Primal Quest Montana was more than an adventure race.  It was a year of countless experiences and episodes that included training, racing, and–best of all–growing closer to the best AR peeps in the world–my very own Dirty Avocados!  The Dirty Avocados fielded two teams for PQ.  And that made every experience leading up to and during PQ twice as good! We as teams and individuals committed so much to this race.  This was essentially the center of our worlds for almost a year.  And it paid off!  The Dirty Avocados crossed two teams past PQ’s finish line, with very respectable 18^th and 30^th places. 

The race was simply epic!  Overall if can be boiled down to 3 things: big mountains, big water, and a big climb.  The mountain ranges we trekked (including Lone Peak and the Crazy’s and Bridgers) were absolutely amazing!  The rivers we battled (the Gallatin) and forged were brutal.  The whitewater was big, bad, and super intense.  This made for some absolutely amazing kayaking and–best of all–riverboarding.  Finally, the climbing was unbelievable!  We climbed, ascended and traversed more than 1,200 feet straight up.  So many times I felt as if I was in a Mission Impossible movie.

We (Dirty Avocados II) crossed the finish line in about 9 days; finishing the complete (long) course and every part of this amazing race.  Ultimately that was our one and only goal.  We knew when we started this all that if we could finish the long course that the rest would take of itself.  And it did.  We couldn’t be happier!  Thanks to everyone involved for the support.  This includes our crew, Aja and Matt, our fellow DAs, our family and friends, our sponsors, and the Bay Area AR community. 

See ya out on the dirt and water soon!

PS, Check out pics from the PQ fun here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/dirtyavocados/sets/72157606052205922/

Team #62 just left CP 15,  the last assisted CP before the Crazy Mountains.  They’re still shown as ranked, sweet!  They’ll ride to CP 16 where they’ll drop their bikes and trek through the Crazies which racers at the other end are calling the most mountains they have ever seen.

This Blog post will serve as a ongoing update on the two Dirty Avocados teams; 56 and 62. Mark Richardson will be doing his best to maintain contact with the crews as well as staying up to date on race organization reports and announcements. The most recent blog entry will be on top of this thread.

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*Sample* 

Team: 56
Approx Location: Crazy Mountains
Notes: etc…

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repeat

On Friday morning Adam Doti and I (Donato Polignone) agreed to race the Blackberry Challenge (www.blackberrycurveuc.com) this past Saturday. I agreed under one condition we hunt “wabbits.”
As we expect during registration one of the “wabbits” was spotted. Pictured below Rick Barriff (apparently John Moss was still hiding in his wabbit hole):
OK, so we spotted the “wabbits” and the race…err eh, hunt will soon begin. We were giving 9 CP’s (Check Points) to hit in any order. We had to find them on the SF map and decide which to do in the fastest possible time. One of the Check points included getting a Ferry ticket and visiting Alcatraz Island and completing a special skills test there which included answering 3 questions about the island which after 30-45 minutes of searching we finally found our answers. From there we ran from CP to CP back to the finish line. our 2nd to last CP required us to go to Coit tower and “squish” a penny. this check point would cost us dearly. Coit tower being one of my old training grounds, we just assumed that one was cake we flew up the back way (from Lombard St) and found the penny machine, squished our penny and then ran off to the finish line.

As we crossed the finish line we found the wabbits waiting for us, apparently in 2nd we were excited to here that we might have won the 2nd place cash prize of $6,000. Only to find out a few minutes later than we forgot to get our passports signed at the Coit tower CP.

In typical Bug’s and Elmer fashion the wabbit(s) live to run another day. Adam and I ended up with a $6,000 squished penny….Better luck next time!

The $6000 penny!

Our Garmin GPS track is here:

They say misery loves company. We read a lot of race reports, but ever read a report that was nothing but the racers low points? Recently I asked my teammates to describe what they felt was their lowest point during the recent Baja Travesia Expedition race and how they rose up to overcome it. A couple days after returning home my wife caught me staring off into the space for no apparent reason. When I finally realized I was being watched, I asked “what?”. She said “You look like you’ve been through alot. You look like you’ve seen a lot… maybe too much.”

Adam Doti - My low point was in the last canyon at Agua Caliente – wear I saw voices and lights coming from the sky. I could not comprehend how the lights and voices could come from the dark sky like that. We became completely turned around and could not figure out which way the river was flowing and which way west was. Later we realized it was Antonio(?) marking our arrival at the WP and allowing us to pass. Didn’t really overcome it. Freaked out rest of the race till the TA. To get us out of running in circles Jen recommended we just get right into the water and start walking downstream in knee high water. Thats what we did and we said bye-bye to Agua Caliente.

Adam (A-Bomb) - Worst moment… I’d have to say in the final canyon from Agua Caliente to that next TA. First, because Stiffy (Adam) completely lost his mind and could not comprehend the directions coming from the sky. I’ll admit it was pretty comical, but then again, very sobering when you realize the guy with the map has gone bananas. Also, our sleep strategy, which to this point was working great, went bad. We took a few small cat naps that barely charged our batteries, and at one point, we woke up and had no idea where we were headed before we fell asleep. At this point, I was extremely tired and had a constant charley horse in left hip. Every step I took with my left leg felt like I was taking a direct hit to my left ass. If it wasn’t for my magic legs (hiking poles) I would have been crawling. Fortunately, I caught an adrenaline rush that carried me through to the end of the race, but it was unfortunate that it was at the expense of Riggs, who took a tumble into a cactus bush.

Jen - My worst moment was getting up close and personal with the cacti. A-bomb and Eddy (Adam) did a good job of describing our mental state leading up to the incident….we were all pretty much delirious and my feet were in a world of pain (I’m still missing a silver-dollar sized chunk of my left inner heel). For a couple of hours I was literally dreaming while walking because I was convinced I was trekking not with A-bomb and Eddy but instead with my brother and one of my old neighbors. Then Eddy said something out loud and I thought he sounded like the actor Zach Braff so then I said to myself “oh right…that’s not my brother, that’s Zach Braff…I’m trekking with my old neighbor and Zach Braff.” It made perfect sense at the time. Then I scrambled up onto a rock, slipped, and was blasted straight out of my state of delirium by hundreds of cactus spines as they found new homes in my left hand and leg. I was tired, I was hurt, I was angry at myself for making such a dumb mistake, and I was scared. I just sat there and cried while my teammates tweezed as many needles as possible out of my leg (not sounding so tough now, huh!!). That rock absorbed a lot of Rigs-snot and tears. Once I was back up and had confidence I could still walk and finish the race I felt a lot stronger, and it was probably only 10 more minutes until we saw graffiti on the rocks and knew we must be approaching the hot springs at which point my attitude improved at least 2X. A bit more tweezing at the TA and DA1 were on our way to the finish line with smiles on our faces.

Mark - I was my most physically tired on the last 3 miles of trekking into the TA in the Nat Park after the canyons. Route-finding and bushwhacking took it’s toll. We slept alot…probably too much so I never had any real bad mental meltdowns. After our nap at the sand slog Adrian got onto cow trails in the brush and we rode most of the sand section on semi firm but very narrow singletrack.

Melissa - My lowest point was in the final canyon. My ankle gave way and I fell up to my waist in skanky cold water. I had poison oak all over me, an infection that needed antibiotics and ankles like my grandmother. I guess it’s funny to think about it now but at the time it was blimmin’ miserable! If it hadn’t been for Mark pulling me up I think I’d still be sat in the water feeling sorry for myself.

