attention Adventure racing fans...

“Birch, I told Sass last night that I may not be able to make it this weekend. We finally sold the house and close on it next Mon. I figure there will be some last minute details that I will have to do this weekend :(
I was really looking forward to coming up for your race.
Hopefully I can catch you on another one.

Sass, you ought to look into the race in Sept at Bryson City, NC. 3 miles paddling, 12 miles mountain biking and 4.5 miles running. You can do it as a solo on Sat or as a team on Sun.
$60.00 for a team to enter. You can get Birch and dhutch as your teammates. http://www.noc.com/events_tsali.htm
I am hoping to do it. It will be me and 2 women doing the race. Just have to get me that kayak before then.”

“Ewker - 10+ hours of driving each way seems excessive to me for a 3-4 hour race. Sass, sorry, you'd have to count me out.”

“Very nice trip report dhutch! Thank you for sharing. I loved reading it.”

“Thanks Tango, good to "see" you.

BTW did you guys see the write up in AS Mag about our Spring Fury race? Birch, too bad they didn't use you're picture! lol”

“Check out the final email from Birch's race this weekend! It sounds like it's going to be a blast.

Order of events:
-3-4 miles of Urban Orienteering
-13-15 miles of paddling (river and open water)
-6-8 miles of rugged coasteering*/trekking
BACK TO MAIN STAGING AREA AT CAMPGROUND
-10-15 miles of mountain biking.
-Caving at the Seven Caves.
-10-15 miles of mountain biking.
-3 mile trek/assisted swim.
*Following the coastline of a lake staying within 10 meters of the water at all times.

From the hours of Noon to 7pm you will have the opportunity to do the Rappel section of the adventure. There will be 4 Rappel lines in use. First come, first served. The course will pass by the Rappel area multiple times during the day. You must decide when to stop at this checkpoint. Participants not getting this checkpoint will be given a 120 minute penalty.
All climbing gear will be provided by the race.

All other checkpoints missed will results in a disqualification. Team members MUST stay within 100 meters of each other at ALL times.”

“Sounds like great fun Sass. What is the allowed time?”

“16 hour cutoff dhutch. Just picked up new shoes tonite. Got some salomon tech amphibians for the waterworks.”

“Looking for a race report from Sassky & Hutch. Anyone seen it?

:-)”

“I'll work on it Fritz. I just found out how we finished.”

“I don't know where we placed but Sass did fantastic! I won't have time til later this morning to write a report.

It was fun!!!”

“Thought I'd mention that there will be an eco-challenge in 2005. The august issue of Adventure Sports Magazine has details...”

“whoohooo....I really missed it.”

“Oh man, I didn't see this thread way down there. I put another one on the board. Sorry!

For once I thought I got my ASM before birch. 8-(

WoooHooo birch, wondering what you would have to do to get in to that race. Will there be a lottery next year?? etc. I can dream can't I?”

“Upcoming race jitters are starting. It's a short one but full of new challenges. 10 hours, all night navigation. The race starts tomorrow (Friday 13th?????)at 10:00 pm with a 8:00 am Saturday cutoff. Wish I could take some time off work tomorrow to sleep or prepare. Oh, well.

My biggest concern with this one is the singletrack mountain biking in the dark. Not even a full moon. Highland has some of the toughest technical biking in this state. :-( If you don't all hear from me by Monday, check area hospitals!”

“good luck, have fun, and be careful!
One of the guys in my outdoor group took a spill on his mtn bike and ruptured his spleen.”

“Ooooooh! I'm fondly attached to my spleen!”

“And he is formerly attached to his. :-)

Have fun, D...make sure you have good lights!”

“I'll race with a Petzl Myo 5 and Night rider bike light. A small flashlight in my hip belt pocket will be emergency map lighting.

Hopefully that will be sufficient.”

“Good luck dhutch!”

“I have faith in you! ENJOY!!!”

“good luck lady!
And try to keep that spleen thingy you might need it sometime :)”

“Don't forget extra batteries!

Have a great time. The woods at night are great. Everything looks so different. I wonder if you can find a Peloton at night on single track? No aerodynamic advantage but maybe better light if you find a small pack going your pace.”

“I'll have my teammate's light as well.

Don't know how to post a picture but a friend of mine sent me one of his bike after riding to close in a race earlier this summer. His wheel was bent in half at a 90 degree angle. He and his teammate had to hike a bike 17 miles to the next transition area.

Eeeeew!”

“Good luck, dhutch1!”

“good luck dhutch!! :)”

“Race report -

I had wanted to get out of work around 4 but it was not meant to be. No nap for me before registering and attending the pre-race meeting. We received a map with race directions for the first section of racing throughout the night under a new moon and cloudy skies. That made it extra dark.

