The review interview
Pascal Bahuaud, race director
« I don’t want Raid in France to become a stereotype race »
What can you see when you look back on this 2015 edition?
It’s been a race very faithful to Raid in France spirit: demanding in water sections, challenging in orienteering, and totally immersed in Ain’s territory, where the « adventure » potential is enormous. This edition tried to benefit form the lands and areas crossed: while trekking, mountain biking, kayaking, paddling in barks or on stand up and while ropes and caving section.
It was also a race with an impressive line up. Counting 3 teams in the world top 10 and more than 40 teams enrolled, from 12 different countries. We are very proud of this, and we would like to thanks the teams for their trust.
Even though, we missed the sun, in a way, it was also the « back to nature » that we love. The pouring rain has mistreated our organisation and we had to imagine several solutions to keep the racers on track as much as we could. I want to thank our technical team, that is to say our 10 high mountain guides and BE, our volunteers in charge of the water sections, and our « HATF » (Jack of all trades – Hommes A Tout Faire in french) for the obstinacy they put in keeping the ropes sections open and in adjusting the sections to the unbelievable weather conditions. As an example, they build a bridge during the night for the teams to pass. They also managed to keep the bark section open on the River Rhone, despite a water level variation of 4 meters, and kept as maximum of Ain’s paddling as they could in spite of flood alerts.
We keep saying it but without the 120 volunteers actually there during the race, and without the little team supporting me all year through, with racers, volunteers, track, administration papers, and communication, nothing could be possible. Raid in France is a jigsaw which parts are drop one by one, month after month, with patience, enthusiasm, stress sometimes, often impatience, but most of all with a big dedication. It’s a shared adventure very rewarding and absolutely unique.
Is it difficult to find the necessary funds?
Unlikely to what most people think – guessing from what we can hear – we are an organisation with a very tight budget, proportionally to the stature of the event. This is due to the fact that everyone is a volunteer: no one in our team wins a penny. Neither do I. Only our technicians (guides and BE) and our production video team have a salary for their service… and their price are very advantageous. Even our medical staff – we have 6 doctors on the event – is volunteering. Should I remember every one that those doctors are also intervening on Dakar and Tour de France; the present they giving us is inestimable.
Therefore, our budget is covered with the enrolment fees and thanks to our partners, private and public. I must underline that the enrolment fees, that we working hard to keep around 2000 euros per team, stand for less than 40% of our budget. When a team ask for a discount, I don’t think they realise what it involves. Worse! When a team register « forget » to send the check, and 3 days before the start tell us that finally they wont come! Meanwhile, we have ordered they bibs, print they maps and road book, command their kayaks and race equipment, book their meal for the closing ceremony… All those vagaries are unfortunate because they lead us to more strictness and force us to put rules where could do without.
The partners following us since years are Raid in France biggest financiers. I want to thank Intersport, Ertips, Maurin group, and Lethiguel for their faithfulness. Since several years, we are very please to give a real memory present to all the racers and a nice closing ceremony moment. I also want to thank our suppliers: ATC, Jeep, IGN, Future Telecom… and I must pay a huge compliment to the communes, departments and regions that host us every year. Every new race is an opportunity to make amazing meetings, people that you can trust, people that will give of their time and energy. It’ unbelievable!
The official ranking of Raid in France 2015 has been published. Every tracker has been looked at, as much as the passport and teams routes. Any comments?
The podium isn’t moving. The 3 first teams have checked in all the kites and I wont come back on the jury decision regarding team Vidaraid demand.
However, we thinking for the future editions to find inviolable kite system or any other solutions that wont allow disappearance of kites. We are also talking with the provider of our GPS trackers to try and have a score every 10 or 15 minutes. Unfortunately, we know the issue will be the price and we will need to make money arbitrations… moreover, don’t forget that trackers are here to assure security, not for the online live check.
Some teams have found this edition – yet shorter – very demanding. Is it an escalation of complexity?
Of course not! I wont play such an overbid… and the first team is winning in 82 hours, what is not very short ! Raid in France philosophy is to allow our racers to play in nature, to work with it and with its features. If its sunny, rainy, daytime or dark at night! Some teams have found the first section too demanding in orienteering: I hear their arguments, and have written down the possible improvements; but I don’t want Raid in France to be a stereotype race. We are not an orienteering race with IOF maps. Adjustment to existing maps is part of the game, some teams deal with it well, for others it’s a bit harder, or at least slower. It must be known that every point is checked with the same maps as the one use by the racers; and we often add information or complete those maps for the race. Every kite is place on the track with a GPS point of reference. The area governs: with some ways easier than others, more playful or conversely more challenging. In my mind, the justice of the peace is the finish line, when some teams have covered the whole track. And seeing that they have experience a real adventure all together! I would even say an « expedition » with all its requirements and the flexibility it requires. However, I do need to admit that this year, the first trekking section was too hard; especially for less experience teams and due to the conditions (rain, night and beginning of race).
What I like the most is when racers are enjoying the right activity at the place they should be doing it… but this challenge is not an easy one. This year, with very hard conditions, due to the weather, 4 teams (one have choose to take a shunt on purpose) have covered the entire track, and more than 20 teams are ranked. This proves that our « shunt » system works, and that Raid in France adventure is for a diversified type of racers: some very professional teams, and some less professional.
What about 2016?
For 2016 race, we will be back to a mountain to sea route. We will be leaving the oriental Pyrenees to reach the Mediterranean Sea. You will need to count 4 days of non-stop racing for the quickest teams and up to 5 or 6 days for the others. The racing dates aren’t booked yet; we are currently talking about it with our partners to choose between end of august and mid September.The racing dates aren’t booked yet but they will be soon. However, it looks like we are going to stay in the same periods, that is to say mid-September.
