Hi from Mike.  I’m writing under DPs log as I can’t remember my password.

Everyone is off the course, well feed and beginning to heal.  Now that we have gotten some sleep in a real bed and a real shower, we all enjoyed the post race party and are beginning to reflect on the enormity of this great event.

There are many great stories to be told.  Those will come out over time.  Overall it was a great effort by all of the DA’s with DAII talking 18th and DA I breaking the top 30.

While feet are pretty messed up and several of us are on antibiotics, the over all health of everyone is very good.

This was an epic event covering over 545 miles and climbing over 65,000 vertical feet.   The highlights for me were the riverboarding and the rope section. Due to weather  not everyone got to do those sections as the river was closed after several rescues and the ropes were closed due to lighting.  DA I was waiting to go up the ropes when the lighting hit and wasn’t allowed to complete that section.

We were very sorry to lose Susan.  She was a victim of her own toughness. She literally rubbed the skin off her heal all the way down to the tendon sheath.  She never complained or said anything until it was too late to do anything.  She went into medical and it was clear that she was risking possible perminate injury if she went on.  Susan made the only decision that she could and had to withdraw.  I honestly believe that we would have been ever faster if she could of stay on.

Brian over came really bad feet through out the race and showed great courage to just keep moving

Team 56 traveled a great deal with Dancing Panda on several treks and though the ropes.  we really enjoyed their company and working together.

The next few days are going to be spend resting, visiting, sharing stories and cleaning up gear for the trip home.

We all greatly appreciate the love and support from everyone.

We will begin posting blogs over the next few week, sharing our stories and experiences.

DA II (team 56)arrived at CP9 in 15th place.  DA team 62 is not far behind and currently listed in 21st place although not at CP9 yet.  Dancing Pandas are right in the same area.

I still haven’t heard from the support crews, wainting to hear how the teams are feeling and looking.

Both DA teams are well into the first paddle section.  The “Tracking” page has 56 in 21st and 62 in 31st, but the leaderboard has them in 24th and 33rd respectively.  It appears that the race organization had to shuttle inflatable kayaks and dozens of teams stacked up at TA3 waiting for boats.  If this is indeed what happened I’m not impressed, very poor planning by PQ.

 I’m hoping to contact some one from the crews soon.  Aja, are you out there?

June 20, 2008:
Teams arose from the Wild Star Casino and Motel at 9am Friday morning. All teams members are still healthy only a few were tired due to the fact that they stayed up till three in the morning drinking and gambling in the casino. Although, Brian made $275 enough the cover the cost the tire expense. Goal for the first trek of the mornings drive is too get to Idaho Falls to complete grocery shopping for the first five or six days of the trip. From there we will be three hours shy of Big Sky our final destination.

June 19, 2008:
Both teams were safely underway, traveling quickly through the flat lands of Nevada when suddenly team #56 blew a tire. No one was hurt. But the trailer fender was mangled and required some prying to dislodge it from the base of the trailer.  Luckily, team #62 arrived only minutes behind and added a few helping hands. Of course, the situation could not have gone smoothly. There had to be some element of difficulty added to the moment. While lowering the trailers weight onto the tire we discovered the spare tire was nearly flat. In order, to get under way Brian Schmitz had to pump the spare tire with a bike pump (A hilarious sight to see to any one passing by). After 45 minutes passed and both teams were underway off to purchase two new tires, an addition to the already growing PQ cost.

Congratulations to the Make-A-Wish Raffle winners.

Grand Prize- Grognard bike frame – David R.

Messenger bag – Karen B.

Sole Custom Footbeds – Eudean G.

Carbon bike stem – Kristin K.

Carbon seatpost – Melanie A.

Kenda bike tire – Chris P.

Kenda Karma tire – Julie S.

Kenda Klaw tire – Donald S.

Kenda bike tire – Amy R.

Cliff bars – Katie B.

Treking poles – Donald S.

Bhip energy drink – Lynda R. and Susan T.

La Sportiva shoes – Brian D. and David F.

Motion Based 1 year subscription – Marcia W. and Kristin K.

Road Atlas – Tony P.

Laminated world map – David F.

Nat Geo softwear – Lynda R.

Wingnut womans pack – Tatyana C.

The Dirty Avocados will continue to raise money for the Make-A-Wish foundation up to and through Prima Quest. Please send your donations through this website.

