We were greeted to a magnificent blue sky and a covering of snow in the morning. As we drove up to Bryce Canyon the temperature in the car thermometer kept dropping. The place looked like a cross country ski centre on the last weekend of the season, as most of the lodges and restaurants were closing for the winter. Also the road was closed after Bryce Point which cut out many of the potential lookouts and trails. But still this place did little to disappoint. In fact I'm not sure if I've ever been to a place that looked so extraordinary. Every photo looked like a postcard, if you ignored the pained expressions on our faces due to the extreme cold. The contrasting red landscapes, with a covering of white snow, scattered green pine trees and deep blue sky was simply stunning. Yes the Grand Canyon is grander, but Bryce Canyon was far more picturesque.
My plan for a long run was impacted by the lack of open trails, and the fact that the open ones had a lot of snow and were quite steep. But the 12km in 90mins was through an amazing landscape that looks even better when you are beneath looking up than it is when viewed from the lookouts.
We left in the afternoon to Zion National Park knowing that it would be hard to top the last few days. Wow there are some great places in USA, despite mid-winter temperatures!
After a quick tour of the Navajo Indian reserve at Monument Valley we headed to North on highway 261 to the Natural Bridges National Monument. The driving route around the park was broken up by quick dashes from the car to see the natural bridges carved out of the sandstone by the river, and trying to evade to flurries of snow.
The route was even more scenic after that, on Route 95, with classic buttes and mesas everywhere. Apparently the cleanest air in America is around here and there were plenty of good views.
We drove through Capital Reef National Park but didn't have much time to look around, besides the ancient petrograghs left on the cliffs.
When we turned onto Route 12 and into Dixie National Forest the day got even more interesting. Climbing up through the mountain range to 9600 feet the snow was even more prevalent and the temperature dropped down to 16 degrees. Still it added to the experience, and the views were incredible.
After a long day in the car we got out for a run at Kodachrome State Park as the sun set. We stayed the night at Cannonville in a motel, a bit before Bryce Canyon as I was a bit soft and didn't want to spend the -16C night in a tent.
We left Vegas and headed to the Southern Rim of the Grand Canyon. The northern rim had already closed for the winter so there was no alternative. First we stopped at Hoover Dam for a couple of pics.
Grand Canyon has a compulsory shuttle bus service for most of the year with a pick up/drop off at all the lookouts, lodges etc. We set up camp and headed on the bus for Hermit's Rest on the far West Rim. The 12km run back to The visitors centre was amazing. It was cold and windy and with many storms in view as the serious cold front headed south but the views cannot be surpassed.
The next morning we ran down to the Colorado River at the bottom of the canyon via the Kaibab Track, and back via the Angel Bright track. Both tracks are used by mule trains so fat, lazy tourists can experience the canyon, so the trails are a pretty good gradient with lots of switchbacks. The run was 27km and 1400m drop from top to bottom. The legs were certainly tired the next day!
After a great chilli for lunch at the lodge we headed off from GC for Monument Valley. This is the site of many Western films and is in the middle of Navajo Indian Reservation. While it was warmer here, it was in the middle of a dust storm and not a particularly enjoyable night camping.
The original purpose of Kathryn's trip to New York was to run the marathon last weekend. Though Hurricane Sandy devastated the city and surrounding areas making the logistics of the race more difficult. Then a healthy does of tabloid newspaper reporting and outspoken whining locals killed off the 2013 race, but not until the 30000 participants had already arrived in Manhattan. Anyway what else can you do but enjoy a holiday.
Kathryn in NY Times Square
Kathryn at the marathon finish
Kathryn in Central Park
I flew to Las Vegas on Tuesday to meet Kathryn and her parents John and Lois (yes how will I survive 10days with the in-laws!). Not being much of a gambler, Vegas never really held much appeal with me. However Sin City is a pretty interesting place. Bright lights, extravagant hotels with amazing displays, 24hr action and no one really looks out of place there. After two nights and 24hr binge-eating ($45 and eat at 6 restaurants) it was time to leave the Flamingo and head to the Grand Canyon via Hoover Dam. My favourite quote for the day from Lois-"is it possible to be drunk from eating too much food?" I didn't get to experience an authentic Vegas Hangover, so will save that for next time.
Famous for great quality outdoor clothing for the toughest environments, Macpac has now released a great range of active clothing for runners and bikers of all levels. Perfect for summer, there are some cool trail running shorts and shirts that are SO comfortable. And if you live in unpredictable environments then jackets like the Litespeed are great to pack for when the storm hits.
As we get a chance to put the new range to use in training and competition we'll have more comprehensive reviews on the website. So checkout the Active range at your local Macpac store and for the next two weeks there is an extra 30% off if you are a Macpac Wilderness Club member.
