America's Only Non-Stop Adventure Begins May 21.

LOS ANGELES--(BW SportsWire)--May 12, 1999--

"The Beast of the East," America's only non stop expedition competition, is only a few weeks away.

The six-day multi-sports competition gets underway May 21, in the rugged mountains and valleys of Southwest Virginia. Produced and created by Don Mann and Joy Marr of Odyssey Adventure Racing, "The Beast of the East" offers a diverse, 300-plus mile course over diverse terrain, including steeply rugged mountains, deep lush hills and valleys, expansive dolomite cliffs, and spectacular white water rapids.

DISCIPLINES:

Canoe/kayak nearly 60 miles of the historic New River, an ancient,

large volume river known for roiling rapids, and spectacular

scenery.

Ropes Course, Ascending/Rappelling: Competition will ascend up to 100

ft. and rappel up to 200 ft. on sheer dolomite cliffs.

Trekking/Navigation: Traveling day and night, continuously,

competitors will experience over 50,000 ft. of elevation gain and

loss over this grueling course. The course puts a premium on

navigational skills and route finding.

Mountain biking: LONG up hills and daredevil down hills characterize

the mountain roads of "The Beast," winding through rough

spectacular country.

NO DARK ZONES! Many adventure races include dark zones --- mandatory stops in the competition when night travel is prohibited. NOT "THE BEAST!" "The Beast" offers competitors the opportunity of a truly continuous racing experience -- with the potential for 24 hours a day non-stop travel.

"The Beast of the East" is the racer's race, with a new twist -- three separate categories to accommodate everybody. Two-person, four-person, and solo categories provide an array of choices not found in other adventure races.

Founders Mann and Marr have solidified "The Beast" as the race in the United States, allowing some of the world's best expedition racers to compete on home turf.

Between them, Mann and Marr have participated in or organized the following extreme or adventure competitions: The Discovery Channel Eco-Challenge, The Raid Gauloises, The Hawaii Iron Man, and The Hawaii Double Ironman. Mann and Marr also run Odyssey Adventure Racing, an adventure racing school and race organizer.

Mike Sears, an Emmy-nominated filmmaker, will be filming the event for a national cable broadcast special airing later this year and several broadcast segments including CNN, ESPN, CBS and others.

Notables attending "The Beast of the East" include Ian Adamson and Robert Nagle, longtime racers and members of Raid Gauloises winning as Team Salomon Presidio and the ECO Challenge as Team Eco-Internet. Isaac Wilson, the only American to have competed on a team in the Elf Authentic Adventure, ECO Challenge, Raid Gauloises, Southern Traverse, X Games and Western Isles Challenge, will try to tame "The Beast."

For media information please contact Lori Hall at 818/883-7891 or visit the website at www.beastoftheeast.com.