Friday 10:00 p.m. About 50 adventure racers gathered at the starting line with bike lights, headlights and flashing red tail lights. It was really a cool sight as we rode off into the night for the first leg of straightforward biking on gravel and paved roads to CP 1. The route was pretty much mandatory so, staying with the rest, my teammate and I rode in the middle of the pack to arrive and don our trekking shoes to find 6 checkpoints in the cool night. Temp 50ish. CP 2 ended up to be confounding many teams although plotted merely 20 yards off a well marked road. I found it first as approx. 15 teams wandered in the surrounding area. My teammate was helpful to all others and when given the secret signal proceeded to announce that the flag had been found. As she walked towards me with our passport all but a couple teams rushed by with a thanks and bye! (ssssssh, dagnabbit) This would seal our fate later in the race.

CP 3 was costly due to the terrain. Briars and thorns tore at us. I came out covered in those 1/4" flat green burs completely covering my racing tights. We travelled through these 5 checkpoints with a good humored couple of tri-athletes. Running trails to cp 3-7 and feeling good and fresh.

At this point we transitioned to canoes. Paddling strongly and passing a couple teams on the water, it was satisfying to flawlessly find 5 more cps marked with glow sticks on the lake and through several marshy waterways. Partner was steering with a canoe paddle and very strong, I navigated and put everything I had in to my kayak paddles. We were really slicing through the water!

Taking out on a marshy bank as a dense fog was rolling in, we hoisted the rental canoe over our heads and began the 1/4 mile portage back to our bikes and the ropes course. We made good time but our hearts sank as we came to the lineup to start ropes. Teams had been waiting over an hour! There were about 20 teams ahead f us in line. Many of them the teams that had been alerted to the wearabouts of cp 2 and raced ahead (bummer) The penalty for skipping was to wait in line and then sit for 30 minutes. The ropes included a 50 foot cargo net and 3 two rope tightropes between trees to a zipline down for cp 12 were taking teams an average of 20 minutes to complete. As we waited shoes and socks were changed and we tried to keep ourselves warm. Between chatting with other teams and eating we thought through the options. In the end we took the penalty despite the lure of a challenge. Saving energy that would have been expended on the ropes we lost mabe 5 minutes (2 small women would not have made it through that in the average time) During our 1/2 hour penalty we were allowed to go to the warm, lit restroom where we cleaned up a bit and utilized the light to review the mountain bike section of our maps. Also, layed down for about 10 minutes (not in the bathroom eeeew!) and just closed our eyes. After what had been a 2 hour delay it was rough to get muscles moving on bikes to face the most challenging section of the course. Knowing that the race cutoff had been extended due to the funnel neck was little consolation. The strategy proved effective as we took off ahead of 3 teams that got caught on the ropes when one exhausted racer stopped 1/2 way through and had to be assisted to rappel down before others could continue.

We rode into the area's gnarliest trail at 3:45 am. The wait at ropes had sucked the adrenaline out of us but my mountain biking teammate rode well calling out obstacles to me from the front. Despite her experience we were both frequently off our bikes. While she preferred to ride, getting on and off was tiring. I ran my bike through 2-3 miles of this section and went just as fast. All the time though, the burrs on my tights were abrading through to my skin. Bike shoes rubbed a couple blisters into my heels and toes. Part of the deal. As I ran, I noticed bike parts littering the trail. There had been plenty of carnage during the night. We emerged from the woods relatively unscathed at 6 am. Rode back to the starting/transition area about 5-6 miles down roads as dawn broke and for the first time we had natural light. I can only guess, but to us it felt like being born. Punched in at cp 19 and received 2 orienteering maps with 15 cps. We had 2 hourse left as the cutoff was now extended to 9am.

With fresh running shoes and socks, a bite to eat and swapping for new filled bladders I was ready to run. My partner (Tina by the way) had cracked her shin pretty good on a log in the first trekking section. She didn't have it in her to move quickly. In fact she was pretty much done for overall. We headed out and cranked out the two checkpoints necessary for finishing as a ranked team and called it a morning. 1 1/2 hours left on the clock.

At the post race breakfast we chatted with the other teams. Most had a rough time on the bike trails. There were a couple of cracked ribs and some of the most hideous gashed, bruised, swollen arms and legs I've seen. My only injuries were the couple of blisters and a pair of legs that looked like someone took an eggbeater to them. The burs had abraded my thighs and calves through the tights leaving pinprick marks at best and raw open sores in the worst spots.

Successful? Well we came in first female/female team. We were somewhere in the back of the middle of the pack by the end. Final standings will be posted within a few days. I'm not sure how many teams ended up dropping but figure it to be 5-8. But I don't consider it one of my better races overall. Every race is good experience though, my learnings:

We should have had the foresight to push it for the ropes. Conserving energy for the remaining course was costly as the first teams only waited 20 minutes to our 2 hours to do the climbing. Learned a lot about what I want in night lighting for future races too. I enjoyed racing with my teammate, she was good natured and athletic. She had raced before but this was her first completed course, yahoo! But although I am helpful and considerate on the course to others (yeah, I have some Ibuprofen, help yourself to my spare gel...) I do not give away the location of cp's unless traveling with another team. It's one thing to form a cooperative effort, it's another to hand over your hard earned prize to teams that will go on to beat you and clog up the course in front.

