Primal Quest 2008 sells out almost immediately

WHOKNOWSWHERE - In an ode to the event's singular reputation among professional and amateur expedition adventure racers alike, Primal Quest 2008 - which still has not announced its location - sold out in less than 12 hours last Sunday, according to race officials.

More than half of the 75 team slots had been filled within 30 minutes of the first-come, first-served registration opening at midnight on July 1, and the number of teams on the waiting list has grown to about 55 since then, officials said.

Registering a four-person coed team costs $12,500 - $2,500 of which is due as an up-front deposit. The race is set to begin about a year from now, on June 21, 2008.

PQ spokesman Brian Knight said in an e-mail that 11 countries are represented among the currently registered teams: the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Brazil, India, South Africa, Norway, Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdon and Venezuela.

Knight said four-time defending champion Team Nike is registered, as are Team Merrell/Zanfel Adventure and Team Salomon Crested Butte, both of which finished in the top five last year in Utah.

In addition to the team registrations, volunteer applications already numbered 165 this week, with 14 countries included. Israel, the Netherlands, Austria, Romania, Lithuania and the Phillipines are among them.

Knight said non-registered teams that finished in the top 10 at last year's race will have the right of first refusal should a spot open up leading up to next summer's edition.

The 2008 race is set to take place in the mountain states region of the U.S., with the following states in the running to host the route: Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana and Nevada.

It won't feature as large a purse as the $250,000 handed out at the first four PQ editions, but it's still slated to offer prize money totaling about $100,000.



Devon O'Neil can be contacted at (970) 668-4633, or at doneil@summitdaily.com.