Kia Gets Behind Top Kiwi Adventure Racing Duo
New Zealand’s world-ranked adventure racers Richard and Elina Ussher don’t have to worry about breaking down on the way to training or events any more, because they now have a new set of ultra-reliable wheels…….courtesy of Kia Motors.
And they’ll be able to get to places their old van would never reach, since the new Kia Sorento that graces their Nelson driveway has one of the best four-wheel-drive systems on the market.
“Although we don’t plan to drive the Sorento off-road much, it’s very re-assuring to know that if we need to take it off the beaten track we now have a vehicle that can go just about anywhere - I’m amazed by what it can do,” says Richard, who shot to prominence when he won the Speight’s Coast-to-Coast race in 2005, repeating the feat in 2006 and earlier this year.
“Plus, we don’t have to keep our fingers crossed about the van getting us to the start line and being able to make it back home. It’s a big relief to have a vehicle we can rely on and it’s great for carrying the bikes, canoes and all our gear.”
The Sorento will also help the Usshers to stretch their budget further, as the 2.5-litre common rail diesel engine uses much less fuel than their petrol-driven van. That’s important to the couple, since their only regular income is from the prize money they get from winning extreme adventure races.
They have to win to live and eat and that is exactly what they’ve been doing for the past three years, often tackling races one after the other, since the prize money is not large.
Richard is a former Olympic skier - he represented NZ in the mogul at the 1998 Nagano Olympics - who has gained considerable success since switching to multisports, winning a high proportion of races he’s entered, including the recent Anaconda Multisport race, Gold Coast, Australia, 2008. Richard is now looking to branch out into Ironman events, with the 2009 Kia-sponsored Wanaka race and Taupo race in his sights and possibly the world-famous Hawaiian Ironman.
Meanwhile his Finnish-born wife Elina is just returning to competition after an illness this year and is among the top-ranked women in world multisports, winning most of the events she has entered in the past 18 months prior to falling ill. She won the women’s section in the Gold Coast Anaconda race and one of her goals is to repeat Richard’s success and win the NZ Coast-to-coast.
And just recently the pair raced together in a four-person team over four days to win the grueling Wulong Mountain Quest in central China
Their link with Kia came about after the local car company provided vehicles for the organisers of the Speights Coast-to-coast in February.
Todd McDonald, General Manager of Kia Motors New Zealand, says he was very impressed with the attitude, determination and sheer ability of Richard and Elina, both 32. He was amazed at how the pair were able to dedicate their lives to training and racing around the world and just live off prize money and support from a few sponsors. Local Kia dealer AR Page was already providing some help to the couple, championed by Service Manager Ken Page, a keen multisport enthusiast.
“You felt inspired by them and wanting to assist them further to make life a little easier for Richard and Elina,” says Ken.
“When I saw them packing their gear away in the old van I knew that we could at least help them with transport and the team at Kia Motors agreed with me,” he adds. “The Sorento is the ideal vehicle because it can take Richard and Elina to the places they race and train, along with all their gear and it’s a lot more comfortable, which I am sure they appreciate after punishing their bodies for a day.”
Mr McDonald says the Usshers are a perfect fit with the young and active image of the Kia brand and he is looking to work more closely with them in the future.