Brian - The trek across the tundra after CP 8 on day 2. I’ve learned that during expeditions, Day 2 sucks ass for me, no matter the circumstances. And I’ve also learned that if I push through that, Day 3 and beyond gets better (aside from the typical/occasional foot problem(s)). My body seems to adjust by Day 3 and I ride that state to the end.

Mike - My low point was on the second trek. After taking 24 hours to do the 1st bike due to the unmarked trail, etc, we did the bike in the heat of the day and got dehydrated. After less then a 2 hour sleep (we were trying to make up time) we headed off looking for the entrance to Canyon Colorado. In short I couldn’t find it and we wondered around the desert for hours. Finally I got to the point where I had no idea where we were and couldn’t read the map at all. At that point we build a fire and did a lay down waiting for the sun to come up. When it did we easily found our way and continued on. However, at that point, I knew we were never going to make up the time that we lost which as very disappointing.

Will (our lonely home base teammate) - My low point was Day One when I realized I was still at work and not there for the fun. That whole week then turned into a blur of day and night and night and day as I stayed half awake hitting the refresh button on the browser tabs for bajatravesia.com and sleepmonsters.com. You kids can complain all you want about your foot blisters, cankles, and PO, but what about my poor index finger clicking the mouse button. You may have gone 250 miles and climbed many feet, but I clicked refresh approximately 832 times and this was just in the first paddleboard section imagine how that felt in the dry office air conditioning, staring blurry-eyed hard at one of my four screens telling my co-workers to go away while waiting, waiting for the damn screen to refresh. Absolute hell on earth, I am so done with watching adventure races.

Hey when’s the next race?

(some photos copyright Jacqueline Windh www.windhphotos.com )

The 2008 Baja Travesia was memorable is sooo many ways for all involved. But for the Dirty Avocados Too crew (Karen Bosko and Jeannine Freeman), it was more than memorable. It was unbelievable, remarkable, and emotional just to start! The following are highlights recapped by the best crew to ever walk the AR earth!

• Driving thru US/MEX border crossing with all passports ready/ in hand only to not even have someone at the crossing, yes we’re dorks!
• Pre – race: Coming across a vehicle versus quad accident. First vehicle on scene not directly involved in accident. With Ski Patrol and pre-med nurse in car, before our vehicle was stopped, they leaped out of car to provide assistance. Other team mate directed traffic (injured quad rider – helmetless, shirtless, 20-yr old American, laying in road, we noted he was very bloody, with a broken leg, broken wrist/arm, messed up face, and knocked out teeth). Raced back to rented house to get first aid kit, luckily for everyone, ambulance arrived just before our first aid kit.
• Pre-race: Driving to Race Bonfire. Crossed over median to make it to dirt road turn, bike rack fails and bike ends up horizontal to ground. Note to self: Do not drive off road with bike rack which holds bike by front tire.
• Driving on way to TA2, stopped at Chloe’s to fill up water bottles from backyard garden hose (we were promised that the water was OK.)
• Driving back from TA2 on long dirt road at night, hearing noise on roof, stopping car to see wheel missing from roof rack, stopping oncoming traffic (other DA truck) in fear that they might have driven over it. Fortunately they saw the wheel bounce into the bushes. Not telling Susan about mishap until after race! (after we determined there was no damage to the wheel.)
• Not being able to open the back window on Brian’s truck at the first military checkpoint we went through. We finally got it open, but I don’t think the federales were too happy with us. Blonde female crew can have its benefits!
• Taking over six hours to drive the 36-mile “short-cut” that was supposed to be a two-hour trip. This road is part of the Baja 500 race course. It’s a narrow, technical 4WD road over a 4,000 foot pass, along steep cliffs.
• Almost sliding off the road at a precarious turn on the cut-off road, and finding out later that another truck almost did the same thing and they broke their running board.
• Being escorted by a herd of cattle and almost being charged by one of them (why do the girl cows in Mexico have horns??) And laughing our asses off when the cows did the same thing to the other DA crew right behind us
• Laughing at the crazy rabbits that zigged and zagged in front of the truck, but wouldn’t hop off to the side of the road.
• Pulling the other DA crew out of a ditch at 4am in the morning in the dark in under an hour and a half, using only a screw driver, bike pump and old climbing rope. (Damn I feel like MacGyver!) Worried because we couldn’t open the back window on Brian’s truck again.
• Driving up the Sierra San Pedro Martir mountain range and being able to see it in daylight was such a treat!
• Drinking tequila at 9am, at the park gate, to celebrate finally arriving at the park. And discovering Mike’s wheel was warped from the flexion of the bike rack – bummer.
• Losing the other DA crew again, and finding out they had to zip-tie the bumper guard back onto their truck
• Setting up TA4, and getting the back window unstuck, getting a loaner wheel from Donato for Mike to use, and getting a short nap. Then seeing our team come in looking happy and strong.
• Driving out of the park that evening and finding two lost teams riding back from outside the park, and thinking our team was pulling ahead due to the other teams’ navigational errors. (Who knew there would be no trail where there was supposed to be, and the slow teams would get the benefit of course marking.)
• Driving out of the park back to Hwy 1, having Jeannine wake up asking what the weird popping sounds are under the car. Karen having to explain that she has been driving over field mice for the last 20 miles. YUK!
• Bypassing the cut-off road and taking the long way back to Valle de la Trinidad via Ensenada. 200 miles further, but a faster drive. Crazy Mexican roads!! Good thing we were carbon neutral. (and getting hi-beamed by EVERY oncoming truck, as they thought we were on hi-beams too. We weren’t!)
• Getting stopped at another military checkpoint and flirting with the federales – this time they didn’t need to inspect the truck.
• Returning to Valle de la Trinidad, and following our “super” crew directions to get ourselves lost again. We found what we thought would be TA5, only to find a small blue BT sign telling us to drive another 10K into the wilderness. After driving over 8 miles on creepy back roads in the middle of the night (Mexican distances again), and still not finding TA5 we started to get a little concerned. At a few possible intersections, umping out of car to “examine” the tire tracks of the options (choosing the most traveled route each time – good job Karen!) Just as we were about to give up and find a place to turn around we came upon a couple of tiny lights . . . TA5!!! Whew! We almost cried with relief.
• Setting up at TA5, affectionately known as cow-poop meadow and waiting for our team to arrive, getting worried when so many teams started to come through and we heard reports of our gang getting lost.
• Learning from Cordell, the volunteer at TA5, which maps the locals use, and how to modify a CB radio to work almost anywhere. Gotta love hangin’ with the retired guys. Plus they fed us fresh BBQ’d shrimp with bacon. Yum!
• Crewing for the other DA team and getting them ready when their crew was 3 hours late. We were very happy to be there for you!
• Almost crying again with relief when our team finally made it to the TA, getting them sorted out, letting them nap and then sending them off in the dark again.
• Hanging out at TA6 in the dusty village of Heroes de la Independencia and watching the “traffic jam” - a heard of goats move through town.
• Jeannine having a major panic attack – thinking she’d lost a set of maps. After letting my brain settle, I realized we had two map sets for three legs of travel. Didn’t know how I would have explained that one to the team.
• Crewing for the local kids (the next Mexican adventure racing team – I hope!) and trying to explain in sign language what clip-in bike shoes are.
• Adopting “Taco” the little puppy, who seemed to take a liking to Brian. At least you met one nice dog in Mexico, Brian!!
• Getting directions to the “best” (meaning only) local gasolina in town - drive down dirt road until you find handmade “gasolina” sign. Stopping to get gasolina from the barrel. Well actually gas wasn’t in a barrel, it was in old milk jugs. Laughing at how Brian would have a fit when he sees the photos of Jeannine assisting the elderly lady pour the gasoline from the jugs, into a funnel, into the truck. Brian, you might want to get your engine cleaned.
• Taking a sunset hike through the meadows at TA7 and enjoying the beautiful wildflowers. And then trying to keep gear dry as the damp and misty fog rolled in. Even the photos showed droplets from the mist.
• Driving to TA8 – again with sketchy directions, to the hot springs (with various names, none of which matched our directions.) Followed concrete wall to end of the road. Lots of abandoned farming vehicles. Karen emphatically says, we are out of here, this can NOT be right! Back to main road, try instructions again from main highway, ended up in a rancher’s yard with barking dogs at 3am, and wondering if we’d be shot at. Go back try another route. Find the cement company road. No not the right road – dead ends. Retracing our steps and driving to the country club and finally going back to the first road and realizing the unmarked fork in the road was where we wanted to go. There were no signs, of course. Our instructions told us to drive 5.5 miles through 6 water crossings. 10+ miles and 12 water crossings later, we found the TA. Gotta love the directions the crew received. Next year I know what maps I need to buy.
• Seeing Susan come running through the TA and thinking something was wrong, only to find out they were in “race mode” racing another team into transition. Woo hoo!! Loving that this was the fastest transition ever and happy they were so motivated this late into the race.
• Watching our team ride through water crossings – very cool (oh, did I mention there were 12 and not 6?)
• Being able to escort our team on Hwy 1, this had no shoulder and crazy, scary traffic. It felt great to protect them from the traffic.
• Arriving at the final TA and leisurely helping them get ready for the last leg of the race, while they waited for Suburban Rush to arrive. The last leg consisting of a 5k run along the beach and a 2k paddle.
• Impressed that our team decided to wait for Suburban Rush to finish together with them, that’s why we love them!!
• Playing with the foal along the side of the road, who wanted to get into the truck with us . . . sorry Brian, we let a horse in your truck. ?
• Ordering 3 “hamburgers for babies” at the local McDonalds. I’m sure they thought I was crazy until they figured out I wanted three Happy Meals.
• Seeing our team finish in good health and good spirits and “awarding” them with their Happy Meals – because they were the happiest team out there.
• Driving back to US. Spending 3 hours at the border crossing, being sold everything possible from the vendors wandering between the vehicles (tables, puppies, clothing, food, magazines). Watching episodes of the office on Brian’s IPOD.
• Joking about needing smokes and Playboys to assist in going thru the border! Note to self: One should never joke at a border crossing.
• Very nice agent asks us to open top rocketbox. He checks and almost lets us pass then a supervisor arrives telling him to send us to the full inspection. On our way to full inspection, see Karen and Paul’s vehicle pulled over. Stop to say a few words then went into inspection area. Jeannine receives phone call on cell from other DA vehicle. Reprimanded by border agent for being on the phone. Jeannine falls into hysterical laughter and the rest of us wonder when we are going to be sent to jail.
• Border becomes another TA as Jeannine and Karen empty most of the gear and boxes out of the back of the truck and then reload in record time. Border agent goes thru most of the bins, seemed to find the most smelly ones of course. Border agent seems satisfied but sends us off with a warning. Get out of here quickly before something comes up and you get stuck in the inspection area. Not really sure what he means but high tail it away. Good to be back on US soil.
• Stop over in San Diego to pick up teammate’s vehicle and spend the night. Upon unloading the truck, find that the entire roof rack system’s screws had worked themselves loose and were barely hanging on. Note to self: check all gear and racks prior to race, not just gear.
• All in all, a fun way to spend a vacation!! When can we do it again???

