What To Expect

All racers must PRINT, fill out, and SIGN the waiver below. Please bring this with you to pre-reg on Feb 6th or on race morning.

Ice Donkey Waiver.pdf

The Swamp Donkey

The race will take between 6 hours and 9 hours depending on your rate of travel. The average team will take about 7 hours and 15 minutes. You will travel as a team of three through out the race course. Your team will carry a passport that you will have it stamped at each checkpoint. When you have reached all of the checkpoints in order and crossed the finish line you are done!

Race day registration:

When you arrive at The Swamp Donkey Adventure Race host site you will need to check into the registration area. Getting your team's waivers and info sorted out on race day can take a fair bit of time, especially if you're new to racing. Race Start time is at 9am. The registration process takes about 30 minutes and then getting your gear and TA bags to the right trucks takes another 30 minutes. That still leaves, bathroom breaks, a bit of snack time and overall team chit chatting to fit into the morning. The absolute latest you should arrive at the host is 6:45 am Saturday. It is recommended that you arrive on the Friday evening before the race as registration runs from 4:00-9:30 pm.

The Maps:

You will receive a 1:50 000 topographical map. You may also receive maps such as 1:10 000 map (showing more detail) of one or more sections of the race. Knowledge of how to take a bearing with a compass and plot a 6 digit UTM is necessary. You will also receive a set of written instructions to aid you in getting from one CP to the next. Please refer to them often! Only maps supplied by race organizers are allowed.

Disciplines:

Trekking:

Your feet will get wet - oh, and muddy... Most teams leave on their wet shoes and socks for the entire race. You may find that if you choose to stop and change your socks - they will just get wet again in the next section. The trekking may be on trails, off trails, on roads or on side roads.

Biking:

Biking terrain can include roads, secondary roads, rail trail, double track trails and single track trails. The biking will not be overly technical but some technical portions of single track are often included. Some teams will wear bike shoes and use clipless pedals. If you will be riding with bike shoes you may have to carry your running shoes in your backpack to be ready to trek. Ensure that you have a way to attach your bike shoes to your backpack or that your pack is large enough to put your shoes inside.

Paddling:

The paddling will be on flat lake water. You must wear your PFD at all times. It is not necessary, but WE HIGHLY RECOMMEND that you bring some type of middle seat for the third person in your boat. This will make their life significantly more comfortable. When Team SwampDonkeyAR.com is racing, we use one of the following for a middle seat: small plastic step stool you can get at Canadian Tire usually for $6. We also get styrofoam under padding (two chunks stacked together) then firmly duct taped - this is usually the right height and very comfortable - about $12 to make at Home Depot. Be creative and make something that will work for your team. Please note - ensure that your seat will not disintegrate in the water or the canoe. If you are using pressed styrofoam to make your seat, you will need to cover it completely in duct tape or the bits will break off and pollute the water.

Wilderness Supply Drop in 3rd Seat

Special Tasks:

Through out the race course you may be given instructions to complete special tasks. No special skills will be required.

Transition Areas (TA):

You will proceed on course unaided for the entire race. Transition areas are sections of the race where you change from one discipline to the next. TA's may not have water if you need to refill so pack extra in your transition bags. If you are trekking and the next section of the race is paddling, you will stop in a transition area, where your gear for the next section will be waiting for you. Depending on the year, you may be allowed to bring transition bags. They should be packed well and not too large. You will be given instructions on where these bags can be left in the racer directions and they need to be packed and ready BEFORE you go to the start line.

Ideas for packing your transitions bags:

• Pack snacks and food you will want for the next section of the race
• Pack water or any special drinks (Gatorade, e-load) that you would like to have for the next section
• Pack an extra shirt/pants or jacket (if the weather is bad) in the bags
• Have each teammate pack their gear in different style bags so it's easy to grab your gear when you arrive
• Pack gear in water proof bags in case of rain or yucky weather.
Transition bags need to be tagged with your team name and number. You will be given these tags when you register.

Start line:

The Swamp Donkey will be a mass start. The starting discipline will be revealed at the pre- race meeting on race day.

Jerseys:

It is mandatory to wear your jersey as the outermost layer of your clothing - AT ALL TIMES. This includes wearing your jersey on the outside of your PFD during the paddle section.