Only one week left to get your raffle ticket to support the make a Make A Wish foundation and a chance to win a handmade, custom built bike frame.  Its a great cause and tickets are only $10.  Don’t miss out.

Less then 30 days till PQ and we are excited. Everything is falling in to place nicely. We now have our crew set.

Aja Cook. Aja is one of the original Dirty Avocados. She has lots of AR and Mountain biking experience and is going to be a huge help to us as we work our way through the Montana back country. Aja is good with bike repairs and will be a sight for sore eyes when we get to the TA.

Matthew Fox is our latest pick up. We met Matt over the internet as he hails from Chicago. He worked with John Howard and the PQ organization in Utah and is very excited about getting involved in Montana. Matt races in the mid west and is extremely organized. We are very happy to have him a board.

By Gordon Wright

Team Dirty Avocados is a Northern California adventure racing phenomenon, part semi-elite racing squad and part slapstick revue. In a world where too many adventure racers take themselves – and the sport – too seriously, the Dirty As keep it real. They are a team in a very real sense – comprising of a revolving cast of at least 11 members who train hard and race harder. With such a large squad, there is a bit of good-natured competition among the members, but over the past three years, they have notched impressive podium finishes in races ranging from Raid the North Extreme and Baja Travesia to the Tahoe Big Blue and the Gold Rush 24 Hour Adventure Race.

The Dirty Avocados have, for the first time, two teams entered in this summer’s Primal Quest, and I was able to catch up with three key team members at a pub recently. Unfortunately, what started out as an interview turned into something out of a Hunter S. Thompson manuscript, replete with large quantities of beer, displays of manly love, and complaints about Primal Quest’s onerous certification program.

The team was founded, with fairly disastrous results, in 2005, in my driveway. But that’s for later on in the story. First, meet some Dirty Avocados:

Gordon Wright (GW): So where does everyone live, anyway?

Adam Armijo (AA): “North Beach (San Francisco). Where the action is. At least when I’m in town.”

(Editor’s note: Adam “A-Bomb” Armijo is 34, is EMT certified, does consulting work for BearingPoint and looks like your typical lantern-jawed California surf dude. Yes, he’s single. Some of the time.)

Adam Doti (AD): “I’m a Web artiste.”

GW: [Puzzled look]

AD: “Just say that I’m a user experience architect.”

(Editor’s note: We’re not sure what that means, either, but AD is 34 and is no doubt instrumental to the development of one of adventure racing’s best websites, www.dirtyavocados.com).

Donato Polignone (DP): “I’m a migrant farmer. Just kidding! I just started my own business to pay for adventure racing, a specialty chemical company called NuGenTec. Which, weirdly, is one of our sponsors.”

(Editor’s note: Both Polignone and Doti live in Petaluma, California. DP is wiry, intense and 40, and looks it).

AD (as he’s unloading onto our table eight maps, three river guides and two books – all of which feature the Big Sky region of Montana): “He’s single too, but he has a girlfriend. Who is NOT happy with adventure racing. His Google Calendar is blocked out with massive hours for AR training and racing. She is NOT pleased.”

GW: And how old is Jen (Rigoni, the last member of Team Dirty Avocados for PQ)?

DP: “We’re not saying. Call it 29.”

GW: Alright, let’s start with the name: how did you come to be called “Dirty Avocados?”

AA: “It depends on who you talk to.”

AD: “It’s a love/hate thing. Dirty fruits from San Francisco? Not great for the sponsorship chase. But really, Will Gilmore, Brian Schmitz and Mark Richardson went for a birthday ride together, and they wanted to put a local team together with a California-centric name. They threw out all kinds of different produce names, and descriptors for adventure racing.”

AA: “Moist Avocados was in the running there for a while.”

DP: “It just works. Doesn’t it?”

GW: Your first race was the 2005 BAAR Brawl that started at my house.

AD: “Yeah, that was the one where Brian broke his collarbone early in the race.”

(Editor’s note: In a foreshadow of how well this team works together, the DA team refused to read any race reports or scout the course, regrouped once Schmitz’s shoulder healed, then did the entire race course from start to finish months later.)

GW: Most AR teams certainly aren’t as large as the DAs. Or if they are, it’s more of a club. How did you get to be this size? What were you thinking?”