The 2008 Baja Travesia was an experience I will never forget. It was a week of all sorts of emotions, dramas, moments, and good times! Below are some I will never forget.

• Sleeping under the warm stars on the roof of our San Felipe bungalow
• Swallowing half of the Sea of Cortez while paddleboarding
• The desert death march that started the race and begging locals for water
• Being chased several times by packs of dogs
• Wading in waste high, weed choked water ways
• Weaving in and out of poison oak of all types
• Hacking my way through Spanish conversations with locals
• Teaming up with favorite teams while racing; the other DAs, Gold Rush, Dancing Pandas, and Suburban Rush are always fun to see and travel with while out on the course
• Seeing my truck take a beating and still pushing through; yea!!
• Walking away with some of the worst poison oak ever
• My first ever surf entry…in a solo sit on top!
• Dipping my beaten and blistered feet in the salty Pacific after five days of racing. Ouch!!!!!!!!!!
• See every random piece of good sold while waiting at the boarder
• Having the BEST and most lovable crew ever to walk to the AR earth! Thanks again, gals
• Once again facing desperate and dire circumstances with my team and seeing us look that in the eye, say “bring it”, and then persevere!
• My first trip to Mexico
• Completing my longest and toughest adventure race!

Stay tuned for more recaps and race reports from the rest of Avocados.

### BEGIN RACE UPDATES ###
(most recent update on top)

TIME: 3/28/08 - 7:00PM PST
Race Clock: 4 days 6 hours 30 minutes into the race

The Dirty Avocados Team 2 just finished the race joining their compadres having traveled many miles from the sea, thru the desert, over the mountains and winding around the foothills and canyons to the ocean!

Look for race reports from these guys and gals in the next week with the real details of how it went here on dirtyavocados.com.

The teams wish their families and friends the best and thank their sponsors for helping them to get to this race.

The Dirty Avocados next big adventure is Primal Quest Montana, a ten day expedition race consisting of only 500 miles with 100,000 feet of elevation. We’ll start training tomorrow after we get some sleep.

An adventure race is still not over until all the teams are in so let’s keep the rest of the teams out on the course in our thoughts.

TIME: 3/28/08 - 4:30PM PST
Race Clock: 4 days 4 hours into the race

The Dirty Avocados Team 2 and SuburbanRush are in the water and heading in right behind our friends from Santa Cruz, California Team Lucky to the finish.  This should be a quick kayak because the crew describes Mike, Susan, and Brian as fired up for the finish.

TIME: 3/28/08 - 3:33PM PST
Race Clock: 4 days 3 hours 3 minutes into the race

American Dirty Avocados Team Two and Canadian SuburbanRush have teamed up for the last leg of the bike and the kayaks to the finish!  At this very moment, the teams are biking the dirt roads of Ensenada toward the kayak and finishline.  

According to random callers along the course some of the town’s dogs have come out to either chase them or join this GROWING ameoba team to the finish. 

So, Roll on DirtyAvocadosSuburbanRush Team!

TIME: 3/28/08 - 3:00PM PST
Race Clock: 4 days 2 hours 33 minutes into the race

GoldRush is done!  Mark Richardson, Melissa Griffiths and Adrian Crane crossed the finish line 21 minutes ago! The will be able to enjoy the glory of finishing the race during siesta time in Ensenada (I hope a restaurant is open for those hungry racers).

TIME: 3/28/08 - 12:30PM PST
Race Clock: 4 days into the race

Day four of this five day race and it looks like all teams will be over the finish line today.  Dirty Avocados Team One is still eating having showered and feeling good.  They also did not have much info related to where Dirty Avocados Team Two is located specifically, but will check in when they hear something.  Adam Doti said that he has been trading notes with other team’s navigators and all agree the navigation was tough.  The maps indicate that GoldRush MotherLoad/RWG are in the TA for the kayak and thus almost done.

