by Jess Evans
October 3, 2018

Back in the comfort of my home, I get to reflect on the USARA 2018 Championship race in Bloomington, Indiana. I am certain that strategy was key in this race. Seven out of 50 teams cleared the course. For those of us who did not clear it, the race director, Brian, gave us plenty of options to create our own experience.

Once the 361 Chickpoints received the map and course instructions, we were able to take in the full picture of the course to start planning our attack. We received the maps a half hour before race start. A thorough, well thought out route plan was going to be tough with the time constraints. There were six legs of the race and 3 were unknowns even with the map sitting in front of us. Leg 1 started with an 11K paddle to CP 1, and at CP 1, we would receive the coordinates for CPs 2 through 7 to be plotted on our map. Leg 2 was a small orienteering course where teams could split up. We would get that map at TA 1. Leg 3 was the bike leg with CPs 11 to 27 dotting the landscape. These could be picked up in any order before and after Leg 4. Leg 4 was an orienteering course of which we would receive the map at TA 3. Leg 5 was an orienteering course near the finish with CPs 36 to 40.

A well thought out, efficient, and effective plan was necessary for this kind of course, so we put our heads together and came up with one. We would paddle to CP 1, plot the CP 2 to 7 points and decide, at that time, which ones we would go after. We would go to TA 1, do the small orienteering course and then get on our bikes. Once on Leg 3, we would pick up a few bike points, but make our way to TA 3 which had the unknown orienteering course. We figured the bike points would be easier to get at night than the orienteering points. Once we did what we could with the orienteering points at Leg 4, we would get back on bikes and pick up the majority of the bike points through the night on our way to TA 4. We wanted to be at TA 4 by 10AM to get back in the canoe, paddle to TA 5 to knock out the last orienteering course near the finish. The plan was solid.

What we did not take into consideration was in order to get the point for the small orienteering course at TA 1 and the large orienteering course at TA 3, we needed to pick up all sub-points. Meaning… for us to receive the point for CP 36, we needed to find 36A and 36B. We were doing double the work for one point where as a bike point was worth one point. In retrospect, a better strategy would have been to get most of the bike points before going to TA 3 because they were full value. As it was, we did not do that and spent a lot of time at the orienteering course at TA 3, which would have been better spent somewhere else.

For my team, the strategy we chose was, perhaps, not ideal. We still did very well in the race and had a great time, except for being eaten alive by seed ticks. Strategy is one of the key elements of an adventure race, and often one of the toughest for me. This is yet another reason why I love adventure racing so much. Fitness, navigation skills, and strategy – a challenge for my body and mind… what more could I ask for.

by Jess Evans
September 28, 2018

This may come as a surprise, but I really like to sleep, so the idea of racing throughout the night was not appealing to me… at first.

My first 30-hour adventure race was the USARA National Championship race in 2011 on the Cave Run Team. The nighttime racing was a blur. We started the evening with a paddle down the Cumberland River. I was in the middle of the boat and could not see anything. I hoped we did not hit a rock. We passed one team that had flipped, and they were pulled up on the shore trying to start a fire to warm up and dry off. The paddle took us to a TA for a night trek, which was great because it helped me warm up. I was getting so cold from the water spraying on me from my teammates’ paddles. Since then, I have learned to wear a poncho to keep me a little more dry. Later that night, I think we got back into the canoes to paddle to our bikes, but honestly, I cannot remember. I know we did have a biking section at night, because I remember pushing my bike on this sandy road in the dark barely registering my surroundings. During our second trek of the night, the navigator became sleepy and slept a short while, but I could not doze off. I think my eyes got heavy during that night, and definitely my mind went hazy to the point where I was a zombie. By the time we trudged into our lodge room at 12PM on Saturday, I was so tired I curled up on the floor and fell asleep not bothering to remove anything but my pack.

Since that time, I have found it much easier to stay awake the first night of an adventure race. There have been other races where my eyes got heavy and I began to stumble, but if my teammates start a conversation with me so that I have to think, that wakes my brain up. I have lost count of the number of over-night races I have done, somewhere around 20 or 30, but I think I prefer them now. I even prefer multi-day races to 30-hour races because even though my team typically does not sleep the first night of the multi-day race, we get some lovely sleep the next few nights. After travelling for 48 hours, sleep on the side of the road is so spectacular. I have written about my sleeping spots in a previous blog post (The Best Sleeping Spots). I love sleeping in an adventure race.

by Jess Evans
September 25, 2018

USARA is looking for volunteers for the National Championship Adventure Race in Indiana for Friday and Saturday, Sept 28 and 29. This prompted me to think of how valuable volunteers are to adventure racing.

