It's official! Having done one 3-hour race in Kelowna, BC last August, I'll admit, I claimed that status a while ago, but the Canada race was over so quickly - it hardly counts. This one, however, (
Adventure Nelson's main event, Rollo's 24 hour) we wrapped up in 15 hours and 40 minutes, so it definitely makes the cut.
I came to Nelson three months ago with my eyes fixed on this event. I had stumbled upon the website even before setting foot in the country and knew that if I was going to race here, it would be at Rollo's. I've already shared the tumultuous story of how my stagnant luck turned for the better (finding a bike, job and the perfect teammates all in one week). Now it's time I got to the good stuff... or at least attempt some sort of race report so Brent stops nagging me for one!
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The weekend kicked off on Friday night with an orienteering prologue around the town of
St. Arnaud, race HQ and the northern gateway to
Nelson Lakes National Park. It only required two participants, which could include crew, so Luke and our speedy crew captain, Nige, laced up their running shoes for team R&R Sport Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. With swift nav and fast feet, the two cruised into the Red Deer Lodge sweaty and breathing hard, but ahead of all the other teams. Sure, it felt great to win the opening leg, but being in the early lead did nothing to alleviate my already growing anticipation for the actual race, which would begin at 5:30 Saturday morning.
After a rundown of the race course, teams rushed back, maps in hand to plot points and strategize with support crews. The course stretched in several directions from a central transition area located at the head of Lake Rotorua, so we would see our crews three to four times throughout the race. I frantically made up 6-hour food bags and sharpied instructions for hot soup, baked kumara (yams), avocado sandwhiches... the works! You certainly don't get that kind of fine cuisine when you're racing out of a backpack for 24 hours! Finally, by 11 pm, I was packed and showered and ready for a solid four hour sleep.
A pre-dawn glow illuminated the snow capped mountains surrounding the lake as we tried to organize gear under the tent at 5 am. In a matter of hours, we would be trekking in those far-off mountains en route to the turn around point at Angelus Hut. But first, a quick run around town and a team time trial up a steep gravel road on the bikes to the Mt. Robert car park was in order. Led by Trevor Voyce and
Luke Chapman (2nd and 3rd place finishers at this year's famed Coast to Coast), the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers established the pace at the front of the pack on the run and settled into second on the climb.
Switching bike shoes to sneakers cost us the small lead we had on the other four-person teams and the defending champs and favorite's to win, team
TenEvents, captained by local adventure racing legend Nathan Faavae sped off into the bush (having decided to bike all day in their running shoes and cages). We fumbled a bit too long and hit the trail still adjusting gloves and gaiters (I never even put mine on). We found our stride on the typical beech forest tracks – skinny, rooty, rocky and of course, muddy – soon after the second four-man team passed us not far along the way. They were another star-studded group, so we weren't too shaken and kept spirits up as we traversed down to the Speargrass track and the sun began to peek between the trees.
When we broke out of the treeline, we could see the teams just ahead of us, working their way up the snowy ravine toward a checkpoint at the saddle before then dropping down to a frozen lake and Angelus Hut. Slogging over icy creeks and through a maze of tussock grasses, we hit the snow only to discover it was mostly ice with tiny cuts for footholds, which were precarious to say the least, especially considering the flowing creek directly below. Carefully, we tip-toed along - up, up and up the steep slope to the top of the world. It was a magnificent 360 degree view from the ridge and a fun run/glissade through deep snow down to the lake.
We crossed paths with Nathan's team at the top of the ridge where I experienced a really strange case of deja-vu... it was that over-used heli shot from the EcoChallange tv series where the team runs along the rocky ridge patched with snow... only this time, I was really there! It was pretty cool.
On the way back down, I had an absolute ball with lots of singing across the scree and now even slicker ice slopes ("I feel the earth move under my feet") and the usual redneck, "Shot me a griz," banter that is for some reason so entertaining to Luke and I. It really didn't feel much like a race, just another jolly training day in the spectacular Southern Alps. Once we hit the lower trail, we picked up our pace and ran most of the long haul back to the transition. A few times, I found myself in mud up to my waist after watching in horror as Luke sunk past his knees into a sloppy pit, then immediately followed him in.
The paddle was pretty uneventful - a straight shot to the top of the lake and back along the shoreline. It would have been a lovely break from being on my feet, except for the immediate cramping that wouldn't go away on the left side of my body. It was terribly uncomfortable, but not debilitating and thankfully faded after I guzzled water,
Leppin and had a stretch at the first CP.
