After four tasks in the Utah desert, newcomer Jared Scheid has won the fourth edition of the Global Rescue XRedRocks, the premiere hike-and-fly race in North America. The US pilot won the second task, and came second on the first and third tasks to take the win.
Tim Rochas came second overall with Sebrand Warren claiming third place. Anna Berger, the only woman in the Pro category, came seventh, taking third place on the fourth task. Tanguy Renaud-Goud narrowly missed out on the podium and came fourth.
The event is organised and run by Red Bull X-Alps veteran Gavin McClurg. Four tasks were set ranging from 86km to 94km from 25-28 September in Monroe, Utah.
“Jared was a totally new pilot just two years ago when he competed in our Adventure Division,” Gavin said. “He’s a beast and flew incredibly well, holding P1 against X-Alps veteran Tanguy Renoud-Goud, who was in second going into the last day.”
“The big unknown with operating a race like this in Southern Utah is always the weather,” he added. “In past editions we’ve always had some pretty tricky days, but this year it all lined up. When the hardest thing for competitors is to stay below Class A airspace (18,000ft which several did not!) you can set some truly wild tasks.”
He added: “Every day was really special, but this year was the first time we were able to send everyone way out east, into canyonlands. The task committee set goal for both the Adventure and Pro Divisions in the heart of canyon country, which was totally mind-blowing. It was over 100km in the air after the hike to launch and I’ve never seen people so blown away. It’s a totally surreal place.”
Tim Rochas described conditions on day two as “on fire”. It was “a difficult beginning of flight due to the strong wind,” he posted. Then, after crossing the first ridge, pilots encountered strong thermals and ceilings up to 5,400m (almost 18,000ft).
Day three started below the summit of Mt Edna, the highest peak in Southern Utah amid “psychedelic fall colours,” organisers said. “Upon reaching the launch pilots pinged off one after another and shot quickly to 17,000ft and beyond like a rocket. Epic conditions, epic base, lots and lots of smiles in goal today!”
Cloudbase was again up to 16,400ft (5,000m) on the final day. Pilots faced a thrilling straight-line race to goal, covering almost 100km of breathtaking terrain. Sebrand was first into goal, Tim second and Anna third but Jared was able to hold onto the overall title.
The Global Rescue XRedRocks is a relative newcomer to the hike-and-fly race scene and is organised in a similar way to the Eigertour, Vercofly and DolomitiSuperfly. There are three classes of entry: Pro, Adventure and Challenge attracting entries from seasoned pro pilots to newcomers to the sport who are provided with a physical training program for five months before the race and are mentored on the process of learning to compete. The goal is to build a strong US hike-and-fly community capable of competing with the Europeans.
RESULTS PRO
- Jared Scheid (USA)
- Tim Rochas (FRA)
- Sebrand Warren (USA)
