Backyard Challenge XI
race report

By Michael Ciavatta, race director

Following a short mini-navigation clinic that started around 8:30 the race briefing was held right around 9:00. Racers were told to be ready to start with biking and to carry everything with them throughout the race. Using a trick that was played upon myself at a prior Beast of the East I told the racers we would actually start with a prologue that would consist of running up Sugar Loaf Mountain and back down in order to get the passports and maps. At 9:15 ten teams took off to the top of the mountain. Team Orientus (Jonas Fast) was down first, followed quickly by Team Boulder (Mark Bockmann). Within ten minutes all teams were back and busy plotting the checkpoints for the rest of the race.

The biking section started with a fast descent down Sugar Loaf Mountain Rd. back to Sugar Loaf Rd. and onto the dirt again at Old Town Site Rd. Another short downhill led to CP 1, which was a dead end sign. This slightly confused several teams as it appeared the road continued on past the sign. This was the first navigation challenge and some teams decided to bikewhack west back to Sugar Loaf Rd. while others rode back up Old Town Site Rd.

From here racers headed north and west on Primos Rd. to CP 2, with Team Gotta Run (Tina Stenquist and Toby Hemmerling) leading the way. Teams had a significant uphill from CP 1 through to CP 3 that took them on paved and dirt roads, singletrack, and trailless areas. As teams approached the highpoint, elevation wise, of the biking, several dirt roads that were not on the maps sprouted from side to side. Most teams were able to locate CP 3, which was the intersection with Switzerland Trail and began the slight downhill to CP 4 and the transition area.

Five teams showed up within a minute of each other at the transition, Team Knee Deep (Jeff Merkel, Ben Merkel), Team Orientus (Jonas Fast), Team EMS (Jason Poole), Team Boulder (Mark Bockmann), and Team Gotta Run (Tina Stenquist, Toby Hemmerling). These teams quickly transitioned and headed up the mountain to CP 5, an unmarked summit on the way to Bald Mountain. CP 6 was the summit of Bald Mountain and CP 7 was another unnamed summit west of Bald Mountain. These teams then headed to CP 8. Unfortunately, CP 8 was plotted incorrectly and was approximately 50 yards away from where it was supposed to be. No teams were able to locate this checkpoint and no penalties were given (extra apologies to Team Knee Deep who stayed an extra few minutes looking for it to gain the 45 minute penalty the others would get by skipping it).

The back end of the racers were having a tougher time. Team Jacapo (Mike Owens) was cramping up and having a tough time working his way to CP 4 and the transition area. He ultimately bailed on the race. Team Not Last Place (Susan Stabler, Patrick McGinty) found themselves with mechanical problems after getting a flat and finding out their pump was not working. Luckily while trying to figure out what to do a Jeep passed by and had an air compressor on board. They were back in business but well behind the rest of the crowd.

From the area of CP 8, teams ran back on Switzerland Trail to CP 9, the transition area and hopped on their bikes for the quick ride to the finish line. Three teams rode in at the same time, securing first place. They were - Team Boulder (Mark Bockmann), Team EMS (Jason Poole), and Team Orientus (Jonas Fast). They were quickly followed by Team Gotta Run (Tina Stenquist, Toby Hemmerling). Team Knee Deep (Jeff Merkel, Ben Merkel) finished twenty minutes later. The last four teams came in within the next hour and a half - Team Necky (Ziggy Emme), Team Burwil (Gordon), Team Double Tree (Warren Mitchell, Pat Kalvels), and Team Not Last Place (Susan Stabler, Patrick McGinty) who had to cut short their mountain trek as rain and thunder moved over them.

Kudos: Above all else thanks to Allison and Noni (sp) who volunteered to help. As everyone knows it’s impossible to put these things on without them.

Lessons Learned: Aside from a CP being slightly askew, I got some worthwhile feedback from the racers. This included: making checkpoints more visible (I used ribbon, which I've used before and had used on me - however, they worked out to be too small for this) and the course may have been too difficult for true newbies (however, kudos to the team of real newbies out there for not really having major navigation issues). Overall, most people appeared to really like the course itself and I will make the passport (with corrections) and maps available.