AR Volunteers make an already great sport, awesome. An adventure race cannot be successful without the volunteers who take time out of their lives to sit at a Transition Area for hours waiting for racers to show up. I have volunteered at several races and always love being out there for the racers. I feel the excitement as the racers enter and leave the TAs. I am probably more anxious for them than they are because I hope they find the CPs and get to the finish before the cut off. When I volunteer, I am delighted to be a part of and supporting the event. All the racers are nice, in good spirits, and determined to keep going. It is inspiring to watch them during a race.

As a racer, I look forward to seeing those volunteers. They are in good spirits, encouraging, and provide creature comforts that are lost between the TAs. Sometimes being in a TA can be confusing. You are not sure where the flag and punch are, you are not sure where to drop your bike or grab your canoe, you are not sure who can help you, or you are not sure where your bin is to restock. The volunteers are calming and guide you through the TA. It is obviously very hectic for them, trying to herd cats from the look of things, but they are still there doing a near impossible job of getting the racers in and out.

I want to give a BIG thank you to all the AR volunteers out there. They are simply wonderful.

by Jess Evans
September 17, 2018

I have been a volunteer for the Little Miami River Kleeners in Dayton, Ohio for at least 8 years. This year we plan to introduce the public to the Little Miami River watershed not only with our river clean ups, water displays, and presentations, but through a mini-adventure race. We have a fun, educational, “kind-of” adventure race fundraiser planned on Sunday, Sept 23 for the Little Miami Watershed Network. Teams get to enjoy the Little Miami River corridor on foot, in canoes, and on bike while stopping at educational checkpoints to learn more about the river they love.

The Trailblazer Adventure will start and finish at Bellbrook Sugarcreek Park District Headquarters. Participants will wind their way through the parks to the Little Miami River, paddle for a short bit on the river, and then head back through parks and on country roads to the park headquarters. This event will take place rain or shine, but we are hoping for favorable weather. The Trailblazer Adventure is sponsored by James Investment Research and Greene Memorial Hospital.

Registration is still open until Wednesday, September 19. (https://athenaadventures.redpodium.com/lmwn-trailblazer-race-2018). Learn more about the event and the Little Miami River Kleeners/Little Miami Watershed Network here.

by Jess Evans
September 11, 2018

The USARA National Championship Race will be held in Bloomington, Indiana on Sept 28. Because that race is approaching, I thought it would be fun to recount some of my memories from past races.

When I first learned of these championship races, I day dreamed of how cool it would be to go to one, but was sure I would never have the opportunity. Therefore, in 2011 when I was asked to join a team that had already qualified for Nationals with another female teammate, I jumped at the chance. Their female teammate was racing with a different team much to my luck. I was sure that I would never have the opportunity to do that race again. But… I have qualified and gone to the USARA National Championship Race 5 times since that 2011 race. Each time has been so much fun and full of great memories.

There is at least one thing that stands out for each USARA National Race I attended through the years. In 2013, the race was in Brown County, Indiana. I remember walking down a trail after mid-night and hearing this loud water-rushing sound coming towards us. My mind could not formulate what it could possibly be. It turned out to be a wall of rain barreling down on us. We stepped to the side of the trail under the trees, but soon found ourselves standing in what seemed like a waterfall in the woods. This rain did not stop for several hours. In 2014, the race was in Maryland, a state I had never been too. The fall colors were spectacular, but it was a cold race. During the night it rained, and in the morning, the temperature dropped. We had our final ride to the finish in snow flurries. During that race, we stopped at a campground restroom in the middle of the night to sit under the hand driers and warm up. Somehow we tore ourselves away from those hand driers. In 2015, the race was in Kentucky at Pine Mountain. The race started with rain, and I am not sure if the rain ever stopped. Wearing my poncho during the paddle was futile, because I was soaked to the bone before we got in the boats. We tipped our canoe at one point and just felt cold wet rather than the warm wet of our clothes. 2016 USARA National Adventure Race was in Georgia. This race had some great single track around the lake in the middle of the night. For this race, it was actually hot until dawn. My long tights were too hot at 3AM. At dawn, while we paddled down the Savannah River, I was finally shivering a little. That race was also memorable for the bug bites I found all up and down my legs. In 2017, the race was in Pennsylvania. That was my first time racing in Pennsylvania and on an all female team. Both the team and the race venue were lovely. This was another warm race except for in the middle of the night. The temperature dropped pretty quickly at night. We decided to skip the second river crossing because staying warm was a priority. Later we heard that was a good choice.

I will be going to the USARA National Championship again this year with 361 Adventures Chickpoints. We are defending our first place title for the All Female Open Division.