Dinner tickets:

You will receive 3 dinner tickets in your racer kit. You will need to turn these in to get your dinner at the end of the race. If you wish to purchase dinner tickets for friends or family, the cost is $13. If you can, purchase these tickets at Team Registration before or after the race. There will be a cash bar open around 2pm on race day.

Pre-registration and your gear:

Pre-registration is on the Friday before the race between 4pm and 9:30pm. If you are pre-registering you will need to have all of your waiver forms signed by your team members. If you do not have all of your teammates there, you can fill out what you can and then finish up when your last teammates arrive. Please label all your gear with either team name or racers name. Your gear is your responsibility, you will be directed where to leave gear on race day.

What to wear :

Please be prepared for any type of weather. Adventure Races can be warm and sunny or cold and wet. We recommend you wear some type of quick dry pants and a long sleeve poly-pro shirt. You can add layers if the weather is wet or cold. (For more suggestions on gear, visit The Wilderness Supply Co. at 623 Ferry Road. The staff at The Wilderness Supply Co. are world class adventure racers and very knowledgeable.) Socks should be comfortable. We don't recommend cotton socks - but if it works for you...it works! We recommend you bring bug spray (lots) and suntan lotion.

Shoes:

Any type of running shoe will work but don't make the mistake of showing up on race day with new shoes out of the box. One word "Blisters"!

Bike:

It is highly recommended that you have your bike serviced by a qualified bike mechanic and take it for a test ride prior to race day to ensure it is in proper working order. While you can often get through it, nothing is more frustrating than bike mechanicals. We've seen racers drop from a sure win due solely to bike problems. Check out our sponsor Woodcock Cycle for tune-ups and all other cycling gear.

What to eat:

In adventure racing, you burn calories and never want to experience "Bonking". Here are the four basic food groups of adventure racing:

• Sugar
• Fat
• Protein
• Salt

We cannot stress enough how important it is to have salty snacks available on the race course - especially if the weather is HOT! When it's hot out and you are sweating a lot, many people tend to get muscle cramps. This is often due to salt loss. Please ensure that you have some salty snack, even if you don't think you will eat it.

Here is a list of foods that Team SwampDonkeyAR.com likes to race with:

Pringles Hot rods
Sweet and salty bars Nuts or trail mix
Oreo cookies Hammer^TM Gel
Clif^TM Shots Clif^TM Bars
Clif^TM Shot-Blocks One bite brownies
Snickers PB&J sandwiches
e-load (potassium/salt/carbohydrate drink) Found at Bike Stores.

Divide your snacks up between team-mates and remember to utilize your Transition Bags. We usually package small amounts of each food we like into the "snack size" Ziploc baggies. Then you can grab a quick snack while you are hiking. At the minimum you need to eat 200 calories/hour. That's about equal to one chocolate bar an hour.

How much to drink:

At the very minimum you will need ½ a litre of water every 30 minutes. That is equivalent to a 500 ml pop bottle or biking water bottle or 2/3 of a bottle of wine☺ A smaller person might only need 1 litre every two hours. Most racers use a hydration system known as a Camelbak ^TM. This is a plastic bladder with the tube attached that you put in your pack. You can drink from the tube system as you are walking / riding / paddling along. Even if you never race again you will use this product when you are out walking the dog, picnicking or camping, but like we said, ‘once you try The Swamp Donkey Adventure Race, you'll be hooked'.

Rules to know:

LEAVE NO TRACE: This is our most important rule. Please respect the environment you are in and be sure to pick up any trash or garbage that my fall from your pack or while on course. Each CP will have a garbage bag and CP staff can pack out any found garbage.

50 METRE RULE: You must be within 50 metres of your teammates. If you are separated by any more than that and the race staff sees this, you will be assessed an immediate 2 min penalty (to be served on the spot). If your team is caught a second time you could be disqualified.

ON COURSE GEAR CHECKS: At different checkpoints you may be asked to produce a piece of the mandatory gear in order to move on. If you don't have this piece of gear you will have to serve a 10 minute time penalty at that checkpoint - for each piece of missing gear! Failure to wear mandatory safety gear i.e.: helmet, PFD is subject to disqualification.