TIME: 3/28/08 - 10:55AM PST
Race Clock: 3 days 22 hours 25 minutes into the race

Team GoldRush MotherLoad/RWG is approximately 10 miles to the beach in Ensenada.  Most of the ten miles will be fast on city streets (hard compacted dirt and asphalt,) so this should go fairly fast, finishing the bike in less than an hour from now.

TIME: 3/28/08 - 10:10AM PST
Race Clock: 3 days 21 hours 40 minutes into the race

Pictured above from Dirty Avocados Mission (Out-of) Control, I am on the phone with Donato and the Dirty Avocados Team 1 right now and they think they are washing off with Zanfel and Technu, specific poison oak washing soaps. 

Goldrush/RWG is well on the way having hit the first waypoint in the bike to the finish moments ago.

Also, we’re still looking for some better information on Dirty Avocados Team 2.  They are battling their way up a very bushy canyon according to Adam.

TIME: 3/28/08 - 9:30AM PST
Race Clock: 3 days 21 hours into the race

There are 2 great notes on the race blog about the Dirty Avocados Team 1’s finish: Official Race Site Blog

TIME: 3/28/08 - 8:47AM PST
Race Clock: 3 days 20 hours 17 minutes into the race

Adam Doti, Jen Rigoni, and Adam Armijo are done and celebrating at the finish!

They will take eat and take a nap and then will be back to great the other teams as they finish.

TIME: 3/28/08 - 8:20AM PST
Race Clock: 3 days 19 hours 50 minutes into the race

We are projecting (with confidence in our predictions for once) Dirty Avocados Team 1 to finish in the next 2 minutes!  They are 20 yards from finishing the kayak and then they have a hundred yard dash to the finishline

TIME: 3/28/08 - 7:51AM PST
Race Clock: 3 days 19 hours 21 minutes into the race

One of the great race directors of Baja Travesia, Karen wrote in the race blog that Dirty Avocados Team 1 is about to enter the harbor and cross the finishline.  She wrote that Donato is there holding Tecate beers for them.  So, being astute reporters here a 1,000 miles away decided to fact-check her superb reporting by calling Deep Throat himself, donato.  Donato’s near done finishing those beers he brought for the team.  Guess he wants to be a little drunkbuzzed when he tells Jen that he smashed the fender of her trunk in the desert!

 Dirty Avocados Team 2 just hit another waypoint in the canyon at 6:27am local time which as a reminder is 7:27am PST.

TIME: 3/28/08 - 2:00AM PST
Race Clock: 3 days 13 hours 30 minutes into the race

Dirty Avocados Team 1 has completed the last major trek of Baja’s wildlands. GoldRush MotherLoad/RWG could be catching some sleep or sneaking up to take another spot. They have made a good come from the back from the start of this race. Finally, about an hour ago Dirty Avocados Team 2 pinged their satellite transponder to signify they are well on their way too in this last major trek and have passed a team in front of them. Go Teams; roll on home!

TIME: 3/27/08 - 10:40PM PST
Race Clock: 3 days 10 hours 10 minutes into the race

Just checking in to say that we don’t have any updates for our three teams as the crews are in an area that cell phones cannot receive signal probably. It may be a while before we do hear how its going.

TIME: 3/27/08 - 5:00PM PST
Race Clock: 3 days 4 hours 35 minutes into the race

Karen and Jeaninne, the crew for Dirty Avocados Team 2 called to say that Mike, Susan and Brian’s spirits are high despite being back in ranking currently.  They believe that they will be able to ”power thru” the next section.  Their feet have very few blisters; 2-3 small things!  Mike has a small piece of wood embedded in a leg (splinter really) and he’s not stopping to pull it out; he’s decided to take it to the finishline!

TIME: 3/27/08 - 3:40AM PST
Race Clock: 3 days 3 hours 10 minutes into the race

Adrian Crane’s son John, who is crewing with a friend for Team Goldrush is ready waiting the team’s arrival at TA7.  We hope they are their soon so they can take advantage of the light going into the next section.

Dirty Avocados Team 1 has already been on that trek and are still pushing hard to finish strong.  Donato and Misty are fine and almost at TA8 in a location called La Jolla.

Dirty Avocados Team 2 pulled into TA6 approximately 14 minutes ago and are likely happy to be hitting the bikes which is their strength.

TIME: 3/27/08 - 11:30AM PST
Race Clock: 3 days into the race

Three days into the race and the Dirty Avocados Team 2 is gaining speed from the back.  They just went from CP14 to CP15 in 2 and a half hours.  It took the currently projected winners of the race 3 hours to do this same leg.  They can still make a decent run from the back.  Its rumoured that teams ahead are considering dropping due to “team issues” and injuries.  This is a race more than any in a while that is all about staying in the game despite the challenges and set backs.

TIME: 3/27/08 - 9:15AM PST
Race Clock: 2 days 21 hours 45 minutes into the race

According to Donato, all Dirty Avocado Teams are fine.  Their feet have a few blisters, but they are not as raw as as some teams near the back .

Last years race was really a race uphill on bikes and a big hill in the canyon section heading east.  This year is all feet up hill and bike downhill.  Which is tougher depends can depend on your strengths, but no matter how good you are on your feet you are likely feeling it.  Brian has spent a lot of time exploring how to survive these races with feet and turn around to give the rest of us some great pointers that we incorporate in prevention and treatment of hotspots to blisters. 

The crews were their Dirty Avocados Team 1 and GoldRush when they pulled into CP16/TA6.  Both teams are likely now on the way to CP17.  This next bike section includes 2 kilometers (1.24 miles) of sand.  Last years bike included a ton of sand and it is as much of a mental challenge as a physical one.  Mark Richardson and Melissa Griffiths were on the same team at last years Baja Travesia and they did well riding in the sand challenge back then.  Mike Chastaine comes from the Folsom area of California where the trails have quite a bit of sand so he should be able to motivate Brian and Susan through that short, but still challenging section.

Dirty Avocados Two are probably headed to TA6 on foot trekking across a valley plain after a long night bushwacking up a canyon.

TIME: 3/26/08 - 10:00PM PST
Race Clock: 2 days 11 hours 30 minutes into the race

Donato reports that he briefly spoke to Mike Chastaine, Susan Bower and Brian Schmitz.  They were concerned with how the other teams were doing.  By now the three are likely out of the transition at CP13/TA5 out for a trek that is 6 to 9 hours for the teams that had the advantage of daylight.  So, we can expect they will be on this trekking leg most of tonight and tomorrow evening they should be at the finish or very near it.

GoldRush/RWG with Mark Richardson, Melissa Griffiths, and Adrian Crane looks good according to Donato.  

Donato mentioned that Dirty Avocados Team 1’s Adam Doti looks incredibly awake and ready to navigate the next section.  Jen Rigoni and Adam Armijo are doing well, too.

Donato and Misty arrived early at the next transition, TA7 in a town called Ojos Negros, which is north on Highway 3 here:

Map Location of Ojos Negros

TIME: 3/26/08 - 5:30PM PST
Race Clock: 2 days 6 hours into the race

Goldrush/RWG making big gains and was in the same transition, CP13/TA5 where the Dirty Avocados Team 1 is and where Dirty Avocados Team 2 is heading to.  The trek from CP13/TA5 has a significant bushwacking section.  Bushwacking is a term for walking off trail in bushes simply put.  Its physically demanding and mentally demanding in terms of navigating.  Team GoldRush/RWG has one of the best bushwacking navigators on it, Mark Richardson.  With Melissa motivating Mark and Adrian likely helping in the navigation the three should do very well tonight in this section in the dark.

