed to be from different countries.

For more detailed information about team requirements, please refer to the rules and regulations page available here.

The registration and team selection processes are now open. In order to apply, you must complete the registration form that can be found in the registration section of the event’s official Registration Page.

In order to register, teams must meet the following requirements:

All competitors must have the physical and health conditions which correspond to the demands of this race. An accretive medical certificate, emitted by a qualified physician, must be submitted.
All competitors must be able to swim. Registration in this race implies that the competitor can do so.
All competitors must have knowledge and experience in sea kayaking, and at least one of the team members must present a certificate emitted by a qualified instructor, school or institution.
All competitors must have certified knowledge and experience with handling ropes, including crossing rivers, abseiling and rappel, fixed rope descending and ascending with mechanical ascenders.
At least one members of each team must have knowledge and experience in orienteering, reading maps of any scale, UTM grid system, compass (including declination) and expertise in triangulation techniques.
At least one members of each team must possess first-aid knowledge for which a certificate, emitted by a recognized institution, must be submitted.
All team members must pass the practical evaluations in specific techniques during the days before the race starts (example: rescue techniques for sea kayaks and rope work).

For more details regarding the race’s rules and regulations, please consult the event’s official page.

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History

Past Races

The Patagonian Expedition Race® has taken teams of four through unexplored territories since 2004. Read all about the yearly adventures through the pristine southern Patagonia in what can only be described as an adventure at the end of the world: