TeamSOG Yough Xtreme Adventure Race 2010 Race Report & Results

  
Think you could ride 25+ miles of mountain bike trails with relentless kick@ss climbs and hairy downhills? Could you paddle 9 miles of whitewater with up to class III rapids? Is 20 miles of running/hiking a 'walk in the park' for you? Does a 140' rappel sound like a good time?

How about doing ALL the above in hypothermia-inducing rain, chilled to the bone, with cramping muscles? And do all that in under 10 hours...

If this still sounds like fun, then you probably are one of those 138 folks who did (or attempted!) the 12th Annual Yough Xtreme Adventure Race yesterday (24 April 2010). This multisport event set in the wild and gorgeous
Laurel Highlands, and masterfully produced by Doug Crytzer and his team at American Adventure Sports, is one that gets better every year. This race is killer.

I didn't race it though. I'm merely an observer. I observed my husband as he put down 140 bones for race fees (solo category). I observed him as he excitedly packed for the race from a long list of compulsory items, e.g., ACE bandage, 50' throw rope, helmet. At race check-in on Friday, I looked on as he carefully marked the checkpoints on his map and strategized which trails/routes he would take. On race day, I watched as he gritted his teeth and determinedly slogged from one checkpoint to the next, to the next, and to the next. It was hard to watch at times - like when he would come in drenched and shivering, and I couldn't give him a towel, because this was an 'unsupported' race.

Here are the race maps - one's a pic and the other's a 'moving progress map':



At 8 am sharp, Doug flagged off the racers for a lung-busting 1.4 mile run from the bridge up Great Gorge Trail to the Ohioyple SP Campground Contact Station (a 400 ft elevation gain, gulp). There teams collected their punch cards that would be punched at each checkpoint, and guarded with their lives for the duration of the race. Returning to the transition area, the running shoes were swapped out for bike shoes and the biking began. The first team blazed in at 20 minutes, and the last team ambled in at about 9.15am. Spencer came in at a slow jog at 8.30 am. After watching the last team ride out on their bikes, I took a little nap. It had started raining at 9 am, and kept on until about noon. Good sleeping weather ;).

Transition to CP1: Mtn bike up to the gate where Gas Well Rd intersects Sugarloaf Rd, via either Baughman Tr (1.5 mi steep climb, more direct) or Sugarloaf Tr (2 mi 'scenic rte' and 'the fastest route'). A slippery ride in the rain, with a sprinkling of hail near the top. Brrr.

CP1 to CP2: Mtn bike to Ramcat Launch Area. Spencer had planned to take Gas Well Rd but couldn't find it, so ended up taking Fire Tower Rd instead. He made decent time, and flew down the mountain, coming up on CP2 at 10.30 am. At this point some folks were dropping out of the race, it was just too much.

CP2 to CP3: Kayak inflatable down the Yough from Ramcat to the Middle Yough boater takeout (9 mi). I've paddled this and it took me 4 hours that time. Spencer pulled in at 12.45 pm, placing 4th in solo. He used his own inflatable tandem 'Bandit' NRS kayak this time. Other racers had kayaks waiting for them at Ramcat, and Spencer did too, thanks to Dad who inflated his kayak for him. Thanks Dad!

CP3 to CP4: Run 1/4 mi to the pavilion at Wilderness Voyageurs. The rappel was scrapped because of the rain (safety considerations).CP4 to Transition: Run a couple feet to the Transition area. Spencer had a PB sammich and salt & vinegar chips for lunch. He'd been sucking in Power Gu's all morning so it was nice to sit down and have a bite to eat. He'd also laid out a fresh pair of socks to change into, but kept on his sodden Salomon XT Wings 'because these are quick dry la'. His 15 minute lunch was 'leisurely' but only because he had dental surgery two days prior and needed to be careful chewin. Mum, Dad, Ariana, Carver and I supported Spencer by helping him eat his lunch too.

Transition to CP5: Run back to Ramcat along the Yough Tr (Rails-to-Trails, 9 mi). Running isn't Spencer's forte, although he runs 5 miles to work every day. All of us family cycled alongside him as he doggedly jogged on. A couple of teams passed us, ladies even hee hee :o . He reached his bike at Ramcat at 3 pm.

