“We have to get Pete to bungee jump.” I heard that often throughout the week, generally accompanied by a wry (but not unkind) smile. Each day my “Oh, I don’t think so!” 04>> sounded less and less convincing. The enthusiasm of my adventurous comrades was starting to infect even me.

To celebrate our return to Queenstown, I did finally leap 141 feet (43 meters) from Kawarau Bridge, 06>> which bills itself proudly as “the world’s first bungy site.” Terrified, I made several false starts 09>> before I jumped. Then, a bliss beyond words. 08>>

Like hopes hung out to dry 182>>, the damp clothing of the Macpac Geographic team drooped from a line outside the farmhouse of Darryl and Nicky King—strangers who took pity on our ragged band. Deciding to drop out must have crushed the Kiwi athletes, who prized their reputation for always finishing. But New Zealanders are polite and reserved; neither the camera crew nor I could coax a discouraged word from the competitors.

“Would you like some of my scroggin?” asked New Zealander Brendon Allen. I looked warily at Yves Simard, a fellow North American. He shrugged. “It’s good,” said Brendon, producing a plastic bag full of nuts and fruit. “Oh, trail mix!” said Yves and I with some relief. “What did you think I was talking about?” asked Brendon. We didn’t answer. I later made my own batch of scroggin 19>> and was delighted when it met with Kiwi approval.

“I was pretty convinced I was going to die,” said videographer Geoff Mackley, no stranger to risk. Trudging down Hindley Peak after 36 hours of being fogged in at the summit, Mackley lost his footing and fell 65 feet (20 meters) down a cliff. His plunge warranted an interview with New Zealand’s TV3, 165>> which broadcast a Southern Traverse story each night.

A stranger in a strange place, I wandered into the local Anglican church 167>>—named St. Peter’s, 156>> to my great delight—on my first morning in Queenstown. I opened the New Zealand Prayer Book to the day’s prayers, and my eye landed on a wonderful bit of advice: “Make full use of the present opportunity.” Not a bad explanation of adventure racing, I decided.

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