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LAKE ADVENTURES
MILFORD, KS
785-307-1901
extremekansas@yahoo.com
MILFORD, KS
785-307-1901
extremekansas@yahoo.com
A field of amazing racers took on Milford Lake, 3 counties, an unusual "performance" CP, a suprise and/or dark start and one of the coldest days on record for this time of the year.
Most of them came through feeling completely challenged, positive and surprised at the new limits they were able to push through. Great race everyone!
THE RACE
The cold and beautiful Republican River
At 5:30am in the pitch dark at 27 degrees, the long course racers boarded buses and headed North. I was surprised how quiet everyone was en route and wondered if they were
either silently praying or cursing the teammate who got this crazy idea to start with. Then the bus stopped and they were gone, 45 headlamps heading toward the River. The cold
helped to make for some serious motivation. Surprise though, there is a GP Medium Army tent set up right next to the ramp (the entire area is off limits to camping, but at least
they could have set up out of the way at the turnabout?). Emerging from the tent now are men in their long underwear probably scared out of their wits at the commotion
happening feet away from them as all 45 headlamps are trying to remove canoes from trailers and launch into the darkness. The canoe transport team--Tammy, Tim and Mike
have already made acquaintance since they arrived 15 minutes ago when they had been equally as excited about backing up 3 trailers ½ mile down the road in the dark due to
blocked boat ramp as were both bus drivers.
I wanted to press the rewind button at this point, but racers were more than ready to canoe down the river in the dark—I even heard Claire (I think?—3 Blind Mice) say how thrilled
she was to be able to this. It’s going to be OK, Carol (photographer) keeps telling me that. Plan B was safe unless someone got lost, but I knew there were some great
navigators ahead of the pack in the water that would help lead the way. Worst case scenario, rescue on the river south of Gatesville is mostly deep enough for a boat until you get
out of the channel skirting the Sugar Bowl—but I’ve discussed with racers the risks of taking shortcuts and getting too far from shore, so they should stay close to safety and on
course. They all have their teammates, each team has a cell phone and other teams will be penalized if they leave a team on the course who is in trouble—so I head to N Timber
Creek to set the ropes course. Later in the day I heard a lot of comments (Drain Bramage and 3 Builders and a Shocker) on the beauty of the sunrise on the water—flocks of
Pelicans and several Great Blue Herons gave a nice welcome to the first canoes entering the wetlands from the river. I’ll bet it was a awesome sight.
Sherry is at CP4 with her family in tow ready to stage bikes and provide watercourse CP support. Why she returned at all after March’s race where she stood in the freezing
30mph wind monitoring that water course for 5 hours I can’t imagine. But it’s so nice to see her again and bikes are already coming in for the Discovery. Then I meet up with
Melissa, Ellen, Emily and Kylee who are bubbling with excitement to volunteer again. Having these girls on the ropes is an added bonus for racers, because their personalities
and sense of humor make everyone feel at ease. So now finally I’m feeling relaxed and having a great time, then the phone rings.
Teams are coming in already. The fast paddlers/great navigators even exceeded my expectations. Whew—better be quick to finish up the ropes/staging/volunteer direction. But
the phone rings again and we have someone needing medical attention at CP4 due to hypothermia, so 911 activates Clay County emergency responders. In the meantime, the
phone rings AGAIN—this time it’s a racer, so I know something is wrong again. Vincent (Team Iowa) is on the line talking about capsizing, canoe/paddles down river, etc When
asked about current condition and ability to get dry/warm—he says fishermen at the boat ramp (the ones I was sort of upset with earlier) have built a fire and retrieved the canoe--
his team is OK,but they will need a transport. Good Karma is finally coming back—I’ve been waiting for some time. Melissa offers to go get Team Iowa from Gatesville, so I head
to CP4 to evaluate. John (Flying Hellfish) is now dry and covered in warm vehicle—plus able to answer all my questions, so I ask volunteer on line with dispatcher to cancel the
call. Too late, they are coming anyway—better safe than sorry.
51 more racers are getting ready for the Discovery back in Milford, so I need to get back to answer prerace questions and relieve new volunteers, Scott and Kathleen. Split second
decision is made to cancel the water course for the Discovery before I leave N Timber Creek. Water conditions are decent, not great—though I never promised anyone a “rose
garden”. However, 2 teams have already been in danger because of cold air temp mixed with wet bodies/boats. Enroute to Milford, the phone rings again—a team is still on the
water and volunteers are concerned. My race watch shows they still have 30 minutes on the water before I panic, but I know Team LA more than others . . . Melissa is meanwhile
at Gatesville collecting wet team Iowa and chatting with fishermen when she gets the call we have a team missing on the water, so she prepares to go down river in the jon boat
with the GP medium fishermen. Thankfully, Team LA lands at CP4 within the next few minutes. Shortly after returning to Milford, I hear the great news that all members of Team
Iowa and the Flying Hellfish are cleared and back on the course.