TIME: 3/26/08 - 4:45PM PST
Race Clock: 2 days 5 hours 15 minutes into the race

Donato and Misty, crew for Dirty Avocados Team 1 after a long difficult drive are just arriving into CP13/TA5.  The Dirty Avocados Team 1 with Adam Armijo, Jen Rigoni and Adam Doti had pulled into 4th place and have likely let a little of he lead go waiting for their crew.  However, this has been a great chance for them to sleep and I understand they have not had much. 

TIME: 3/26/08 - 3:17PM PST
Race Clock: 2 days 3 hours 47 minutes into the race

The crew for Dirty Avocados II is waiting at Valle de la Trinidad (CP), while Misty and Donato are racing up from the last transition.  Donato said that Ensenada traffic was heavier than expected.  As you can guess this is as much of a race for the crew as it is for the teams.  Both deal with navigation, lack of sleep, rough trails, etc.  The crews race really begins when a team comes into transition. 

After the teams check in with the race official at the checkpoint/transition they flag the team over to where the crew vehicles are parked.  Likely the crew has set out a large tarp as a floor and spread out the teams gear to make the transition run smoothly.  In transition the crew can feed the team, help them switch gear, possibly assist the team in navigation or race strategy and most important of all check the team to make sure they still sound coherent and ready for the next leg. 

When teams leave the crew packs things up.  Figures out their next leg of the race to the next transition and may check out with race officials as they leave. 

Donato mentioned that he’s passed out and helped other teams other than his own which is part of the culture of adventure racing.  He loaned a wheel to Mike Chastaine of Team Dirty Avocados II, supplied Extreme Mountain Sports with a red blinking tail light, and loaned Team Lucky a front brake.  Good man Donato!!!

TIME: 3/26/08 - 1:30PM PST
Race Clock: 2 days 2 hours into the race

As referenced by race organizers on their blog our teams are all in the area of Mike’s Sky Ranch in the middle of Baja. A motocross rider made some great video of the roads and trails nearby. This is definitely the kind of roads the crews are taking to support the teams in the field. There are several videos here:

Mike’s Sky Ranch Area

Realize the teams are traveling on roads like these while on mountain bikes, slow they maybe going a little slower and thus safer!

TIME: 3/26/08 - 11:00AM PST
Race Clock: 1 day 23 hours 30 minutes into the race

Race organizers just blogged that they spoke to Melissa of Team GoldRush/RWG by Radio. She wanted friends and family to know that they are happy and moving well! See full post at Update for Team Goldrush

TIME: 3/26/08 - 9:30AM PST
Race Clock: 1 day 22 hours into the race

As the leadboard seems to indicate Dirty Avocados are in 5th place! Dirty Avocados II are list behind them now and probably stopped to catch some sleep before sunrise. Goldrush is still moving consistantly which may be an advantage in such a challenging race.

The maps seems to show that the teams are headed to the Colonia Lazaro Cardenas area, a small town on Highway 3 where the road bends north. This town was site of a transition last year that we hit during the second night of a race course that was headed South East instead of this year’s that is heading generally northwest.

Leaving the the transition heading northwest on the trek the teams will cross sandy tracks and likely will head through several cactus farms along the way. Local farmers are very friendly throughout Baja and race organizers in their pre-race preparations talked to the locals along the way.

TIME: 3/26/08 - 1:15AM PST
Race Clock: 1 day 13 hours 45 minutes into the race

Let’s review what we have left.  Note that this first bike will likely be finished this morning and the teams will begin the trek in canyonlands in daylight.  Looking at this it seems we have a long way in just pure miles to go, but of the 154 miles to go in total, 60% (94 miles) are mostly downhill on bikes and only 32 miles are trekking with a 11 mile kayak at the finish. 

1. Bike mostly downhill single track.  This will likely be one of the many highlights of their journey 91km (57 miles)
2. Trek in canyonlands 26km (16 miles)
3. Bike another big downhill 60km (37 miles)
4. Trek in rolling foothills of Baja likely in and around farms 25km (16 miles)
5. Bike to the coast near Ensenada area 35km (22 miles)
6. Ocean Kayak to the Finish in Ensenada 17km (11 miles)

This is the time of the race that is a real “gut check”, with each team member likely going through a few emotions and questions of why they are doing this.  They think of the things they love so much at this point, that really drives them home and will press forward to a great finish. Back of the pack teams may rightfully reason that the risk of going on would be too much to burden their loved ones with if they are concerned about any issues.  Most people that have never raced at this level just don’t understand that multi-day expedition racers do think of the loved-ones at home as part of the decisions we make out there.  And its not just our own family that we have in our considerations.  As a team, a good team, we think of each others’ families and then we consider, mitigate, or completely avoid risk that may seem unnecessary in light of our priority one: come home healthy to you all with great fun to tell you about!

From our crews I have heard from tonight I can say that our teams are racing with good spirits and smiles on their faces.  They may be tired, but they are enjoying the race, the surroundings, and all the friends they are meeting along the way.  They are seeing a side of Mexico that is sort of a turn of the clock back to simpler times.  The hospitality of the local farmers of Northern Baja is kind and mellow.  I bet by now the teams have even had some of the local cooking made in the transitions.

Jeaninne and Karen are headed to meet dirty Avocados 2 for the transition to the trek in a place called Valle de la Trinidad. They have more funny crew stories than they can tell me over the phone right now.

TIME: 3/25/08 - 11:08PM PST
Race Clock: 1 day 11 hours 48 minutes into the race

The super crew, Jeaninne and Karen of Dirty Avocados II  just called to say that racers Mike Chastaine, Susan Bower and Brian are great despite some sore feet.  Mike is a solid navigator and has good back up with Susan and Brian near.  Get these three near a bike and they will ride off in a dust cloud.  They are making good time on their feet too, thus this is why they’re a little sore, but no worries the bike legs will given them more rest and the race ends with a kayak leg.

Its true that DART-nuun and the Yoga Slackers are way off course and that Dirty Avocados II may now for the time being is in 6th place.  Lead teams have paid the price of being lost for pushing so fast in the beginning. Their lack of sleep is catching up.  However, this is still a close race given the chance for error and breakdowns with still nearly half the checkpoints to go.

 Goldrush and Dirty Avocados I are doing fine and are still in the running given the errors that have been made at the front of the pack.  Melissa Griffiths, Mark Richardson and Adrian Crane of Goldrush/RWG have a good amount of experience and quality training going into this race and with the kind of positive determination that each of them seem to hold in their core they should begin taking ground from weaker teams that may have shot ahead of them.  Team Dirty Avocados I with Adam Doti, Jen Rigoni and Adam Armijo are close to the middle of the pack and with Adam Doti’s keen ability to strategize, Jen’s super motivating attitude and Adam Armijo’s ability to add to both the brains and braun to this team they have a chance to rise from the mirky middle of the pack of racers.

TIME: 3/25/08 - 2:40PM PST
Race Clock: 1 day 3 hours 10 minutes into the race

All Dirty Avocado Teams are out of the canyon ascent and are visible moving on the west side of the Sierras. We hope the rest of the field makes it out soon too. Goldrush/RWG checked in to CP 8 about an hour ago. Dirty Avocados Teams I and II are ahead of them on the downhill bike. Stories coming out regarding the canyon ascent sound epic and that we can look forward to our friends telling some great tales when they return from Baja.

