PRESS RELEASE: Adventure Racing Oceania Championship took place this weekend in Lake Macquarie and a local welder saved the day for a Queensland team

Key points:

• Event: The Oceania Adventure Racing ARWS Championship – X-Marathon adventure race took place this weekend in Lake Macquarie.

• Participants: The strongest teams of two and four from across Australia competed in the event.

• Race Details: Participants paddled, trekked, and mountain biked across challenging terrain, covering over 120 kilometres in off-road.

• Navigation: Teams navigated unmarked course between checkpoints using only a map and compass, emphasizing teamwork, strategy, and resilience.

• Winners: The winning team was Thunderbolt, consisting of Hugh Stodart (NSW), Bern Dornom (VIC), Myall Quint (VIC), and Josh Street (VIC). They have received an entry to the Adventure Racing World Championship 2025 in Canada.

• Community Highlight: An 82-year-old local farmer, Barry Webster, saved the day for a Queensland team by repairing a damaged bike, allowing them to finish the race and place fourth overall.

• The event was supported by Lake Macquarie city council

This past weekend, over 250 adventure racers from across Australia converged for the gruelling Oceania Championship in Lake Macquarie.

Teams of two and four paddled, trekked, and mountain biked across challenging terrain, navigating solely with a map and a compass between checkpoints. The event, known for its demanding nature, required not just physical endurance but also teamwork, resourcefulness, and determination. They covered more than 120 kilometres through the bush, waters and technical trails and teams had 24 hours to complete it.

The race emphasises teamwork, strategy, and mental and physical resilience over speed alone, offering a unique blend of physical challenge and adventure in natural environments. Success requires not just athletic ability but also problem-solving, adaptability, and a deep connection to nature.

The members of a team must work together through rugged terrain and unpredictable conditions, to navigate from checkpoint to checkpoint using only a map and compass only.

The winner was Victoria/NSW team Thunderbolt consisted of prominent adventure racer Hugh Stodart (NSW), Bern Dornom (VIC), Myall Quint (VIC), Josh Street (VIC).

But the adventure racing is not only about sporting achievement but also about community and true Australian mateship was proven once again:

82-Year-Old Farmer Saves the Day for the QLD team.

One Queensland team faced a potential race-ending disaster when a stick lodged in their bike frame, causing it to break during a critical section of the course. With their hopes of finishing the race hanging by a thread, the team stumbled upon a nearby farmhouse, where they met 82-year-old local farmer Barry Webster.

Despite his age, Barry didn’t hesitate. Using his experience and ingenuity, he drilled holes in the damaged bike frame and secured it with a metal plate, allowing the team to continue. Thanks to Barry’s quick thinking and skilful repair, the team not only finished the race but achieved an incredible result—placing fourth overall and first in the all-male category.

“Thanks to the generosity of 82-year-old farmer Barry Webster (and his offsider, Victor) we were able to bolt a plate across the broken frame and complete the race – this is the type of experience that embodies the adventure racing mantra of teamwork, resourcefulness and perseverance, “ said Anthony Pohlner, one of the members of that team from Brisbane.