Watch The Last Wild Race Online

If you're a fan of adventure racing, or have always wondered what the sport is all about, then I have great news for you. The full version of the film The Last Wild Race is now available for streaming online, giving you the opportunity to watch this year's Patagonian Expedition Race in all of its glory.

My friend Brian Leitten, who made the documentary, sent me the following information about how you can not only watch this great film, but win some swag in the process:


The Last Wild Race, the documentary on the 2011 Wenger Patagonian Expedition Race is now available for rental at Prescreen.com. https://prescreen.com/movie/The-Last-Wild-Race

The film, which highlights the struggles and successes of extreme endurance athletes as they traverse some of the harshest terrain in the world, has won four awards:

• Best Environmental Film - Yosemite Film Festival
• Best Adventure Sport Film - Killarney Adventure Film Festival
• Best Film - Vanka Regule Adventure Film Festival
• Best Environmental Film - Colorado Film Festival
• 
  

Over the summer it aired around the world on Outside Television, Fox Sports Network and NHK.

The film will be available to rent for 60 days.
If you act quickly, the first day (Thursday, October 13) rental fee is $4, after that the film will cost $8.

For your movie rental, you not only get the film, you are entered into a special giveaway.
Anyone who rents the film from October 13-17 can qualify by submitting their rental receipt to info@patagonianexpeditionrace.com. Please include your name, phone number and email address.
The prizes include 5 gift packs of race memorabilia, 25 official race patches.

I had the opportunity to watch this film a couple of months back and really enjoyed it. The scenery is spectacular and the race is filled with plenty of drama. Everything you would expect from one of the toughest adventure races on the planet. 

Climbing Legend Walter Bonatti Has Passed Away

The mountaineering community lost one of its living legends last night when Italian climber Walter Bonatti passed away at the age of 81. He is best remembered for pioneering new routes in the Alps, Patagonia and the Himalaya.

Among Bonatti's more famous accomplishments were the solo winter ascent of the Matterhorn's North Face and first ascents on the Southwest Pillar of Aiguille du Dru and the Grand Capucin. Other notable climbs include Gasherbrum IV, Rondoy North, and multiple summits of the Grandes Jorasses.

Bonatti played a pivotal role in the first ascent of K2 as well, although it took decades for him to get the recognition he deserved. Working in support of Lino Lacedelli and Achille Compagnoni, Bonatti helped establish and stock the high camps on the mountain in preparation for the eventual summit bid. On that successful attemp, Lacedelli and Compagnoni ran out of oxygen and accused Bonatti of using it while he was at Camp IX, an accusation that Bonatti vehemently denied, as he didn't even have a regulator or oxygen mask with him at that point of the climb. That expedition took place in 1954 and it took until 2008 for Bonatti to be officially cleared of the accusations and get the credit he deserved.

An active, daring, and visionary climber, Bonatti wrote numerous books on mountaineering and inspired a generation of climbers that followed him. He quietly passed away in Rome leaving his widow Rossana Podesta behind.

Godspeed Walter.

The Patagonia Expedition Race To Air On Outside Television

Fans of adventure racing will have yet another chance to catch a race on TV, provided you're lucky enough to have Outside Television in your market. The network has announced that it will begin showing the video of the 2011 edition of the Wenger Patagonia Expedition Race on July 6th at 1 PM.

The video of the race has been garnering plenty of attention at adventure film festivals across the globe. It won the "Adventure Sport" category at the inaugural Killarney Adventure Film Festival, and is also a Finalist at the New Zealand Mountain Film Festival as well. Additionally, it was an Official Selection at the Breckenridge Festival of Film held a few weeks back too.

I've been fortunate enough to have seen the video, and I can attest to its quality. It is a fantastic film covering not only this particular race but also doing a good job of capturing the spirit of adventure racing in general. Considering the remote nature of Patagonia, and the unpredictable weather conditions there, it is remarkable that producer Brian Leitten was able to put together such comprehensive coverage of the event. You can watch the trailer for the video below to get a glimpse of what you can expect.

If you're luck enough to have Outside TV, set your DVR's for July 6th at 1 PM. You'll be glad you did!

Trailer For Wenger Patagonian Expedition Race Film Looks Amazing

Earlier this year we followed the Patagonian Expedition Race as it went down in Chile. It was, as usual, one of the more demanding adventure races of the year, with amazingly beautiful, but brutal terrain, harsh weather, and grueling conditions all around.

Now, a trailer for the video of the race has been released, and it gives us a glimpse of what the teams endured while out on the trail. It looks even more difficult than I imagined from the race reports that we heard post-event. It is also even more beautiful as well.

Thanks to the Gear Junkie for the heads up on this. Stephen can be seen at the 42 second mark of the trailer, looking like a complete zombie. He also shares some thoughts about the race here.

Patagonia Expedition Race: Brits Claim Third Straight Title

The Wenger Patagonia Expedition Race came to an end last night with the defending champs of Team adidasTERREX/Prunesco claiming their third straight title and securing their place amongst the elite adventure racing teams on the planet. They were followed across the finish line by Team GearJunkie.com and Vaucluse Adventure Evasions in second and third place respectively.

The Patagonia Expedition Race has proven to be quite a challenging start to the big international adventure racing calendar over the past few years, but the 2011 edition may just have been the hardest yet. The race began over a week ago in the Torres del Paine region of Chile with sunny skies and fantastic weather. That weather degenerated quickly however, and the notoriously nasty storms of Patagonia arrived on the scene to play havoc with the teams. When the race started, there were 14 four-person, coed teams in the running, at the end there were just six left. Worse yet, the heavy rains forced the cancellation of a trekking leg that became far too dangerous, and three teams had to be airlifted from the course due to dangerously high rivers.

