by Jess Evans
April 1, 2019
Don’t tell me you have not signed up for The Breakdown yet! Hurry up!
This race is tough, beautiful, rugged, exhilarating… 361° Adventures is gifting you a 24 hour adventure race this year. This race will challenge you physically and mentally. So grit your teeth and make this happen.
Quick Breakdown Story: The Breakdown was a “thing” at least a few years before I attempted it. I heard from others who had tried it just how hard and gorgeous it was. I had my doubts I could truly complete this race. And the 2nd year I tried it, I did not complete it.
I typically do not remember what place my team finishes from race to race, but I do remember the few times my team has DNFed. The second time I did the Breakdown, we raced the 24 hour race. I had been sick for several weeks prior, but wanted to race. I thought I was recovered enough from my illness to do it. Also, I did not want to back out on my team. It is often so hard to find a teammate short notice. I told myself I could do the race. Only the TAs were mandatory. Cake!
Not “cake” for someone who thought she could race like she normally does, but did not have the energy to do it. The illness had sucked all the energy out of me. I could not even run. My poor teammates had to move much slower than any of us had done in any race before. The day was hot with the intense spring sun shining down on us, which seemed to sap my energy more. The night was cold, especially for Brian who did the swim. I have no idea how he even mustered the courage to jump in that water and swim to the checkpoint. As we began the bike back to the last TA the next morning, we realized we would never make it to the last TA and then on to the finish by the 24 hour time limit. We resigned ourselves to the fact that we had to ride straight to the finish and take the DNF.
Honestly, the one thing I was looking forward to was resting. Doing a 24 hour race when my body was trying to recover from an illness that had me out for almost two weeks was probably not the wisest thing I have ever done. However, I have a hard time not doing what I love even when I am too sick to do it. For the sake of my teammates, I probably should have bowed out. Maybe next time I am really sick like that, I will think of this Breakdown experience and back out of a race, but maybe not too.
Fortunately, Dallas and Shawn put on awesome races regardless if I am feeling 100% or not. Sign up for the Breakdown. It will be good for your health.