TIME: 3/25/08 - 10:45AM PST
Race Clock: 23 hours 15 minutes into the race

Donato is driving in from the west to meet the teams at the base of the mountians. He is about 4 miles from the base of the hills and should be there with in a few minutes: Location of Dirty Avocados 1 Crew

Race tracking is getting better as teams are beginning to push there buttons withing view of tracking satellites. The team pages at www.bajatravesia.com show that the Dirty Avocados II are out of the mountains. The leaderboard at Sleepmonster.com is being manually updated with this information, a great effort on their part to cover the race! The leaderboard may still be inacurate fo now, but check the team pages for now for the most accurate location of teams:

Location of Dirty Avocados 2

The links to Team Dirty Avocados Team 1 and Team Gold Rush Motherload/Racing with Giants are showing two very strong climbing teams still not up in the canyon. I would bet they they are close to Dirty Avocados 2:

Location of Dirty Avocados 1

Location Team Goldrush/RWG

TIME: 3/25/08 - 8:40AM PST
Race Clock: 21 hours into the race

Teams are climbing near Baja’s tallest peak, El Picacho del Diablo or “Peak of the Devil.” No worries the big bad guy is not there right now according to satellite tracking.

There is a good pin point of the peak here Peak Map

TIME: 3/25/08 - 7:45AM PST
Race Clock: 20 hours into the race

Donato, the crew for Dirty Avocados I writes that he’s OK.  He did have an issue with the crew truck getting stuck in sand.  Luckily for him the crew for Dirty Avocados II, Jeaninne and Karen were near to provide the “towing” power.  Donato wrote a short note on our mobile blog thanking his girlfriend for teaching him how to tie a knot.  I guess it was not just any knot, but the truck is free and looks fine. 

The crews left the eastern side of Baja last night and headed to the western foothills to meet the teams heading west at the transition from canyon trek to bike.  I received notes from Donato as he headed up the Highway 5 and then he turned west on Highway 3.  At Colonia Lazaro Cardenas he turned west and was near Los Coches this morning still traveling. 

Through the night race directors have been making a valiant effort to put out the latest they knew about teams progress, however most all the teams are still in the most remote part of the race, one long canyon ascent.  They probably have had some sleep except for the current lead teams.  We should see our teams out of the canyon by about noon or as possibly as late as early evening here on the West Coast. 

TIME: 3/25/08 - 12:01AM PST
Race Clock: 12 hours 32 minutes into the race

Teams are ascending the canyon tonight and will likely be finding a place there to catch some sleep. This canyon trek to a place called “Top of the World” will take teams into the late morning and early afternoon tomorrow. This is a major portion of the race.

Our teams have the option of carrying very powerful, but extremely lite, headlamp lights from DinotteLighting.com to brighten there way up the canyon for very safe travel at night. They also, choose to carry heavier bivy sacks for this section given the air tempurature in this section is about to cool off very fast. As required gear this year I believe teams maybe carrying tents and thus in their bivies while in a tent they should be pretty toasty. The teams are not alone in this canyon. First, there is likely a sweeper walking up from the rear making sure there is nothing wrong with the back of the pack and there is possibly a ropes safety crew somewhere in there. Rumour has it that Yishai of Big Blue Adventures and the director of Central Coast Challenge has put up some of the ropes and is out on that course. So, there is help in this long demanding climb

Crews, organizers and the reporter plus driver from sleepmonsters are driving around to the next transition, which will take them hours.

The race directors have added some videos to their website, Dirty Avocados is one of the teams with videos up from the prerace; definitely fun to look at. Also, there leaderboard was pulled down, but the sleepmonsters.com reporter on scene who wrote another good piece about the trek section this time included a list of the current rankings during the desert trek at the end of her blog. A lot of the current order will change this first night as teams make decisions on whether to go foreward or sleep until sunrise. No matter the score tomorrow morning realize the teams in front likely paid a sizable price for that lead and we will see later that afternoon if it was worth it.

I will be off for a ride tomorrow morning and will likley check in after 8:30AM PST. Goodnight.

TIME: 3/24/08 - 06:03PM PST
Race Clock: 6 Hours 33 minutes into the race

The teams are likely well into the Rally Car Leg and probably glad to have rested their feet after crossing the desert today.  

We know this because we are presently here in the Dirty Avocados Situation Room somewhere down an old mine shaft from the Goldrush Era in Northern California.  Notices being sent by carrier pigeons, geese, duck and other fowl migrating north are arriving regularly with the teams’ exact coordinates. Actually, there is no “we.” Everyone on the team is in Baja except Aja and I.  Also, no we are not in a mineshaft.  However, I am sitting in a war room of sorts with all sorts of screens and phones and things that make anyone feel just plain connected to information.  Also, I am receiving live satellite tracking from one of our teams’ crews which is the most accurate and up to date description of how the race is progressing for our teams which you can assume are near each other given they are fairly similarly matched for these first legs of the race.

The race website and their official news source have been expectingly slow to put out updates.  We anticipated this given the race organizers  are very busy putting on one of the best races in North America, plus they are using very new technology to track racers.  Right now, the race officials are focused on what they do best which is putting on a great race and with that they are likely smoothing out issues along the way.  Issues popping up today could have included a myriad of things such as what to do with all the paddleboards that racers paddled to the main beach in San Felipe, at the same time they are monitoring teams from afar and coralling lost teams on course, or they were lining up the many volunteer rally cars.  The race site for Baja Travesia just started updating little markers representing teams, however some of those teams do not look like they have gone very far.  If you look at the leaderboard it shows clearly that fast teams listed behind slower ones are not having their satellite transponders working and this could be either errors with the device/service or the racers are just forgetting to press the button on it that sends out a signal to show where they are presently.

The adventure racing news service that is there to cover the race did not bring their own satellite internet connection, so their coverage is delayed, but still really worth the read for the local color.  The writer is doing a good job describing the local besides the race itself plus she doesn’t use as many run on sentences as I do to convey the details!

The Dirty Avocados figured this news delay may be the case so, some of the crew are checking in occationally with us.   So, far their notifications show that the race progressed north along the shore from San Felipe and then they headed east into the desert toward the mountains.  This is good. 

We estimate that Dirty Avocados, Dirty Avocados “too”, and the Gold Rush teams are near the canyon trek and have completed the rally car.  Seems teams are egging to get up the canyon and gain some distance on their competition.  At 5:43PM PST the sun began setting.  The desert has cooled and the teams are enjoying it for sure. There will be a near full moon waning tonight which will give them decent light as it appears somewhere to there east over the Sea of Cortez.

If for any reason other than my poor grammar that anyone would like to contact the current writer of this continuously updated blog please feel free to email me at willisnot (at) yahoo (dot) com.  If you like include your number and I will call you back.  Inspired by the team I am off for a 30 mile run.

This is a pre-race picture of Team Dirty Avocados I (from left to right: Adam Armijo, Jen Rigoni and Adam Doti)

TIME: 3/24/08 - 11:40AM PST
Race Clock: 1 hour 10 minutes into the race

By now teams are nearing the end of the paddleboarding leg.  Ahead of them is an afternoon spent crossing the Sonoran Desert.  Temperatures in the desert should be between 80 to 90 degrees today.  The forecast is 89 degrees in San Felipe with wind at 9MPH.  A combination of heat and wind will lead unprepared teams to dehydrate.  The Avocados coming from California have an advantage in the heat.  They are better prepared having been hydrating going into the race and likely took a good amount of water with electrolytes (NUUN electrolytes tablets) into desert trek. 

Movement across the desert will vary as the team winds around cactus and other bushes in sand and occasionally finding a dirt road hopefully. In other words don’t expect them to be doing any 6 minute miles. 

