Windsor-Essex’s adventure race requires teamwork, showcases unique landscape of the region

By Ennis Liu

The South Coast Adventure Race offers a chance to challenge yourself, while being close to nature.

An adventure race is a multi-disciplinary endurance activity that is designed to test your teamwork and navigation skills, as well as your physical fitness. SCAR is between a five and eight-hour race course, and participants will trek or run, cycle and paddle from checkpoint to checkpoint. Checkpoints are plotted on a map, but the path between destinations is up to the racer.

SCAR, organized by the Essex Region Conservation Authority and the Windsor Rotary Club, is unique because of its location. Since Windsor-Essex is located in the most southern mainland of Canada, racers get to see rare and endangered species as well as flora unlike anywhere else in the country.

“It’s a really amazing thing because we’re attracting people from all parts of Canada and the United States,” said Danielle Steubing, director of communications and outreach for ERCA. Steubing also serves on the committee of race directors who plan the race course in secret. Participants do not find out anything other than the starting point before the morning of the race.

Steubing believes the race has driven the development of Windsor-Essex tourism.

Drake Baird will be participating in his fourth SCAR in 2018. He estimates there were more than 150 racers in last year’s race.

“If even 20 per cent of those are coming into the area (from elsewhere), then we’re affecting the economy,” said Baird.

The most important aspect for the adventure race is working as a team, according to Baird, who says everyone on the team needs to do their part.

“There are people that do it as individuals, but the co-ed team division is the prestigious division,” said Baird. “Having a teammate adds in its own challenges, but it also adds in its own rewards.”

Baird and his teammates started with SCAR, and got “hooked” on adventure racing.  Baird’s team now does up to 10 races in a single year, from February to September.

Baird’s team didn’t quite reach all its goals in last year’s race and had to end early due to injury. This year, they want to do better.

“You can’t just dwell on it yourself,” said Baird. “You have to be there for your teammate and your teammate has to be there for you.”

In its essence, SCAR requires participants to simply keep moving for eight hours. Baird says it can be hard to remember to be flexible after so many hours on the course.

“Sometimes you’ll get lost, and you need to stop and look at the map and adjust right then and where you’re going.”

Steubing says SCAR is a wonderful starting point for the somewhat athletically inclined. As Baird points out, Windsor-Essex is relatively flat, compared to other races he participates in along the Niagara Escarpment.

SCAR takes place somewhere in Windsor-Essex on June 16, with the starting line at Holiday Beach.