Discovery Teams Enter the Course
Back at the city building, there’s an extra volunteer—Sarah—and I really start to thank my lucky stars. Scott, Kathleen and Sara have it all covered, so now I can check UTM plotting
on team maps before we take off and explain that the watercourse is cancelled. In all the fluster, I never considered that the “Disco” teams were probably wondering how they
were getting from Milford to the start without their bikes—but when the announcement was made to go outside and board the buses there was a loud and collective sigh of relief.
On the road again, teams are a noticeably louder than the earlier group, probably because of the daylight and they are heading in the direction of their bikes without having to run
or canoe there. Plus there are many new teams that are so excited to get started on the race they have trained and planned for so many months. They remind me of when I
started racing. . . scanning the teams, I see a biker here, a navigator, a runner, a kayaker over there—a lot of racers have until now concentrated on one sport and now have
crossed the bridge to grow in other areas as well. But the biggest change they are going to feel today is witnessing first hand a competitive team sport with some of the most
remarkable sportsmanship and attitudes they have probably seen in their lives.
As they take off down the gravel/dirt road with smiles and good cheer (Blake from the Old Goats), I head back to Milford to get the Rover and start chasing their progress and find
the teams in the long course. There are many checkpoints in this race that are not mandatory and can be skipped with penalty—so I’m thinking I’ll find people all over the place
based on physical ability and comfort with terrain association. Not so.
CPs 10-16
A few are at S Timber Creek and one team is exiting the way point (3 Builders and a Shocker), but everyone else is between CPs 10 and 13. This section was on foot for the long
course and bike for the short course. No riding/running on pavement allowed leaves for a pretty big area to cover if you don’t find the easiest route. Ft Riley’s Marina and training
area are pretty rugged. But racers are bushwhacking through some thick stuff—trying to find a shorter route? CPs 8-10 were not too hard to get to for most teams, and some
even found the old bridge across the marsh (Team Inconceivable?)—probably due to great compass work. Using the recently cut hayfield (CP 10) to get to the old roads/trails
was the fastest, easiest way to CP 11, then those who headed the hint (on dead tree on shore across from point) and took the beach up to where you were facing the point on the
other side found it pretty quickly.
Getting to 12 and 13 were a little more difficult—take the no maintenance road (circa 1989?) all the way around or go around the inlet via difficult bushwhack or swim/wade
across—teams returning from 2008 may have felt like they were reliving legendary Checkpoint 8. Teams on bike and teams on foot probably looked at this decision a lot
differently. On foot or bike, CP 12 was easier to find from the bushwhack route. From 12 to 13 on foot teams could head straight North along the shore about 1/8th of a mile, then
about 100 yards East to where the trail should be (pace counting after you cross the creek bed would be the best method). However, if you found the trail and then headed South
on it—you were probably pretty happy until the trail disappeared before you got the CP. One quick strategy here would be to get up out of the ravine and skirt around it, go to the
close-by hilltop shown on the topo map were the trail is supposed to be and work your way backwards 100 yards or so. On bike from 12 to 13 it would have been pretty time
effective to go back to the road from 12 and take it around the whole ravine—especially if some team members were starting to drag and carrying their bike would make it worse.
On to CP13 was another navigational challenge. Do you skirt the shoreline, head cross country or take the trail inland to the road to locate the next trail to the CP? The cross
country route was a good choice for teams that can nail terrain association. Skirting the shoreline would have taken the most time and most work. Heading up to the road from
the trail was the easiest route—physically and mentally—until teams got to road to hit the trail shown on the map on the other side—only to find the trails leaving the road to 12
and 13 weren’t where they were shown on the topo map. By this time, people are a little tired and not thinking quite as clearly as they would if they were fresh. This is where
preparation, team training and mental strategy really come into play. When the team is ready to give up because they don’t believe the trail exists—take 5 minutes and rule it out
before giving up (and sometimes that means stop moving for a few minutes to develop a plan). The best way to find these trails would be work your way in the right direction to
the highest point shown on the topo map and look for the trails. When you are “in the weeds”, it’s really hard to see the big picture. BTW, it’s also much easier to navigate the
easiest route when you’ve taken all possible ins/outs of CPs (me). I also took the wrong way first when I was plotting.
