Perseverance by Tim Hague

Author:Tim Hague
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Penguin Canada
Published: 2018-05-08T04:00:00+00:00

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We went into leg four feeling conflicted. We’d survived the non-elimination, but now we needed to complete an additional challenge. We were still in the race, but of course that meant I couldn’t go home. Still, we got to have a bit of fun before the next challenges. Since none of the other teams knew about leg three being a non-elim, they’d be assuming we were out. It was time for a little surprise. Once we’d made our way to the airport for our flight to Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, we walked into the waiting room—and just as we’d anticipated, our fellow contestants were all taken aback to see us, with more than a few looking unhappy. We enjoyed that.

Once in Yellowknife, we set off in search of a particular spot along the Great Slave Lake shoreline. Then, of course, we got lost. We went all over town (and the town was not that big) looking for the right dock. At last we found it, jumped out, and ran half a kilometer across the ice to our next challenge.

The task was for one of us to get into a swimsuit, jump into a hole cut in the ice, and retrieve our next clue. Fortunately we could choose who would take this one on. I hate being cold, and I’m not a big fan of water. So even before the race began we’d agreed that, when we had the choice, Tim Jr. would do any water challenges and I’d step up for anything to do with food.

Raring to go, Tim Jr. tore off to the swimming hole, where he was immediately strapped into a safety harness. But just as he went to jump in, a howl arose from Dave (of the Brawn 1 team), who complained that we’d cut in line. It made for a bit of drama, but we hadn’t intentionally cut him off (not to suggest that I wouldn’t have, given the chance); rather, Tim Jr. had simply done as he was instructed.

Nonetheless, we took our place behind Dave. Finally Tim Jr. plunged into the hole. In a frozen lake. In the Northwest Territories. Just thinking about it makes me shake! But he retrieved our clue, climbed up the ladder, and emerged in one piece.

Then (once he’d gotten into warm clothes) he led the way back to the car and off we went to the airport. There we needed to sign up, in order of arrival, for one of three waiting planes that would leave a full twenty minutes apart. We were fortunate to make the first plane. But Jody and Cory (Brawn 2) made the mistake of not paying attention when they signed up; they could have been on the second flight but instead ended up on the third, an oversight that almost cost them the leg. It was painful to watch them ask Hal and Jo (the BodyBreak duo) if they could have a place on the second plane—in vain, since no team would ever consider giving up a clear advantage.

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