AD: “We don’t want to be a club, we’re a team. We don’t really recruit, we cherry pick. Though if you’re a female and breathing, you’re in. Kidding of course… sorta. We don’t want to grow, but if we have to grow, we might, but we don’t add for the sake of growth. (Editor’s note: Clearly, the beers are kicking in). That’s what clubs are for. It does make presence at races easier, because we can all race together well and gear up for, say, series that have season-long points standings.”

GW: And how does the team operate? Via email?

AD: “Yeah, we have a mailing list.”

DP: “We get 100 emails a day.”

GW: [Puzzled, incredulous look}

AD: “He’s not kidding. For real, we get at least 10-35 emails a day, more before a big race. It’s amazing how much detail there is: mandatory gear, travel, certifications, food, products, sponsors.”

DP: “BSchmitz is on every AR and endurance list in the US, and forwards everything.”

GW: So let’s have the total run-down, who’s on the team?

AD: “We have 11 total members. The three of us will be racing PQ with Jennifer Rigoni. The other PQ team (#56) is Susan Bower, Mike Chastaine, Will Gillmore and Brian Schmitz. The other members are Aja Cook, Mark Richardson and Melissa Griffiths.”

GW: And how is the team structured?

AD, AA, DP: [Puzzled looks]

DP, cryptically: “To those who give, much is given.”

(Editor’s Note: At this point, we’re well into our second or third pints, and the interview goes from free-form to incoherent.)

AD: “We basically have two squads. There is some merit and reward based on time commitment. We all help with organization and helping.”

GW: Have you found that the certification program for PQ helpful?

AA, cryptically: “It’s as serious as the team takes it.”
.
AD: “Most of it (was helpful). My swim form improved.”

AA: “The strainer drill (in the swift-water certification) was valuable.”

DP: “I started AR not to swim. Then I had to swim a mile.”

GW: How much time do you spend weekly training? Hey, you chew Copenhagen?

DP: [Puzzled stare]

(Editor’s note: Donato paused between beers to pack a wad of Cope in his lower lip. A long, discursive conversation ensued between GW and DP as to the adventure racing merits of Copenhagen Long Cut while AA and AD ordered more beer.)

DP, spitting: “Between five and thirty. It depends on if I’m racing, and I like to race.”

AD: “Between three and ten.”

AA: “10-12”

GW: AD, you have a three-and-a-half year-old and a 5-month-old. How did you get the hall pass to do this race?

AD: “Good question.”

DP: “You should ask (Doti’s wife) Brenda.”

(Editor’s note: at this point, Doti punches up his home number on his cell phone and his wife answers)

AD: “Honey, we’re sitting with Gordon Wright. He’s interviewing us and wants to know how I talked you into letting me do PQ.”

Brenda Doti, sighing: “I ask myself that every day.”

(Editor’s note: Doti rings off after some contrite apologies)

AD: “She’s awesome. Basically I kept ordering Montana maps and tacking them up on our kitchen walls. I think I just wore her down.”

GW: What about the financial commitment of the race? How’s that going down?

DP: “My girlfriends keep breaking up with me about this”

AD: “Our sponsors have helped us greatly in providing us with gear and support.

GW: You may now give them a shout-out.

AD: “La Sportiva provides us with shoes, Billabong provides us with wetsuits, Carlson Designs supplies us with River Boards, Red Bull of course fuels us with energy drinks, National Geographic provides us with maps for doing recon, CRKT hooked us up with knives and tools, SOLE hooked us up with footbeds and kaia foods has also fuled us with all natural granola. CAMP and Liberty Mountain also provide support to help make the truckload of mandatory gear we need to purchase feasible.”

GW: So what’s the team strategy for PQ?

AA: “Just finish.”

DP: “Finish without being short-coursed.”

AD: “We want to finish intact. The people on my team are worth more than any particular race.”

GW: What are the team’s weaknesses?

All: “Transition areas.”

GW: How has your training for the Primal Quest been different from past races?

DP: “It’s a lifestyle. You can’t go on a bike ride and make it into an ‘AR ride.’ The only thing that’s different is the certifications.”

AA: “The training is a little more intense. More of it is mental.”

AD: “We’re diligent because of our teammates. We don’t want to let them down.”

DP: “My preparation isn’t any different; it’s still like driving nails into my nail beds. Maybe more long, slow workouts.”

AD: “I’m doing more spin classes.”