Last year those of us racing this part of the race enjoyed this section as night trek under a fairly lit moon.  Despite the light, I accidentally kicked a small cactus and had to run the remainer of the race with a cactus barb in my foot.  With the sun out I hope the team will not kick any cactus this year.

TIME: 3/24/08 - 08:43AM PST
Race Clock:T-Minus 1 hours 47 minutes until the race starts (10:30AM PST, 1:30PM EST) Note: local Baja time is Pacific Standard time +1 hour or Eastern Standard time -2 hours
The race details have been revealed and it looks as though they are going to have a great time and see a lot of country zig-zagging west between San Felipe on the Sea of Cortez and Ensenada on the Pacific Ocean.  Here is how the various legs of the race have been laid out:

1. Paddleboard in the Sea of Cortez: one team member will paddle a board while the other two are to run along the shore.  Occationally, they may switch who paddles the board.  Distance: 5km (3 miles)
2. Desert Trek to the rally cars 30km (19 miles)
3. Desert Rally Cars: 25km (16 miles) This use of cars is to get teams across a very dangerous section of Baja where if you are not in a vehical you will likely be run over one.  The rally cars will be driven by local drivers, but teams will have to navigate and the drivers are under strict instructions not to help them.
4. Alpine Trek to canyon start point and up a canyon to a place in Baja called “Top of the World.” They will be climbing 7,000 feet in this leg and going over 35km (22 miles)
5. Bike mostly downhill single track.  This will likely be one of the many highlights of their journey 91km (57 miles)
6. Trek in canyonlands 26km (16 miles)
7. Bike another big downhill 60km (37 miles)
8. Trek in rolling foothills of Baja likely in and around farms 25km (16 miles)
9. Bike to the coast near Ensenada area 35km (22 miles)
10. Ocean Kayak to the Finish in Ensenada 17km (11 miles)

Total distance 339km (217 miles) not including any circles teams may “strategically” choose to take  

At this moment the racers are moving slowly to the beach start in Baja.  According to Brian Schmitz of Team Dirty Avocados II, they will begin the race by paddleboarding in a relay meaning there is one paddleboard per team. 

A paddleboard is like a surfboard, but basically differs in thickness to support somone in the water and a paddle board has padding that makes it comfortable to stay one while paddling.  A paddleboard can be paddled either laying down or kneeling.  One team member will paddle the board as the other two will be running along on the beach.  Prior to this race the Dirty Avocados sought out a local expert paddler in Santa Cruz and those on the team that could took classes in this relatively new edition to adventure racing.  This may be the first time that actual paddleboards were used in a race.  So, you can understand why the team took classes from the best person they could find. 

TIME: 3/22/08 - 11:00AM PST
Race Clock: T-Minus 2 days until the race starts
Donato, Jen, Adam D., and Adam A. driven thru Palm Springs and are likely driving south along the Salton Sea heading south to the border crossing into the Baja California metropolis of Mexicali.  After navigating Mexicali, the tour will hit Mexico Highway 5 straight south to San Felipe.  They are almost all there!

TIME: 3/21/08 - 6:43PM PST
Race Clock: T-Minus 3 days until the race starts (Monday 11:30AM)
Avocados began rolling south across the border over the last day. Donato wrote, “Word has it Brian and crew are already in San Diego, Mike and Susan are leaving today and Mark and Melissa are already in Baja.” Donato, Jen, Adam A., and Adam D. are staying in LA for the night.

TIME: 3/20/08 - 4:00PM PST
Race Clock: T-Minus 4 days until the race starts!
Tonight, the teams will begin to head south to the border of the US and Mexico. Along the way they will be staying with relatives and friends. This is the only warning to those relatives and friends to lock their doors and turn-off all their lights or at least hide their food. They are coming

TIME: 3/17/08 - 11:56PM PST
Race Clock: T-Minus 6 days until start.
We’re busy packing, tuning our bikes, and buying a lot of food!

###

Click here for most recent update.

Looking for information on the Dirty Avocados participating in the Baja Travesia? You’ve come to the right place!

We will be releasing race updates in a few ways:

1. We will post from the road as long as we have cell reception and service. You can read our short mobile blogs from the home page or by clicking here; On The Road Blog.
2. Will is going to be posting manual updates to our “Baja Travesia Race Update” blog. The most current update will be posted at the top of the article, THIS article your reading now. Read below for most recent update from Will.
3. In addition, you can check out the race web site to view a leader board. There Google maps pinpoint teams’ locations LIVE via GPS Satellite, you can read racer bios and more! Go to http://www.bajatravesia.com
   **Please, note that a GPS map location of the team that hasn’t moved in a while doesn’t mean anything is wrong with the team. Most likely it is poor satellite reception. We could also be sleeping!

As far as who is actually racing? It’s going to be a reunion of sorts in San Felipe. We have 2 Dirty Avocado teams if 3. Team “Dirty Avocados” consists of Adam Doti, Adam, Armijo andJen Rigoni and of course Donato as our crew! Our second team is Team “Dirty Avocados Too (II)” consisting of Mike Chastaine, Susan Bower and Brian Schmitz. Also racing is Mark Richardson and Melissa Griffiths with Adrian Crane representing the local favorite race; Team “Gold Rush”.

We would like to pay a very special thanks to our sponsors and supporters. Without them much of this wouldn’t be possible. Please, read all about them on our Sponsors Page or in the footer of this page.

Finally, leave us a note of encouragement in the Comments area at the bottom of this post.

~ Adios!

Finally a BAAR BRAWL that was completable.
This past Saturday organizers, whom shall remain anonymous to protect their identity, staged the infamous yearly “training event” outside San Francisco in Marin County, the Bay Area Adventure Racing BAAR BRAWL. The intent of this event is to be a 24-ish hour training adventure racing consisting of kayaking, mountain biking and running/trekking. In recent years teams have been pummeled by torrential downpours with sideways rain, punished by 12+ hour treks and on this team, even a broken collar bone. The BRAWL is widely considered to be unfinishiable, however this racer wants to note that in 2006 our team did actually “finish” after choosing to skip 3 pints on the return bike ride to the finish line after approx 28 hours of agony.

This years BRAWL would serve as a testing ground for a few GPS tracing devices we’ve often use; The TrackStick which historically has given us mixed and often frustrating usability results and worse customer service. The SPOT Satellite Tracker which the kind folks at SPOT flipped our way at the recent Outdoor Retailer Show in SLC. And our GPS tracker of choice, the Garmin Forerunner family of devices. In addition we tested the GoPro HERO camera and the Waterproof Pedometer by ARNavSupplies.com. I’ll have more details in my review of the above devices in a later post.

This race served as an opportunity for our team to gel and practice as we prepare for Primal Quest in later June. This year our Dirty Avocados squad consisted of Jen Rigoni, Adam Armijo, Donato Polignone and me, Adam Doti. Our fellow teammates Mike, Brian and Susan also raced to prepare for Primal Quest.

This event was a northern California “who’s who in AR” reunion. Those in attendance were (to protect identities I’ve used just first names. you know who you are) Rich, Gordon, Rick, Jon, Mark, Galen, Oliver, Mari, David, Mats and Jackie whom Mike and I raced with at Gold Rush last Fall and Team Lucky! These are all fellow racers I look up to and respect. I was more nervous racing the BRAWL than I have been in larger, more established races in the past

The start/finish and TA location was at Bucks Launching near China Camp in San Rafael. The location was absolutely perfect. Remote, safe and roomy, it allowed us to circle our vehicles and dump out all of our gear.

