Back for a third year, the AWA South Australia (SA) YWP Amazing Race event was bigger than ever.
The 2023 Amazing Race kicked off on a warm sunny afternoon on the 30th of November 2023. A record attendance of 16 teams comprising of AWA members and water professionals in South Australia competed for the 2023 trophy. There was a mix of veteran runners including last year’s winners from WSP looking to defend their title and new teams eager to challenge them. This year, the route took the teams across the River Torrens and into the bustling Adelaide CBD. The stakes were high with the teams showing up focused and ready for an action-packed race.
Keeping with the theme of the original TV series, the teams were subjected to a series of tasks designed to test their mental and physical agility. The starting point took them on an almost 4km journey across the river, into the city and finally finishing at the mystery destination.
The first task and clue on their journey started with a cryptic clue. They had to decode a puzzle as a team which revealed their next destination. The successful decryption of the first clue took them to the Pigeon Statue at Rundle Mall with bonus activities comprising of photo (pigeon related or otherwise) opportunities, trivia and video collections that can be completed to gain an advantage over other teams.
Teams deciphering the cryptic code that will take them to Rundle Mall
At Rundle Mall, the teams were asked to fulfil the photo Wishlist with their team taking photos with the other two Rundle Mall icons: the Pigs and the Malls Balls, and the popup Christmas Trees during the festive season. From there, they were given their next destination for their detour activity, Victoria Square or the public courtyard near SA Water House.
The Ricardo team fulfilling one of the tasks at Rundle Mall
As a continuation of last year’s race, there were two detour stops that either tested the teams’ “brawn” or “brain”. Those that received a brawn card were tasked to filling up an empty bottle with water using only a sponge. On the other hand, those that receive the “brain” card received a test filled with brain teasers and a difficult arithmetic sudoku. Once they completed their gruelling detour task, they were given a riddle to solve to their penultimate destination (Light Square). There they were able to choose a lawn game to reach the required score to reveal the finish line, the Cumberland Arms Hotel, where food and drink were awaiting them.
Participants enjoying a much-earned food and drink at the Cumberland Arms Hotel after running the race.
It was a tight race, with GHD snatching victory from SMEC by a mere 50 points. GHD gained an impressive 1350 score, while SMEC scored 1300 points. Third place was taken by the 2022 winners, WSP, who scored 1230 points. Congratulations to all the teams for completing the race!
The winning team, GHD, being presented with the amazing race trophy
Sincere gratitude and major credit to the organising sub-committee for organising the event including Lucy McCarthy, Bek Rice, Amelia Skeer, Florence Choo, Loreline Kerlidou, Bridget Lindsay from the YWP committee and Jodieann Dawe from the branch committee who volunteered their time. The event would also not have been possible without the fantastic support of Aurecon as the exclusive sponsor since the inception of the Amazing Race in 2021.
The Amazing Race will be back again in 2024 with a new route and activities, and the pressure is on to make it an even bigger event than before. Participation is open to all (not just YWPs), so keep an eye out for the announcement and make sure you register!