CPs 14 and 15 presented another navigational challenge—the original CP was supposed to be “on the point”—but which one? The altered CP (new UTMS on Note 2) was inland
from the point, simply because the day before the race I decided some easier CPs this close to Milford would be great for team’s spirits. Some teams definitely did not catch that
change on the note or in the announcements and checked every point the hard way when the marker was just South of the main trail going straight to Milford.
MILFORD IDOL
First time in any Adventure Race that I know of where teams had to karaoke at a bar. Brad, the owner of the Tropics, has always been great in past events and wants to support
these races any way he can—so this time, I thought wouldn’t it be nice to bring the entertainment to him? To make it more realistic, a local crowd was on hand to provide an
audience for the performances. But seriously, the true intent of this checkpoint was not to embarrass anyone or make them uncomfortable. Being a good team in an Adventure
Race means that as a team you are prepared to take on team challenges with motivation and collective effort. Team challenges can vary a lot in different races (they will have
some things in common—they should be in good taste, not involving motorized transport and add a physical or mental strategy or team decision).
The teams that scored the most points in this challenge did not necessarily sing the best (sorry Golden Girls), but everyone in their team showed a lot of motivation and
teamwork. They took the challenge on without hesitation and made it the best they could given everyone’s strengths and weaknesses. Then there were some teams that were
dancing fools (in a good way). I’m just saying, if you can do the worm (with flair and elevation no less) on a bar room floor after 6 hours busting through brush in the bitter cold—
this race probably needed to be harder for you? This checkpoint was not only an opportunity to earn a bonus, it was also a strategical mental boost mental boost for teams. By
this time in the race, some teammates may be frustrated with one another and seriously questioning their own physical limitations—when you start thinking that way, you cannot
win a race or even enjoy it. I thought this CP would offer a change of scenery, a break from the physical/mental race focus and allow teams to hit the “refresh” button—before
moving on. On the flip side, some teams were so tempted by the warmth, smell of pizza and beer that they decided to just stay put. Austin, Emily, Jeremy, Zach, Brennan, Emily,
Ellen and Kylee were the perfect volunteers—and most racers really loved CP18. BTW, some of the songs on the CPs were supposed to be offered for your karoake choice, but
last minute I found out that a different CD was brought with the machine. I was so looking forward to Jailhouse Rock and I Will Survive--darn.
CPs 16, 17 and 18 in the town of Milford probably made more of an impact on the local population than you know—thank you! Many people are here think I’m a little extreme, but
seeing all of you out there doing what they usually only see me doing gave many locals a whole new perspective (no previous races have gone through Milford). They were able to
see that adventure racers come in all different ages, sizes, and ability levels—and I’m sure they were impressed to see teams so motivated and happy while in an extremely
challenging endurance race. Maybe eventually some of them will try it out?
ACORNS RESORT
CPs 19, 20 and 21 at Acorns Resort. I’m sure you figured that we would HAVE to throw our new trail in the race somewhere. Many teams got confused here about whether they
could ride the pavement. Rules of travel were on the notes—unless stated as a rule means you can choose your own course. However, once you got to Acorns the rules were
different depending on whether you were long or sprint course. Some long course teams did the whole trail when they didn’t have to—easy mistake to make if you don’t make a
plan before getting on the bike. The easiest way to get these CPs would have been to strategize before leaving Milford, where it would be obvious that access to 20 is easy and
quick right off HWY 77, then back out to the highway or at least the open til you could cut across the big parking lot to the road into the resort and to CP 19. CP 21 would have been
easiest access by following road to the lodge, then follow trail till you find marker. From here it’s a quick bushwhack to get to the road leading to CP 22. For the sprint course,
teams had to do the whole 5k trail collecting checkpoints along the way. Some teams could not locate CP 20, because that loop would be easy to miss while following the flags
only and not the trail map.
CP21—this Checkpoint somehow went missing and was a defining moment for many teams in the race, especially those whose navigation until now had put them dead on. By
the time I heard about the missing CP and confirmed that it was not on the trail anywhere, several teams had already felt the physical and mental toll of not being able to find it.
Maybe I’ll microchip these things so I could track them down when things like this happen. Either a pack rat is sporting new orange décor in their nest or someone is apparently
leading an extremely unhappy and boring life. Although I offered “excessive search” time back to racers, that could not compensate for how not finding the CP affected the rest of
their race.