The event began with a rolling start because the launching area was rather small. Karen recorded our times as we left the dock. We chose to paddle the two Necky Kayaks we purchased from the Primal Quest organization a couple years ago. We nicknamed them the “albatrosses”, because of their incredibly heavy weight. Our boat choice defiantly handicapped us compared to the other racers’ faster boats. Even the rentals from Sea Trek probably weighed half as much as ours.

We started kayaking through the marsh channels towards highway 101. One advantage our team had in this years BRAWL was it was held about 1 mile from where I lived for 4 years. So I knew the marshes and trails like the back of my hand. We eventually made our way to the dock near McGinnis Park when we exited the boats and ran to the top of the hill behind the driving range. After nabbing the CP we were to complete a special test. Miniature golf! After completing the requisite 18 holes we tallied our score cards and ran back to our boats. We then paddled south along the sore to China Camp beach and spotted David Kelly. David advised us to make a b-line for the Richmond CP out by the lighthouse on the island before getting the point south of China Camp on another island due to the strong tides. So we took his advice and made for Richmond. Because of the tide we made it in no time!

This is where it gets out of hand. After completing the CP we continued clockwise around the island to make our way to the next CP back on the Marin side. When we did, DP and I found ourselves between 2 rocks/islands and the current whipping through this small channel built up such force that our kayak was pushed over towards the rocks. As the tide pulled out for a brief moment we could see about 5-8 feet down into a hole the ocean left! We started paddling like mad little dogs trying to get out of the pool! A-Bomb and Jen could only watch in horror before they realized they needed to paddle like mad as well to save themselves. DP and I inched our way out of that channel and ferried into the open water.

Slowly but surely we continued to fight the current and made it to the last kayak CP on the Marin side.We inched our albatross back to the TA just behind Rick most of the way.

Back at the TA we transitioned into our biking gear. The biking section would take us into Fairfax and Tamarancho as well as all over China Camp.

We decided to tackle Tamarancho first and make our way back to China Camp at night. We make quick business of the roads from CC to Fairfax and to the CP that was supposed to be on a sign above a bridge off of Scenic Rd. After searching with Jon and Rick we gave up, chalking it up to mis-plot. I would later find out while talking to Zen that it was in fact plotted about 80 feet too low.

We made it across Fairfax and up Alta Loma and then down to the bridge and up the new Whites Hill Trail and the backside of Tamarancho. After some debate on which way around Tamarancho would be quicker we decided to go counter clockwise.

It was around here where I had my encounter with the Terradactyl. While stopping for a brief moment to allow for my fellow teammates to regroup I heard a loud screech, or maybe more of a feeding call. As I looked up and out of the corner of my eye I saw probably the largest flying creature I have personally ever witnessed. In the twilight of the evening I could only see its silhouette. It’s wing span seemed to be as long as a VW bug and it moved in a slow motion like manner. By the time my teammates caught up it was long gone. Of course I exclaimed “did you hear and see that Terradactyl ?!” They just laughed and rolled on by down the hill into Fairfax. This Terradactyl would haunt me for the remainder of the race.

Around the back of Tamarancho and back down into Fairfax and back to San Rafael and the Dominican University Area. But not before stopping at 7-11 of course. We shoved Sun Chips, Hot Dogs and colas down our gullets to the horror of a couple kids riding their BMXs in the parking lot.

We climbed an unmarked dirt road overlooking 101 for a CP where I seem to startle a resident of the hill that was wondering what the “shiny A” was for. Then some single track on the south western side of CC eastward when we decided to take neighborhood streets to the next closest fire road to the CP. This would be faster than dinking around with the single track in the night.

We basically worked our way around China Camp counter clockwise popping in and out of China Camp to get the CPs. We came across a huge posse of racers headed in the opposite direction; our fellow DAs, Brian, Susan and Mike, We also saw Manning and his team as well as a few others. We finished up the bike leg with a ride along the shoreline trail back to the TA at Bucks Launching.

We then received our trekking maps and passport. The entire trek would be in China Camp. After dragging DP out of the bar at Buck’s we hit the pavement after a “liberal” TA.

Again we decided to tackle this counter clockwise. We headed down the road to 7-11 and an open space trail hidden behind the building that would take us up to an old mine for the first CP. We then took a bearing and scrambled up a very steep slope to the next CP on a small trail. It was a hideously steep climb up a muddy, loose, scree-like slope for what seemed like 1000 feet! Remember Shashank Redemption when Tim Robbins punched through the sewer pipe and pulled himself up out of the mud and yuck to freedom? … kinda like that.

I used “the force” and we popped out onto the trail only about 20 feet above the next CP!
We made our way up to the Howell Single Track trail on the back side of China Camp. We ran down the single track until we got to the intersection where ewe usually go stay left and make our way back up. We turned right and made our way for the next CP. After counting the pipes we headed back and came out on the fire road those winds up to the Nike missile site. We grabbed another CP on the way and it was somewhere around here at the top of China Camp that we ran into the other Avocados; Mike, Susan and Brian!

We continued on to the next few CPs together. There was a bonus CP, 5B, that we should have realized that if we continued down the ridge trail from CP8 that it would have taken us right to it. But earlier in the night we had decided to skip it because it wasn’t worth the 60 minute bonus.

The other DAs had completed all their CPs and we had one to go because they opted to acquire the CP1 right away while we opted for the CP2 behind 7-11. We parted ways and arrived back at the finish about 30 minutes behind them. We busted into the bar to find Ken sleeping in the floor in the bag next to the stove. It took some rousing but we finally awoke him so he could share our middle of the night misery

We finished about 4:45 am on Sunday after nearly 21 hours of racing. The parking lot still had alot of cars, guess China Camp had plenty of company tonight.

Seems that there has been a lot of creative interpretation of the race results ;) Depending on how you slice and dice it, we finished 6th, 2nd or 1st. Well, what do you expect for a “training event”! I’m calling it 2nd in the co-ed 3-4 person category, just minutes behind baarbd(again!) which is what is typically the elete category.

Before parting our ways north and south on 101, we regrouped at McDonalds and scarfed down some Egg McMuffins.

For more on how the SPOT, TrackStick and Garmin devices worked out, stay tuned for a follow up posting.

View Larger Map

Our SPOT data:
BAAR BRAWL 2008 (Using SPOT Data) at EveryTrail

Map created by EveryTrail:Share GPS tracks

TrackStick Data: Click Here
Garmin Data: Click Here
SPOT Data: http://everytrail.com/view_trip.php?trip_id=12979

On Saturday December 15, 2007 I entered my first Ultra marathon, the Muir Beach 50K put on by Pacific Coast Trail Runs.

Race Summary:  I managed to finish the 50K in 6:56:35, just inside my goal of between 6 1/2 and 7 hours.  The 50K course gained about 7400 feet of elevation.  I managed to keep moving pretty well throughout the event.  At 33K we crossed the start/finish and went back out for 17K.  I did the first 33K with 4280 ft of elevation gain in 4:14 which seemed pretty close to the pace I’d predicted for myself.  As I left I was still moving okay but my legs were getting sore.  I then decided that when I do another ultra I should probably train for it, something I really didn’t do for this one.  On the latter part of the course my hamstrings were hurting and felt like they were much too short..  When I’d reach the top of a climb I had trouble lengthening my stride and would get dropped at the top of the downhill by people I passed on he way up.  I am still pretty sore on Monday and if I’d been on duty Sunday I would probably have had to call in sick.  I think if I was at all prepared I would not be so sore. (more…)