The Wild Warrior Himalayan Adventure Race is in its 7th edition and is one of the most gruelling and challenging races in India. The 2020 edition will be held between 11th and 13th December 2020 with race day on the 12th of December. The race involves mountain biking, hiking and rafting sections all performed back to back in a single day with race distances ranging from a 10km race for novices to a difficult 65km race for hardened adventurers.
The race is a team-based race with teams of 4-6 adventurers and has 3 categories as follows:
1. 65km Zealot – 30km mountain biking + 21km hiking + 14km rafting
2. 30km Open – 16km hiking + 14km rafting
3. 10km Intro – 5km rafting + 5km hiking
Keeping everybody’s safety in mind, the race will be capped at 200 participants and will be completely outdoors and spread over 65km of Himalayan Terrain. There will be staggered starts for teams to ensure no crowding at the start line and all the accommodation is in cottages and tents which are distant from each other.
The race will be hosted at the Atali Ganga resort in Rishikesh on the banks of the Ganges in the state of Uttarakhand and will welcome participants from around the country. Aquaterra Adventures, a pioneer in the outdoor adventure space for the last 25 years is the primary event partner.
Actor and avid athlete Regina Cassandra will also be participating in the 30km Challenge along with professional surfers and stand-up paddlers Kutti Rajsekar, Sekar and Anand. She will aim to win the 30km challenge on the eve of her 30th birthday and raise funds to support at least 30 children. She has previously completed the Wild Warrior obstacle race in Bengaluru and was winner of the Wild Warrior Duathlon in 2018 with the fastest time for a female athlete in the 2.5km Run + 20km Bike + 5km Run event.
Regina Cassandra will be racing in this event to raise awareness and funds for charities that she works closely with; particularly charities that help improve the lives of children from low socio-economic backgrounds. Her fundraising campaign will be launched on November 7, 2020.
Adventure Races and Marathons have traditionally been a very effective way of raising money for important causes as they have the ability to spread a message consistently and in a sustained manner.
People who cannot attend the Himalayan Adventure Challenge can show solidarity with the “30 for 30” movement by participating remotely and logging 30km of distance in any form, either by cycling or running/walking. For eg. 25km cycle + 5km run.