CP19 was the bonus comment bag. Thanks to all of you who took the time to do this! Here are some quotes from the cards . . .
"epic adventure", "the balmy weather has been exhilerating", "red fox frolicking on the shore", "beautiful stone cliffs", "loved the comaraderie between teams", "rappelling was
awesome", "our team has grown and pushed our limits", "trails are tough but beautiful", "not wet", "townspeople are friendly", "range of emotions", "spending a whole day together
as husband and wife and losing 3-5 pounds", "beautiful fall colors", "multiple peanut butter sandwiches", "this experiences has exceeded anything we could have imagined",
"trying to impress the Idol judges", "learning how to communicate more efficiently", "really glad for volunteers present to save us from hypothermia" and "volunteers were so nice".
More common than any other comment was referring to the comaraderie that teams experienced on the course throughout the day. Endurance sports that involve a team aspect
outdoors in the wilderness/elements quickly weed out racers who are in it for themselves, negative, unable to carry their weight and otherwise not exactly well rounded yet . . .
meaning that there enough positive and team spirited people on the course that those with negative attitudes tend to keep quiet and eventually exit the sport of adventure racing.
This makes for a great race experience across the board . . and results in faster finish times.
CPs 22-33 (Long Course Only)--serious biking at last
These checkpoints involved about 24 miles (bikers would have already done 3 mi from Milford to Acorns) on varied terrain, including 2 mi cross country (hayfield mostly with some
shallow wading), 10 mi single track or at least decent trails, 1 mile on gravel trail, 7 miles on pavement and 4 miles on gravel road. These CPs could have been gotten in any
order, none were mandatory but all had penalties for not getting. This was an awesome route that I really love for the changing pace/scenery/challenge (3 hrs at an average
pace) and am kind of bummed alot of teams didn't make it too far because of the cutoff time of 7:30pm. 3 Builders and a Shocker got the most of anyone and sounds like they
put in the miles to do the whole bike course. When this team did not return from the bike route by 6pm, I knew something was up. One issue was CP23, the same location I had
an opportunity to meet 30-40 festive pontoon party goers on the beach on Labor Day--as I busted out of the brush, full pack, map case, helmet on, carrying my bike with no shoes
on since I had just waded around vegetation on shore. Normally people try to avert their gaze if they are shocked, but no one did--wide eyed with mouths hanging open and not a
word uttered. What can you say at a moment like that? Hello and goodbye, real quick, was the only thing that came to my mind.
THE END
This has been my most favorite race directing experience yet. It was so challenging to direct 2 races at one time and deal with last minute changes. The preparation alone was
consuming--involving major lack of sleep since my real job kept me busy 40 hrs a week already. My family's patience and support were extremely helpful, and it's good that I don't
direct more adventure races because at least they can look forward to a lull in the activity around here. But the volunteers this year helped me enjoy the race more than ever
because they were at the CPs handling things so well and I could get out on the course with the teams. Getting to watch teams experience the race is so worth all of the time,
effort and energy that gets put in. Of course, there are still things and teams that I missed out on with a course this size. I hardly got to see some teams, probably just missing
you here and there--but your names are on my list for tracking priority next race. Whoop whoop right?!
And, in case you were wondering . . . IF you knew EXACTLY where you were going, chose the best route to travel given rules and moved at an average race speed, your
miles/timeline would be:
Start Run (Both), 2 miles—30 min
Modified Watercourse (MLE), 5 miles—1 hr 15 min
Modified Watercourse (Disco), 3.5 miles/cancelled due to weather—1 hr
Ropes (Both)—30 min
Trekking CPs 5-16 (MLE), 12 miles—3.5 hrs
Trekking CPs 5-7 (Disco), 1.5 miles—30 min
Biking CPs 8-16 (Disco), 12 miles—2 hrs
Biking CPs 17-33 w/ 18 enroute (MLE), 26 miles—4 hrs
Biking/Trekking CPs 17-22 w/ 18 enroute (Disco), 6 miles—2 hrs
MLE—14 mi run/walk, 5 miles canoe, 27 mi bike + 3 other CPs = 46 miles (10 hrs)--with original watercourse 11.5 hrs)
DISCO—6 mi run/walk, n/a canoe (weather), 16 mi bike + 3 other CPs = 22 miles (5.5 hrs, w/ watercourse 6.5hrs)
Happy Trails! Charmion
| 10/10/2009 RACE DIRECTOR'S JOURNAL |
- Race Results by Team