Indonesia to host Camel Trophy again

Indonesia to host Camel Trophy again

JAKARTA (JP): The 17th Camel Trophy adventure expedition will
be held in Kalimantan, Indonesia's largest island, and the
world's third largest island, from April. 1 to April. 22.

The expedition will start in Balikpapan, the capital city of
East Kalimantan, and wind up in Pontianak, West Kalimantan's
capital city, crossing a distance of around 1,850 kilometers and
passing through about 50 logging concessions.

Twenty drivers and twenty co-drivers from twenty countries
including the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan, Turkey
and South Africa, will take part.

Camel Trophy is a competitive adventure for amateur drivers
around the world. Its first outing crossed the Amazon in 1980.

Indonesia has been home for the adventure three times: in 1981
(Medan in North Sumatra to Jambi), in 1985 (Samarinda to
Balikpapan in East Kalimantan) and in 1988 (Manado in North
Sulawesi to Ujung Pandang in South Sulawesi).

Iain Chapman, director of Worldwide Brands. Inc., a major
sponsor of the event together with LandRover, told reporters here
yesterday that this year's expedition is going to be very
difficult because while it runs from east to west, it will have
to negotiate 11 major river running from north to south.

Nick Masson, president of Worldwide Brands, Inc. said that
"for the sake of the environment, we limit the participation to
20 teams only, each team representing a country."

Masson said that to ensure minimal or no environmental impact
the route will follow existing tracks and will never touch the
primeval forests.

Declining to reveal how much Worldwide Brands spends on the
expedition, Masson told reporters that participating teams, once
they are declared eligible for the expedition, were not required
to pay anything.

"There were national selections in each of the participating
countries a year ago. Final selections were then made in Spain
over four days," Masson said.

Peter Ansell, one of the organizers, said that preparations
started 18 months before the actual event began. The expedition
will include two doctors, one ambulance and two rafts. (arf)