Following the successful return of Orienteering to Gippsland last summer, a new series of urban street orienteering races will start at the end of November. The event format of 45 minute score course allows participants to collect as many of the 20 checkpoints as they can and return to the finish. The navigational challenge of Orienteering means that the time flys by and you will be amazed by how quickly you have used your 45 minutes. The start time is 6pm but please arrive by 5.45 to allow time for registration and planning your course.
The last couple of weeks since returning home have been very busy with work, and recovery from the illness that plagued my race in Ordos. Finally now 3 weeks later I can feel I’m getting close to full strength again and hoping to at least have a fighting chance at the Australian Orienteering Championships which start this weekend in Tasmania. Plus watching the Adventure Racing World Championships online (Congratulations Team Seagate) has been fun and helped me get keen to put a few more races on the calendar.
I left Australia a couple of days early and fly via Xi’an for a bit of sightseeing, and help adjust to the warmer climate. Xi’an is famous as being the starting (or ending) point of the Silk Road route and thus has a lot of culture from Central Asia. It is also home to the famous Terracotta Warriors, or more specifically the Mausoleum of Emperor Qin and one of the wonders of the world. My bag and bike didn’t arrive with me in Xi’an, that always adds some stress, but did make it easier to get to my hostel at 2am. A late start the next day saw me catch the 90min bus ride to the Mausoleum in company of some friendly German backpackers. It was an amazing experience, but would be cool to go back in 100years when they actually finish excavating the thousands of terracotta warriors. They have been at if for 40years but don’t seem to be in any hurry.
After never hearing from the airline I was relieved to find my bag and bike at the airport 2 days later when I returned, just in time for my flight to Ordos. A bit of sweet talking at check-in and I again avoided the feared excess baggage fee. At Ordos airport it was good to meet the film crew and race organisers, and ended up at the correct hotel. So far so good. I met up with my team- Marcel (who I’ve raced against many times), Dougal (I’ve met a few times) and Fleur (who I’d never met before) just in time for dinner. There were plenty of other Aussies here- Team Moxie Gear, Team Peak Adventure and Team Adventure Junkies, which made a pleasant change to most international races as we weren’t as outnumbered by the Kiwis this time.
Stage 1
60km kayaking on the yellow river, 22km MTB, 18km desert adventure running by GPS
Compulsory 7 hours rest at camp
35km desert adventure running by GPS the following day
A very unedited video of me and Marcel starting stage 1 kayak.
It was hard to know what to expect of the Yellow River, but will plenty of recent rain the river was big, brown and fast flowing. The start was staggered at 1min intervals based on Race Number- with Adventure Sport NZ off first, followed by the Americans, Seagate, and us in 4th being chased by Thule. With the river requiring a bit of route finding, Adventure Sport NZ were at a disadvantage and Seagate ended up hunting them down by the end of the paddle. We set a solid pace, passing the Americans and holding ground behind the leaders until near the end. Then a decisive move to empty water from one of the boats (we didn’t realise how close to the end was) cost us a few spots as some stronger paddling teams passed us. Still with a lack of paddling hours in the arms due to Dougal and Marcel concentrating on MTB races we were still in a good position.
On to the bike for a flat and fast 22km at breakneck speeds. Unfortunately I knew things weren’t going well for me as my HR went mental and I struggled to hang on the wheel. At lower intensity of the paddle I felt ok, but the bike was a different story. We caught up to Moxie Gear and also Peak Adventure near the end of the stage.
We had a compulsory 15min break in TA to get ready for the desert trek. I still felt weak as we headed off into the desert and we were racing with Moxie Gear for a while and with Thule Adventure just ahead in the distance. Even with me as a dead weight we moved along at pretty good pace. After dark we were caught by the Americans and Multisport Finland but finished the stage with them. Surprisingly we had held the gap to the lead 3 teams and we were still only 7mins behind.
The compulsory 7 hour rest was a blessing, or so I thought. After trying hard to consume 5 serves of freeze dried pasta I tried to sleep in the 3am wake up call. But instead I woke several times with a totally drenched inner sheet and sleeping bag as my fever went into overdrive. Not a good sign.
At 3.54am we started out in our chase pack with the Americans and Finns. I didn't feel too bad for the first few hours but was still very weak. But soon after the 2nd CP I was throwing up the black vomit and quickly started to go downhill. Soon after an unfortunate detour (failed short cut) through a mud hole we were unable to keep up with the Americans, who amazingly picked up the pace to catch the leading trio by the finish. Each kilometre seemed to get exponentially harder as I continued to vomit, and hence further dehydrate, and then the cramping kicked in. After a few more hours of only being able to keep moving with the help of my team mates just standing became too difficult and I needed several breaks with my legs up to try and get the blood returning. We were losing places as the other teams seemed to trot past and out of sight into the seemingly neverending sand dunes. Finally we rounded the last big dune and I have never been so relieved to see the finish of a race. However this was just the finish of Stage 1....
