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of Eco-Internet. "All this excitement made for great racing." The greatest excitement from the crowd was reserved for Team Mild Seven. Thousands cheered as the four climbed the temple steps and crossed the finish line. The Chinese athletes were hand-picked to com­ pete just a few months prior. They had no experience in adventure racing or such skills as mountaineering and off-road skating. But after finishing in the middle of the field on Day One, they moved up to fifth by Day Three. At the end of Day Four, all in atten­ dance agreed that Team Mild Seven was a team to watch in the future. "I'm real proud of them," grinned their coach, Don Baker. "They came on strong. They're going to be tough in the years ahead." Baker was MSOQ's unsung hero. To the • • • • • • • • Chinese, he was the American who spent all summer in Xichang training Team Mild Seven. To IMG, Baker was the logistical guru who set up the entire race course without the use of local maps (space program offi­ cials forbid their issuance). To athletes, he was the experienced adventure racer and Olympic-caliber kayaker who set and enforced course rules. "I believe in the sport of adventure racing," he shrugged. "And I like the idea of spreading it to a place like China." Race director Nick Freyer looked on as Team Mild Seven crossed the finish line, basking in the glow of a successful race. Never again would the multisport world be split between triathletes and adventure racers. The cross-pollination of the Mild Seven Outdoor Quest showed that when the two race head to head, the results are intoxicating. "It's been a beautiful day," Freyer said, then paused to applaud a Spanish team making its way up the final steps. "The two things that stay with me are the athletes' enjoyment of the race and the fabulous cooperation with the [local] police and the [military] marshals." In light of their pre-race heavy-handedness, this last statement seemed ironic. Police and marshals had tailed foreigners and denied Baker access to maps. But once MSOQ began, Xichang's heat became converts to the wild goings-on. The way the green-uniformed corps applauded Team Mild Seven's finish, Baker could have asked for a map of the space center itself. Freyer paused a second time as a group known as Team America Challenge finally reached the end. marshals, and focusedAholly on �e simple beauty of athletic achievement. \:treat. Yes, it was. They limped on badly blistered feet, so out of breath they could barely stand up straight. But they smiled and waved to the crowd, then joined hands to cross the finish line together. "Great, isn't it?" Freyer asked, slightly dazzled by his event. For a moment he forgot all about police and U!! _'Sf ..... .. II

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