The G-Rant : Grant's Rants on Adventure Racing

November 2005 - Posts

• Cold Weather Paddling Clinic

  I just learned of this so apologies for the short notice: What: Topics will include trip planning, equipment checklists with required and recommended equipment, float plans, distress communications, garment layering combinations for cold weather paddling through the seasons, hypothermia... When: Weds Night, November 30th, 6 PM Where: Appomattox River Company's Kiln Creek (Yorktown VA) store (directions and more at http://www.paddleva.com/penstore) Who: Instruction by Vic Sorensen (Traditional Paddle Skills Instructor).  This is open to the public. There also is a 10% discount at the store during the clinic.  Full details at http://www.paddleva.com/demodays.htm. There is another session on signaling and survival equipment on Dec 14th. I should note that this isn't an event organized by HRAdventure or affiliated with us (although ARC is one of our sponsors), so the conversation won't be adventure race specific.  Too bad this clinic wasn't run in October prior to the Storm the Eastern Shore Adventure Race! Posted Nov 30 2005, 09:25 AM by gkillian with no comments

• Famous Vegetarian Athletes

  A buddy just sent me this link to an article about vegetarian athletes on the Hammer Nutrition site.  Being vegetarian, I found the list pretty interesting; the full list is at the bottom of the article in the link but let me give you a few names that might surprise you: Hank Aaron [Hall of Fame Baseball Player] Dave Scott [Hawaii Ironman 4-time Triathlon Champion] Christ Evert [Tennis Champion] Sean Yates [Professional Cyclist -Tour de France Stage Winner] Desmond Howard [Pro Football Player] Carl Lewis [Olympic Champion Sprinter] Edwin Moses [Olympic Champion Hurdler] Larry Bird [NBA Basketball Star] Stan Price [World Record Holder Bench Press] Bill Pearl [4x "Mr Universe"] Who knew? By the way, the Hammer site has a lot of good stuff for endurance athletes (and they sponsor all the HRAdventure races with product samples, prizes, and more).  If you order something from them tell them I sent you and then 1) you'll get some free products in your order and 2) I'll get some store credit for the referral.  I gotta pay for my electrolyte habit some how! Posted Nov 29 2005, 02:38 PM by gkillian with no comments

• Coming in 2006

  We're working along with our friends at Encompass-Adventure to put together a great weekend of adventurous fun next November: the 2006 Virginia Beach Adventure Fest (www.VBAdventureFest.com). We'll be solidifying the details with the city, signing on additional event hosts, exhibitors, demos, and sponsors (I understand the Virginia Beach Blue Ridge is already excited about it) over the next several months but we're excited to start getting the word out.  Maybe we can even coerce Brendan, the CycleBetter.com founder, to get onto his bike or come out and try the VB Metr-O event -- I expect the Metr-O event will have a fun mix of serious orienteering competitors on one end  . . . and families out to enjoy the city on the other end . . . and everything in between.  I wonder if I can bring my dog along for that event?  Encompass is running the Metr-O event (an urban orienteering race that's a cross between a scavenger hunt and the amazing race).  It sounds like a blast and doesn't require a lot of endurance and skills the way an adventure race does. Of course, the Sea & Sand Adventure Race will be the focus of HRAdventure for Friday and Saturday and if I get my way it will be a truly memorable course (aren't they all?).  I hope to be able to have some fun on Sunday and maybe not be too busy with logistics and organizing to miss out on all the fun.  We're looking to involve a wide array of activites, so drop the VBAdventureFest leadership an email at info@VBAdventureFest.com with your event ideas . . . everything from birding to kite-boarding is on the table! Posted Nov 29 2005, 10:43 AM by gkillian with no comments

