by Jess Evans
June 22, 2018
I started racing with 361° Adventures Chickpoints in 2017. I had never raced on an all female team, but I knew this was going to be a successful experiment. In my Good Teammates blog from February 2018, I discuss the differences I noticed from racing on an all female team vs. a Co-Ed team.)
361° Adventures Chickpoints had earned a spot to the USARA National Championship race in Pennsylvania for 2017, but their third female racer could not race with them. Karen and Casey asked me if I would be interested, and I jumped at the chance. I did not know Casey well, but I knew Karen, and had always wanted an opportunity to race with her.
We decided we should do at least one race together to make sure we did not have any personality conflicts. If you know Karen and Casey, you know that personality conflicts were extremely unlikely. During 2017 I raced with 361° Adventures Chickpoints in one of the Unbridled Series Races where Myra and Becka joined us too. It was so much fun getting to know the entire Chickpoints team. Later that year, they included Tracy in their ranks. By the time, Karen, Casey, and I went to the 2017 USARA National Championship race, we knew we had a solid team. We had such a great time together, and we raced in the spirit of a true “team” recognizing each of our strengths and weaknesses and supporting each other through the race. We came in first in the All Female Team category.
To learn more about 361° Adventures Chickpoints, check out their Facebook page. They participate in a lot of the races in Kentucky and Indiana each year. They have great stories and photos. Also, follow us on Facebook as we go back to the USARA National Championship Race in 2018 and defend our title! We have enough women on the Chickpoints team now that two teams could qualify for the USARA National Championship Race – maybe in 2019.