All that being said, it was good fun! Driving home to tend to my many abrasions, I thought to myself about how much I enjoy this sport as I struggled to fight the sleepmonster riding co-pilot.”

“sounds cool! I'd love to tackle something like this, gotta get into a little bit better overall condition though. KInda think I'd bonk a few hours into it.”

“Roam, start small and work yourself up. I started with a goal of completing an off road tri last year. Now I've got 6 races under my belt including 1 24 hour.

Oh and I'm still attached to my spleen!!!!”

“Planning on entering a 5k in a couple of weeks. Then maybe a mini tri in Sept.”

“Great Roam! You can do it! Keep us posted, K.”

“well, lol. my only real goal in entering is to finish, alive.”

“Mine too, always :-)”

“Awesome report D! Sounds like a great race. Congratulations on the win! I'm sorry you didn't get to try those ropes, I bet you could've done them in average time.

Any prizes?”

“A mesh hat to replace the one I lost after the canoe section was a gift from the organizers. I got to chose a prize and got some more endurolite caps.”

“Cool report, as always, DHutch!

Love reading about your races, you are having an OUTSTANDING rookie year!!!

Before long, you'll be getting offers of race fees and other expenses paid for you by guys who need a strong experienced woman to complete a competitive co-ed team.

Of course the main thing is you are having FUN, and that clearly comes through in your posts, which make them lots of fun to read.”

“lol Fritz. I am NOT that kind of girl! They can't BUY my favors.

But on the other hand, race fees, expenses...I may have to rethink. ;-)”

“You took that in a direction I had not even considered...so maybe you ARE that kind of girl...

Hmmmm.... the concept of racing with you has just taken a fascinating new twist.....




:-)”

“awesome dhutch!!
report and all!!

roam...let's do our own put together adventure race with dhutch leading us. This way we can see what it is all about. I think I don't know jack about this stuff.

I am lucky if I can move forward with a kayak because I just don't get enough practice, and then...shoot I am teaching myself. I have no one that knows how to paddle, etc...

same with climbing. I don't know much about it either. did it once, but you forget. No one in the area that knows how to climb.

Dhutch?? how about it?? a TT newbie adventure race?? ;)”

“Gem,
Birch and I organized a multisport training day up here this spring. It was great fun. Sort of like a race without the pressure.

I am in no way qualified to instruct anyone on climbing. I'm certified to rappel and ascend in the races but feel definite relief that climbing gym personnel are there to verify my set up.

Maybe it would be fun to do some car camp thing where we get together and do some multi-sport activity day and sit around the campfire and discuss some of the race experiences if people find it interesting.

By far the best way to get an idea of what is involved in Adventure Racing is to volunteer at a race. There are also several excellent books to give you an idea of what your getting in to. Look up Adventure Racing on amazon. There are only a few but most are good. I'm at work so cannot think of exact titles.

There are also orienteering clubs in most areas. As routefinding and strategy are the MOST important aspect of any true adventure race, I would highly suggest getting involved and trying some meets.

So, multi-sport training weekend, someplace warm, say January? In the meantime, how bout that Buff Betty race Sass and I are doing in October?”

“Oh, and check out Adventure Sports Magazine.”

“"She didn't have it in her to move quickly. In fact she was pretty much done for overall."

LOL. Nice report.”

“i'm gonna check out the magazine, and I may make it to the Buff Betty Race. Not sure though because I don't have the $$ now to buy anything and I would at least need to practice.

Volunteering is a great idea.

Multi sport training weekend? i am game!! Somewhere warm? hmm...even SC is cold or even icy during January.”

“GREAT IDEA!!!! I'll go!

I can manage a kayak, enough to feel comfortable in it. Did very minimal climbing back about 20 years ago (ok it was really rapelling) in the scouts.

Decent enough at orienteering.

Sounds fun. I'll look for the mag.”

“icy is a relative term to us in MI. Ideas welcome. Let me put some thought into this.”

“hmmmmm, its warm in FL, pretty much always!

lol”

“yeah roam, warm and flat in FL. LOL


Mtns in SC are cold in January, but prolly nothing close to the weather in MI. No matter what...I am so in!!”

“Good job and great report lady!!
Good to hear you managed to hang on to your spleen...ya never know when you might need it ;)”

“yep, flat as Kansas. Cold is all relative. In early January, in SC it won't be that bad really. Especially if MI is the comparison.”

“Oh come on guys...MI's not THAT cold....it just never quits snowing up there!!! :)
Well ok the lower part doesn't get that cold....lol”

“OK UP what alternative universe are you living in. I don't care how you slice it, under 20 degrees is cold. Course if you keep moving!

We can probably work with the south as long as it is after the beginning of my "vacation year". I don't have any left after September. Of course if a long weekend could be found...”