• Excotic Illness at the AR Nationals

  The Adventure Racing nationals were held in Tampa, Florida a few weeks ago and some of the racers have gotten really sick; most agree that something in the Florida swamps is to blame and there's a message board conversation going on about it, if you're curious, but let me offer the cliff notes: A handful of racers seem to be fairly ill, with fevers and rashes but nothing respiratory Nobody is on their death bed or anything, just a lot of serious concern for their health and a hospitalization or two; some racers have been sick for 6 days or longer Lots of tests for scarey jungle things like Denge Fever, West Nile Virus, Leptospirosis Intense antibiotic treatments seem to be working, with doctors working under the assumption that it is Leptospirosis but nothing is certain at the moment There's also some dialogue about wearing long pants vs shorts in the swamps -- the theory being that viruses and bacteria can infect you more easily when you're wearing shorts (and have open cuts and scratches from bushwhacking).  The concensus seems to be to wear long pants. I spent several years in the Tampa area and can vouch for how the humid climate is fertile terriritory for all kinds of things.  We raced through the same area as the nationals this past April at the Talon Adventure Race (we finished 3rd for coed -- and would've done better if we had known we were near a podium finish with 3 hours of racing left -- but that's another story); I drank a good bit of swamp water during the trek and canoe legs and got cut up with ferns, grasses, even a barbed wire fence or two.  Suffice it to say that if I race in Florida again, it will be in long pants.  Posted Nov 28 2005, 10:26 AM by gkillian with 3 comment(s)

• Adventure Race Reports Posted

  We just posted a few more race reports from events we competed in earlier in 2005 as Team HRAdventure, along with some photos from the events : HRAdventure Tidewater Adventure Sprint Challenge (TASC) Oct.1 , 2005 by Britt Anderson Racing Ahead New Hampshire 24-Hour AR August 13 & 14, 2005 by Pam McKay & Mike Jones The one for the New Hampshire race, by Pam and Mike, gives a bit of insight into what it's like racing with those two . . . they're really upbeat and positive and a lot of fun, if you can stand the occasional hand-holding and skipping through the woods!  Seriously, now, we're going to have a great time in January in north Georgia! There are a few other race reports we need to get together (floating around in my email and such), so I hope to have them posted by the end of this year.    Posted Nov 27 2005, 08:53 PM by gkillian with no comments

• Training Log For Week Ending 11/27/2005

  Mon: 60 min run Tue: weight training and  60 min spinning class Wed: rest day Thur: 80 min run Fri: 45 min paddle Sat: 60 min spin Sun: 60 min run and 60 min bike   It's tough to work in training around the holidays; I was squeezing in exercise in the wee early hours of the morning and pretty late at night -- too bad that's when it was coldest because we've had some really nice sunshine lately.  I'm starting to get better at regulating my temperature so that I don't sweat too much (and saturate my base layer, for example) -- wet base layers can be a recipe for hypothermia in a long and cold race.   I gave the Gold's Gym spinning classes a try this week and I generally liked them for a good and intense cardio workout.  Lots and lots of sweat, even though the air conditioning is pumping in the spinning room.  Those little towels they give you at the gym are like wash clothes by the end of the spin session . . . Posted Nov 27 2005, 08:44 PM by gkillian with 2 comment(s)

• Half-Iron comes to Jamestown In 2006

  While not exactly adventure racing, it looks like the Colonial Triathlon (with a half-iron distance triathlon) will be held in Jamestown in late September of 2006.  This is great news for the local endurance athlete community and for the Colonial Triathlon club. While I'm no real fan of triathlons (with all the "no drafting" and rules and strict distances and asphalt and no team element and sometimes very very uptight racers), I do have many friends who will be excited to have this event in the area.  It does boost the "outdoor appeal" of the region so I'm all for it!  There really are great places and ways to experience the outdoors in our part of the mid-Atlantic, and it's cool to see others recognizing it too!  There's an adventure racing group up North that sets up booths at triathlons to evangelize the sport of adventure racing to the triathletes.  Nothing adversarial, just a little friendly flyer circulating and information sharing.  Maybe this would be the opportunity to do the same in our neck of the woods . . . Posted Nov 21 2005, 12:58 PM by gkillian with no comments