After roughly 2 hours on the water, and almost all day on my feet, I was surprised how great I felt when we left for the bike orienteering ("go and get") stage. We pushed to finish this leg in daylight, which was good for obvious reasons; it's easier to see things during the day, but perhaps more importantly, the temperature had already started to drop and my fingers and toes were suffering more and more with every splash through creek or puddle. We were still solidly in third place, gaining ground on second and miles ahead of third. Rach and I were starting to drag, but livened up at the final transition with Caitlin's warm cup of noodles, smiles and words of encouragement.
We hopped on the bikes again for the final journey... a beastly road ride to the Rainbow Ski Field and up what we would soon refer to as "C*%t Mountain" to the car park. The ride was rolling and my legs felt strong. We seemed to move pretty well through this section and even closed the gap to within 6 minutes of the second place team by the time we rolled into the checkpoint at the bottom of the hill. It occurred to me during this transition that I hadn't had more than a few sips of water or eaten a single thing in the 90 minutes we'd been riding... my legs were all of a sudden jelly and my body just could not warm up. Still, the race was on and we knew we were within reach of the top teams. Time to move! I chugged half a bottle of water, shoved a
One Square Meal bar into my mouth and away we went.
Now, this portion was called a biathlon, which required two team members to be on foot while the other two rode bikes to the top. Because our team included two inexhaustible steeds, Luke and Trev strapped the tow lines around their waists, handed over their loaded packs and began to run up the hill with Rach and I pedalling along in tow. It was miserably slow-going with jelly legs and an unrelenting hill. Not too steep or too rough, but agonizing all the same. Heart rates through the roof, quads screaming and attitudes faltering for the first time all day, this absurd train carried on for about 40 minutes until, in unison, Rach and I revolted.
Me: "Luke, can you stop? I need to walk..."
Luke: "No, no, no we're almost there," (He's now running backwards yanking on the tow line and trying, unsuccessfully, to encourage me to continue on).
Me: (starting to weave across the road) "No, seriously... please stop!"
Rach: "Luke, STOP! We're getting off! Trev, stop! Stop! Stop!"
Finally, the boys gave in. We dropped our packs and those cursed bikes in the middle of the road and began speed walking on what felt like fresh legs again. In a matter of minutes, the road turned to patchy sheets of ice. Soon, it was covered in a slick surface that would have prevented us from riding any longer regardless. The checkpoint had been moved due to the conditions and we saw the team in front of us as they cautiously negotiated the ice heading back down. Then, the moment of truth... how far will you go to catch a team? For Rach and I, this answer is "FAR".
The guys had been talking about it all day, but I couldn't be bothered with the details until now. Apparently, we were going to double, on the bikes, back down this bumpy, windy mountain road with a steep drop off on its outer edge. Now, doubling when you're a kid cruising around the neighborhood is one thing, but this required me to sit on the metal crossbar, legs over the handlebars and head on Trev's chest for more than 6 miles. Rach straddled the crossbar... not sure which would be worse. I had absolutely no control over my destiny! Fortunately, my bike is tiny and Trev could stand comfortably on the ground and drag his feet to keep balance, but I graciously closed my eyes, went to my happy place and endured every bump.
It's hard to say whether we slowed down or the team in front of us picked up the pace when they realized that we had substantially closed the gap, but we never saw their lights on the roughly 25 km ride back to town and they finished about 20 minutes ahead of us in the end. Nathan's team won overall, no surprises there! It was really cool to compete against not just that team's physical abilities, but all his experience! It clearly demonstrates how experience correlates directly to efficiency, especially in transitions.
Cold, wet and pretty darn near shot after racing hard all day, we camped out next to the roaring fire inside the lodge until our slacker-of-a-crew team decided to make their way to the finish line (well after we'd already finished). To be fair, they hadn't heard the last CP had moved and just didn't expect us to be so fast!
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All said and done, I had a great weekend at the lake. In bed by 10:30? Was that really a 24 hour adventure race!? Still, racing hard and fast all day, into the mountains, being towed right from the start, having warm meals and a happy crew usher me back onto the course after each transition... quite a different experience from what I'm used to!
The landscape on that first foot section was absolutely breath-taking (not only because we were running it!) and the people involved in the race - volunteers, Search and Rescue, crews and racers alike - were all so friendly, helpful and out to have a good time! I definitely enjoyed myself and appreciate everyone who chipped in gear, training time and a "good luck" to make it possible.
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The Power Rangers and I, the "American import" even saw some press!
SportzhubThe Nelson Mail