We finished Stage 1 in 12 place, and lost 1.5hrs to the leaders. I had my first visit to the ambulance for a saline drip, and was soon joined by Jarad From Peak Adventure (an experienced ambulance visitor!). It was a long 4hr bus ride to the hotel (no idea what town we were in now) and not really than enjoyable but at least I was able to start hydrating and recovering for Stage 2.
Rob being pushed and pulled (by a pantless Dougal who had lost his fav green pants in the famous mudhole)
Stage 2
4km horse riding, 100km MTB on road, 3km running
The horse riding stage of any race can be pretty daunting because of the unpredictable nature of the beast. Luckily the ride was only short, and with two horses per team Fleur and I got to ride. Fleur has plenty of experience on horses so was never phased, but I was given a very stubborn mule so we swapped. I quite enjoyed the ride and didn't envy Marcel whom had to try and keep up with us. With another staggered stage the teams were already spread out onto the bike leg. The pace was pretty hot to start with as the packs were starting to form. Again I knew it wasnt going to be a good day as I struggled to hold the wheel in front. A strong Mongolian head wind made the going tough, and the rolling grasslands didn't offer the brain much distraction. Somehow, (well mostly with Marcel and Dougal's help) we were still hanging onto the lead bunch at the end of the ride and stayed out of trouble on the mad last few kilometres. The final stage was a short but fast climb up over a massive sand dune and back, which did little to separate the lead teams not that I was complaining. With our lower start position we finished Stage 2 in 4th place which was much better.
Stage 3
20km running in gorge, Rope skills, 43km MTB (half on road, and other technical), 20km kayaking on lake
Another bus transfer took us to the site of "Ordos Man", but I've never found out what was there. The next morning was a bit cooler and a we started with a 20km run through a gorge. There were some nice single trails and a few marsh crossings, and much contrasting to the desert run. I was feeling a little stronger today and we were able to hold onto the back of the lead teams until the lame abseil.
Onto the bikes and it was quite wet but that didn't matter as we smashed along the roads with Multisport Finland. Though as soon as the route changed onto the dirt roads it was a lot harder. The clay surface was extremely sticky and the bikes soon weighed 30kg and the wheels didn't want to turn. The main aim was to get though to the end without mechanical failure which we did.
The final leg was a 20km kayak on a lake. With the rudders having been removed from the boats we soon learned they didn't like going in a straight line which made the paddle a bit harder work. The bonus checkpoint near the far end of the lake had been moved further away and we caught the Americans here, who were unfortunate to have had their own paddles lost by the organisation. With teams Seagate, Adventure Sport NZ and Thule Adventure again filling the top 3 places, Team Macpac crossed the line in 4th and moved up to 10th overall.
Stage 4- Ordos City
36km bike, 15km kayak
Final Stage 4 saw us wake to cold and miserably wet conditions and it didn’t get any better before we started the bunch ride to the foreshore for the start. This could have been a great venue, on a nice day and with 20 000 spectators lining the empty grandstands. The bike start was at 30 second intervals from 1st team to last, and Team Macpac started in 10th place and 4.30secs behind Seagate. Marcel and Dougal are two of the strongest riders in the sport and really put it all on the line today. I was feeling a bit better and was able hang onto their wheels, just. We averaged 34kph in wet conditions and managed to catch and drop several teams which was a great effort. Heading onto the kayak stage we were just behind Team Thule, with Seagate and Adventure Sport NZ not far in front. The two lap course was a bit longer than the advertised 10km, but we kept pushing hard all the way to the finish, just hoping to stay in front of the strong paddlers Team Moxie Gear who were only a couple of mins behind on total time. To our surprise, with the staggered start we finished the Stage in 2nd place, behind overall winners Seagate and a few seconds in front of AdventureSportNZ. And we managed to put some time into our other competitors to move up to 8th place overall.
Stage 4 Podium- 2nd Team Macpac, 1st Team Seagate, 3rd Team AdventureSport NZ
While 8th was a little lower than pre-race aspirations, it was much better than what it could have been a few days ago when I was lying in the sanddunes struggling to move. Adventure Racing is all about overcoming the challenges, whether that be the course or your body, and making the best out of the situation. We certainly did this and the last two stages really showed what the team was capable of if I was in better health. Thanks to Marcel, Dougal and Fleur for an amazing team effort. You were all so strong the whole race and I certainly wouldn’t have made it out of the desert without your help!
Thanks again to Macpac for being amazing sponsors. I look forward to working with you over the next few years to build an already brilliant company and strong Adventure Racing team.
Team Macpac at the presentation collecting a cool $US9000 prizemoney.
some images of Ordos, including Ghengis Khan statue, and the Ordos Museum (or the big potato)
panorama view of Ordos. Plenty of apartments, all of them empty.