• Training Log for Week Ending 11/20/2005

  Mon: rest day Tue: 45 min trail run, weight training Wed: rest day Thurs: 70 min trail run; 100 min mtn biking (half singletrack); all training done at night Fri:  rest day Sat: 1 hour bike ride Sun: 90 min paddle, 2 1/2 hour trek/jog/orienteer As one might guess, a lot of rest and recuperation was in order after running the STORM adventure race; we were going on about 8 hours of sleep across Thurs, Fri, Sat nights combined so I had some catching up to do!  I want to be careful to stay healthy and avoid colds at this time of year. All in all, it felt good to ease back to some more intense training and I'm working to embrace the cold (although, honestly, it is still fairly warm here).  I'll need to ratchet up the duration and intensity in the weeks to come, but this is darn good for me during a "post-race" week.  We had fun yesterday clearing the final CP flags from the STORM course -- and talked with Southeast Expeditions about a 2006 race out on the Eastern Shore.  I don't like doing the same course more than once, but Southeast Expeditions is so enthusiastic and excited after the success of the STORM that it's a bit infectious; there's lots of new terrain out that way to explore . . . Posted Nov 21 2005, 09:16 AM by gkillian with no comments

• Brisk Night of Training

  It's been a while since I trained for a long stretch in the cold and dark; with temps around 40 or 45 degrees last night it was a chilly 3 and half hours.  Don came out for the trail run and kept me company retrieving a long lost flag from the optional orienteering leg from the TASC.  I know, that race was over a month ago but my schedule has been too busy to get up that way and fetch that tricky control flag.  All my energies were on the Eastern Shore and heading East instead of West to Williamsburg.  Anyway, it was great to have Don along since my headlamp died shortly after I turned it on . . . I hadn't replaced the batteries from the STORM.  It reminded me of the New Hampshire 24-hour race where my lamp died around 3 in the morning and I had to stumble through the final hours of the race relying on Pam and Mike's lights.  Suffice it to say, I will start carrying extra extra AAA batteries in my pack from this day forth . . . Don's NiteRider light was burned out so I was able to return the favour when he followed my HID beam for some road biking through the area.  He also had to borrow a pair of my gloves. You can see by the forgotten batteries and gear that we're just starting to get comfortable with all this night and cold training!  In a few weeks we'll have it down pat! Morgan came out for the singletrack biking so I didn't have to ride by myself . . . that's good because the agreement with the park is that you never ride the trail solo at night (for safety).  It felt great to get onto the trail and all the leaves on the ground made it slick in parts.  For the record, NiteRider lights kick butt!  It's like a car headlight strapped to my helmet.  We didn't ride at a blistering pace or anything, but it was a good workout and solid multi-hour training to start things off for the winter.  The other Team HRAdventure regulars were still taking it easy after the race this past weekend and I expect they'll be itching to come out next time.   Posted Nov 18 2005, 10:14 AM by gkillian with 7 comment(s)

• Gearing Up For Winter Training

  I took some time and outlined the training I want to do in the months leading up to the 30-hour race in January in north Georgia; I went back and looked at our "lessons learned" from the race last year.  Besides "train harder" listed as every other item, a lot of "lessons learned" involve gear to stay warm, dry, and for night navigation. Well, I've got a great bike light from NiteRider; I may look into rolling my own high intensity light (with some help from Team Richmond ASR) as another good light.  I've got a better headlamp, too, so I should be able to spot checkpoints a bit easier.  The light issue is under control.  The warm/dry gear thing is something I'm still working on.  I've found I need multiple sets of my best warm gear, because eventually I'll need to change (things get wet, damaged, etc) and last time my "second tier" gear wasn't nearly as good.  I also want to get some good booties for keeping my feet warm (I recall my feet were frozen stiff during the bike leg) and maybe some other wind blocking items.  For the paddle, I'm checking on some paddling mitts to keep my hands toasty warm on the water.  What it really boils down to, besides getting some of this nice gear, is that I need to get out and train in the cold and dark and, preferably, tackle some good hills.  To that end, we've scheduled some long team training events out west (Charlottesville), like some time biking up the road from Wintergreen ski resort to the Blue Ridge Parkway.  That's a nice little climb!  During the week, when team training isn't feasible, I'll get up early and visit the hills around Williamsburg on my bike or on foot.  We have arranged a standing night singletrack ride at New Quarter park for anyone who is interested.  We're starting tonight with about a 10K run and then some laps on the bike.  We'll be out there every Thursday except for Thanksgiving. I've been spending a lot of time course scouting and organizing with HRAdventure, but I haven't trained with much race intensity for a few months now.  I have a solid endurance base but I'm excited about switching gears again. Posted Nov 17 2005, 11:27 AM by gkillian with 3 comment(s)