(Editor’s note: Donato proceeds to launch into a detailed, almost loving reverie on Adam Doti’s increased strength on the bike, while GW looks at his watch and is alarmed).

GW: Well, guys, I think I have everything I need.

AD: “Don’t you want to ask us more questions?”

(Editor’s note: Doti is referring to the list of 22 additional questions that he had helpfully provided prior to the interview.)

GW: “No, I think 1,500 words will just about do it.”

Watch for Teams #62 and #56 at this year’s Primal Quest. They’ll be the ones near the front, representing NorCal and having a blast.

————————————————-

Gordon Wright is a contributing editor to Competitor NorCal and the former Media Director of Primal Quest. His own adventure racing team used to beat the Dirty Avocados.

Every once in a while I have had a brake through race. This was one of them. My training in preparation for Primal quest had been going well. Although the results in Baja were not what I hoped for – physically I was strong and fast the entire 4 + days.

Physically, with the exception of a nagging calf injury, my health was good and my plans of frequent rest seemed to be working. In addition I had raced at Cool last year so I knew the kind of effort that was needed.

This year Will and Brain were joining me as 24 hour soloist, Jon was on the 8 hour course and Jen, DP, Aja and a guest were racing as a 4 person teams. So we would have lots of help and excitement. We also had a great crew.

My goal was to cover 200+ miles (last year I did 187) and win the Masters Division. In addition, I just wanted to keep moving and avoid any major brake downs.

The race started fast. My first few laps felt good and I was making good time. (1:02, 1:04, 1:06.) I was drinking as much as I could because it was warm. Lap 5 I stated cramping a bit. A handful of E-caps and I felt better.

Lap 6 I pitted to eat solid food, change clothes, clean the chain and put on lights. In and out in 20 minutes.

Just after midnight, I had 10 laps (123 miles) in and was still feeling strong. I took another 20 minute pit to eat, clean the chain and switch the gearing. For you gearheads – I was running a 33X18. I switched to a 33X20 to make the climbs a bit easier.  For the record, I was riding a Gary Fisher Rig with 29 inch wheels.  I used semislick Stan’s 29er Crow tires. They were perfect.

My new lights were great.  The 600 lume Dinotte worked like a champ. Light weight, with long burn times, I could see what needed to be seen.  Even with these great lights, some of the down hills were so fast that I would have to ride by memory and hope that nothing changed.

The course was 12.3 miles long with about 1500 of climbing. Out of the start chute was a fun single track that I could whip through. This lead to a small climb, another quick down hill, then the first real climb. After that came a screaming down hill leading to another fun bit of single track through the trees. A short climb on single track leading to the decent into Knickerbocker creek. Through the creek and then a very steep climb out (which I walked every time,) then a fast down hill, a relatively flat single track leading to the road to the aid station. A fast road downhill, then climb back out. A fast down hill leading to Salt Creek. The climb out of Salt Creek was the longest and hardest with 2 separate climbs. I rode the whole thing the first 4 laps. Thereafter I walked a 150 meter section in the middle. Finally, after the last climb, a smoking downhill with some short climbs and finally to the pit area. This course was 1.3 miles longer and 300 feet more climbing then last year.

After the midnight pit, I continued to ride strongly till around 4 am. That lap (#13) was wobbly and I was really feeling the 160 miles I had put in.

Just after 5 am I came in and pitted for about 40 minutes. I slept for about 5 minutes in a chair, ate, changed clothes and as soon as it was light took off for the last 6 hours.

At this point I was about 45 minutes ahead of 2nd in the division. I pushed through laps 14, 15 and 16. I was still moving well, about 1:20 a lap. I flatted on lap 16 – the only mechanical of the day. Finishing lap 16 (196 miles) I was told I was still about 40 minutes ahead of second. Just to be safe and because I had time, I went out on lap 17. I finished in 23 hours 27 minutes. 209 miles with about 25500 feet of climbing

I won the Masters Division (an open 45+ division) on a single speed. I was 4th over all among all solos. Interestingly, 3 of the top 4 and 7 of the top 12 were single speed riders.

Brian was 12th overall and 6th in the single speed division. Will was 5th in the open division and 15th overall. Jon got 10th in the 8 hour division. Jen, DP, Aja and Chris took 4th in the open 4 person division.

A great day for the DA’s.