CP5 to CP6: Bike up Fire Tower Rd (oh the torture) to the Sugarloaf Snowmobile & Mountainbike Area. I drove to Fire Tower Rd to try take some pics of exhausted racers riding up the mother-of-a-hill there, and found Spencer dismounted, pushing his bike and out of gas. Half the folks coming up the hill were pushing too. It must have been killer, after 7 hours of non-stop balls-to-walls go go go.

CP6 to CP7: Collect the Open Course map & punch card, collect O-points marked on the map, and return to CP6/7 to punch out. There were four O-points giving 4, 4, 6 & 7 points, respectively. All these involved uphill exertions of 0.5 to 1.5 miles. Spencer was shivering as he sat down on the grass, poring over the map and trying to figure out which O-points to hit. At this point having a team mate to brainstorm with would probably have been helpful because he somewhat misread the map and thought he couldn't take Lytle Rd, which set the stage for some bushwhacking. He started out 4 pm for O-point#2 but couldn't find it, then decided to try for O-point#1 and nailed 7 points. By that time it was 5 pm, and he had to get off the O-course.

CP7 to CP8: Back to Wilderness Voyageurs FINISH. Spencer punched out at CP7 and headed back down to the finish (Baughman Tr) 12 minutes before the cut-off time of 6 pm.

Spencer finished well, 47 points total and 3rd place solo. Good jorb!

Here's the elevation change vs distance chart. Spencer climbed 6746 ft that day.


I took a bunch of photos throughout the race, and videoed the awards ceremony and managed to get most of the winners down here (sorry if I mangled any names folks!). The official race results will probably be out soon but here's what I got from my video:

Unofficial Race Results
Solo
1st: Steve Wendell (51 pt)
2nd: ?? (sorry...)
3rd: Spencer Clark (47 pt, 5.48pm)
4th: Doug Hershey (44 pt, 5.48pm)
5th: Steve & Ben (44 pt, 5.25 pm)

2 person male
1st: Paul Morris & Patrick (48 pt, 5.19 pm)
2nd: Happy Valley Hooligans Jason Contino & Nate Geist (44 pt, 4.55 pm)
3rd: Andy & John (44 pt, 5.36 pm)
4th: Matthew Immekus & Mark Sullivan (40 pt, 3.35pm)
5th Team 'Old & Young' John & ? (32 pt, 3.52pm).

2 person coed
1st: Bob Riley & Veronica
2nd: James McCogan & Megan Donovan (47 pt, 5.52 pm)
3rd: ?, 4th: 44 pt ?
5th Melissa Weaver & Jeffrey Soles (40 pt, 5.21 pm)

3 person male
1st: Simon Shercliff, Marc Shercliff and Etienne de Gonneville (51 pt, 5.54pm)
2nd: ?;
3rd: Steve, Doug & Steve (32 pt, 5.22 pm)
4th Team Weeble Neeble William, Kevin Holt, Michael White (32 pt, 5pm)

4 person USARA coed
1st: Adventures for the Cure Michael Berry, Bill, Laura & Dave
2nd: Cumberland Trail Connection's Dave, Kevin Hauser, Tony & Bonnie. (61 pt, 5.08pm)
3rd: Michael, David, Amy & Tyler Daniels.

3 person coed
1st: Team Trakkers Michael Stiller, Kathy Smith & Greg (61 pt, 4.40 pm)
2nd: Berlin Bikes Ben Moore, Ernie & Vickie Monahan (61 pt, 4.43 pm)
3rd: A List ATP Scott, Martha, Brian Rice (61 pt 4.55 pm)
4th Gold ARA Bruce Wong, Luther, Ali Bronson (61 pt 5.47 pm)
5th: Adventure Racing Maryland Kathy, Greg and Joel (57 pt, 5.35 pm)

That about wraps up this race report for now. Thanks SOG knives for sponsoring this awesome race and AAS for putting together yet another challenging and amazing race!

Check out some of my photos of the race: Yough Xtreme 2010 Race Pics.
And here is the Yough Xtreme 2010 Race Video

Quote of the day: Doug Crytzer, "That's what separates the elite teams, and you can all get there believe me - keep racing, be passionate about what you're doing - and they don't make a lot of mistakes... and sometimes they get lucky.. you know what I'm saying..." :)


A click on any ad below this post will put a few cents in my pocket, from the advertisers. Thanks for supporting my blog!

xo Grace