• First set of STORM photos . . .

  Here's a first set of STORM race photos fresh from the camera of one of our awesome race volunteers, Sasha Tozzi.  Expect to see some of these make it into 2006 HRAdventure materials! Sasha says you're welcome to use the pictures, but if you use them commercially please check with him.  I'm betting Blue Ridge Mountain Sports may not want to place this photo into their next catalog; it's of racer Teri Ayotte (of Team Blue Ridge Mountain Sports) failing to unclip from her bike pedals in time.  We've all been there, just not always in such dramatic fashion and with a camera nearby! Thanks for the photos Sasha, more to come . . . Posted Nov 14 2005, 02:58 PM by gkillian with 2 comment(s)

• The STORM has passed

  Our 2005 race year came to a close this past weekend; the STORM the Eastern Shore Adventure Race was a challenging course and I suspect the participants got more than they bargained for.  On paper, the Eastern Shore of Virginia can look bland by adventure racing standards but I think we really made the most of the area.  We really worked our tales off to make the race happen and, along with the help of some terrific weather, the event was a success as measured by all the smiles on the racers' faces (along with the mud and sweat).  We have some amazing pictures to share and race data to crunch (time splits etc), so stay tuned for more soon.  We also really need to finalize some things for 2006 in terms of any races we're planning to put together.  For me personally, I'm excited to change gears and focus on racing again instead of organizing.  Team HRAdventure has a race coming up in January in the Georgia mountains; 30-hours of elevation and cold . . . strangely, I'm really looking forward to it.  Posted Nov 14 2005, 10:44 AM by gkillian with 5 comment(s)

• Adios ASM ?

  When our 120 promotional copies of Adventure Sports Magazine (ASM) failed to arrive in time for inclusion in the STORM participant race bags, I didn't think much of it.  We've had to gently remind ASM before other races so I just casually sent an email to their office.  The email bounced back as undeliverable.  I tried a few other addresses for people I know at the magazine (I contributed a small article a few months back and HRAdventure has done a lot with their Mobile Tour and events team).  They all bounced back.  Something wasn't right. Next, I notice a comment on CheckpointZero about ASM possibly going out of business.  This started to look like bad news.  Finally, I get an email from one of the ASM employees sharing a story of locked offices, ownership issues, and that December would be the unplanned final issue of ASM.  This was bad news. I hear murmurs of other parties interested in buying the magazine, riding in on a white horse to keep the magazine in publication, but I wouldn't count on anything.  It's a real bummer, too, as ASM was a unifying force for the sport . . . it was like the local coffee shop that everyone hung out at on Saturday mornings.  Even though some of the recent ASM content struck me as odd, specifically their emphasis on Xterra and attempts to branch out to other demographics, I'll miss the magazine and how it broadened my exposure to multi-sport all over the world. Too bad they couldn't go out on a more professional note, though.  A final "farewell ASM" issue and a respectable departure for the staff would have been nice!  Instead of buying a "thank you" beer for all their hard work, if any ASM staff come to Virginia and do a Hampton Roads Adventure event in 2006, just drop me a note and we'll arrange a free race entry for you.  Best of luck in the future! Posted Nov 08 2005, 12:09 PM by gkillian with 3 comment(s)