The three remaining teams that are out on the course, Croatia's Ad Natura - Karibu, East Wind of Japan, and the international team of erdido en el Turbal are all expected to reach the finish line later today. At this point, it is a matter of pride that they finish what has become one of the most challenging races in recent memory, and I'm sure the post-race party to be held in Punta Arenas will be a wild one.

Congrats to adidasTERREX/Prunesco on another fine showing and to all the teams for competing so hard under such challenging conditions. It seems that the 2011 adventure racing season is off to a fine start already.

Patagonia Expedition Race: Weather Delays, Alters Race

As I mentioned last week, one of the toughest adventure races around is currently underway in Chile, where the Wenger Patagonia Expedition Race is near its conclusion. With the top teams currently on their bikes, and racing towards the finish line, it seems that this year's event lived up to its billing and has been challenging the athletes at every turn.

This year's course was more focused on the northern regions of Patagonia, with the start taking place in the shadow of the Torres del Paine mountains, not far from the Southern Continental Ice Field. As I've mentioned on more than one occasion however, it isn't just the terrain that teams must deal with in this race, as the legendary Patagonia weather can bring its own form of punishment. That has proven to be the case once again this year, as the weather got so bad at one point that the race had to be suspended, something that rarely happens in adventure racing. Heavy rains in the area also forced the cancellation of a trekking leg as well.

As of this writing, the defending champions of AdidasTERREX/Prunesco (UK) continue to lead the race, with Team GearJunkie.com in second place and racing hard. On the leaderboard it says the teams are just a half-hour apart, although it seems that GearJunkie failed to sign into one of the checkpoints and as a result they've been assessed a 10 hour penalty which will surely break their hearts in the end. Team Vaucluse Adventure Evasions of France is the third place team, and the only other one out of the PC13 at this point.

The final leg, which the teams are currently on, is a 188km (116.8 mile) mountain bike ride. That should keep them occupied for the better part of the day, but expect the first teams to cross the finish line later today. At this point, it's hard to imagine anyone catching the leaders, but this is adventure racing after all, and anything can happen.

BBC Discovers The Patagonia Expedition Race

It has been one of the top adventure races in the world over the past few years, but it has taken a bit longer for the mainstream press to catch on. The BBC has discovered the Patagonia Expedition Race, and has written a rather nice article about what it calls "

">the world's last 'wild race.'"

Scheduled to take place in Chile from February 8-16, the 2011 Patagonia Expedition Race is now just 13 days away. This year's event will be the ninth time that the race has been run, and for a change of venue, it will move the course further north this time out to have the teams compete across the Southern Continental Ice Field, which will present its own unique challenges and obstacles.

Of course, as usual, the racers will have to paddle, mountain bike, trek, and navigate their way through the beautiful and wild Patagonian backcountry, while also dealing with the notoriously unpredictable weather that is common there.

The BBC has a great video on the event, but unfortunately they won't let me embed it here. You'll just have to check it out by clicking here. Meanwhile, stay tuned for more coverage of the race once it gets underway in a couple of weeks. As usual, it looks like it will offer a wild and spectacular start to the international adventure racing season.

Colin Haley Makes First Solo Climb of Cerro Standhardt

Rock climber Colin Haley made another spectacular and daring solo climb in Patagonia back in late November, becoming the first person to top out on Cerro Standhardt alone. The climb is amongst the toughest in the world, but Haley has made quite a name for himself climbing in Patagonia the past few years, and has also become very familiar with big rock faces of the region.

Haley first came to prominence on the international climbing scene when he and Rolando Garibotti competed the Torre Traverse back in 2008. That project entailed the two climbers completing a climb up and over Aguja Standhardt, Punta Herron, Torre Egger and Cerro Torre, something that many had dreamed about for years, but had never been accomplished until that point.

Since then, Haley has returned to Patagonia three years running, drawn in by the spectacular scenery and the fantastic rock faces. On his latest venture, he made the solo ascent on November 27th of last year, beginning at 4 AM on the peaks well known Exocet route. From there, he scrambled up the relatively easy starting ramps before soloing the first two pitches on the four-pitch chimney wall. After that, he self belayed up the big wall, before reaching the top at 4 in the afternoon, 12 hours after he set out.

To read a full report of the climb, with details from Colin himself, check out this post on the Black Diamond website that was published late last week.

Big thanks to Frank Ledwell from JPFreek Magazine for sharing the story with me. Much appreciated my friend!

Want To Be A Race Photographer At The Patagonia Expedition Race?

Are you a fan of adventure racing? Fancy yourself a photographer? Ever wanted to visit Patagonia? Then I've got just the opportunity for you. The Wenger Patagonian  Expedition Race takes place February 8-16, 2011 in Chile's Patagonian region, and the organizers of the event are looking to add someone to their official photography team. In fact, they're running a contest to fill the job.

Entry for the contest is now open, and you'll find all the details by clicking here. Simply fill out the from with the standard info, such as name, address, e-mail, etc., and upload three photo samples, and you're in the running. If you're the grand prize winner, you'll get a trip to Chile, including airfare, accommodations, and ground transportation while in Patagonia, where you'll get unprecedented access to the race course so you can document the drama and excitement of this great race.

For the past few years, the Patagonian Expedition Race has been one of the first big events of year on the AR calendar, and 2011 looks to be no different. The race attracts top teams from around the globe, giving them a chance to compete in one of the most spectacular wilderness environments on the planet. Patagonia is a fantastic place to hold a race, and each year it seems to throw new and unexpected wrinkles at the racers. I'm sure 2011 will be no different, except if you're the luck photographer who gets to go, you'll get to see it all first hand.

Good luck!