Wow. That was a long break from Blogging! I was getting lazy and posting updates via Twitter for the past month.  But, I’m back now and a lot has happened since the last update.

The first MOMAR of the season is just a few weeks away and we are all set to go.  We have over 200 racers signed up and ready to rip it out on a newly designed course by Jen Segger.  Over 90 of the 200 are first time MOMAR participants which is a great stat to see as we love having a new batch of weekend warriors give adventure racing a try.

MOMAR sponsored athlete, Gary Robbins, has been running and running and running and running some more.  He’s become the Forest Gump of the North Shore!  Gary was named Ultra Runner of the Year so he gets a BIG CONGRATS.  He’s been blogging his race stories and they are a well worth a read especially while you drink a milkshake and eat a cinnamon bun!

Last weekend was the Suburban Rush and Aimee Dunn and I had a blast in our third year racing together. It was actually my fifth time doing this race and that was enough to get me a nice certificate for participation! They sold out their event with 250 racers and the competition keeps getting better every year.

I also spent time in Squamish scouting out Jen’s course.  The rappel site is so awesome. Freaky as hell. It makes the rappels from the last two years like bumps in the prairies!

The final few weeks will be busy behind the scenes for the organizing team, but we are very excited for the big day and most of all the big PARTY!

More blogs to come!

Bryan Tasaka
Event Director

The April issue of Explore Magazine has a feature article on MOMAR Squamish’s Course Designer, Jen Segger. The article details the amount of training and focus it take for Jen to complete at the international level.

Jen is currently in Whitehorse, NWT, taking on the Rock and Ice Ultra.  She is running in the 6 day stage category and just finished the first day in second place (third overall).

Jason Terauchi-Loutitt who did the MOMAR 2006 and won the recent Yeti Snowshoe series was also on the start line but suffered from frostbite and is a DNF. Tough break for Jason.

MOMAR’s media sponsor, Sleepmonster.ca, is doing a great job in covering the race with reports and photos. Read it all here.

The new issue of the Georgia Straight newspaper has a good feature on the sport of adventure racing. Charlie Smith interviewed John Markez, Jen Segger, and myself for the article.  A Tony Austin photo of John is also included in the feature.  You can check out the article online here.

Markez also won the Dirty Duo multisport category (ride 30km & run 25km).  Could he be the one to watch this year at the MOMAR with Todd Nowack gone to Norway and Gary going at it solo?

Apparently, MOMAR is also mentioned in the new issue of Explore Magazine.

Great to get some coverage in the big magazines!  Keep it coming!

Photo by Sleepmonsters.com

It is only mid February, but the hardcore are already out racing some big events.

• Gary Robbins put in a solid performance at the Orcas 50km Ultra this past weekend.
• Jen Segger is ski racing down in Colorado competing in a 24 hour ‘rondo’
• Chris Koch and Jim Mandelli are down in South America racing with Team Spirit in the Pategonia Expedition Race. Lina Augaitis is also competing with Team Buff.
• And Dave Norona is ripping it up on the sled in the Chilcotins.

Meanwhile, I spent the day celebrating my 38th by eating about 5000 calories… although I did get a good workout in at the gym (hot tub)…  Living the dream… ;0)

Life outside the MOMAR sure has been hectic.  I have just finished producing the Surrey WinterFest event and that was all consuming. We had over 20,000 people attend and it was big success with lots of fun activities for the whole family as well as a rock concert featuring Eva Avila, Faber Drive, and Thornley.

Now that it’s over, I can refocus on the ’09 MOMAR season and locking in all our sponsors.  Jen Segger has been working on a new course design for the Squamish race and based on preliminary designs, it’s going to be epic!  This Enduro course will feature a BIG surprise section that is going to absolutely rock!

And I’m way ahead of the game for Cumberland.  The course concept is already complete and once the snow clears Liz Tribe will be start the vetting process.  I think there will be a bit more trekking in this one compared to previous years.

Keep checking back for more exciting news in the coming days!

Professional Adventure Racer and Certified Conditioning Coach, Jen Segger, is offering a 16 week training program geared specifically to the MOMAR.  Here are the details:

The MOMAR Training Plans which includes:

• 16 week (four month) duration
• a detailed sport specific training program (week by week) specific to preparing for the MOMAR (periodized mountain biking, trail running & kayaking program)
• a monthly strength training program (including plyometrics & core stability strengthening)
• monthly Q&A session with Jen if desired (email or phone call)
• unlimited email communication with Jen for program clarification or personal questions related to specific workouts
• tips & hints manual on becoming a better adventure racer (solo & as a team member)
• information on topics related to hydration, nutrition, recovery and tapering

*choose from either a Beginner or Intermediate Racer Program (based on your current fitness level & future race goals)

Why train? The more fit and prepared you are, the more you will enjoy race day!  The focus of these programs is on improving endurance, the foundation for MOMAR success.  Perhaps you have had a lingering rivalry with a fellow racer and you have decided that 2009 is the year that you will beat them!  Or, maybe its simply that you don’t want the hills to eat you alive this time!  Whatever your reason, commit to a plan and you will be ready!

Starts: Jan 23rd to prepare for Squamish MOMAR or May 26th for Cumberland MOMAR

Price: $399.00 CND

Jen is a certified conditioning coach who has years of racing experience to share! Tap into her knowledge and understand the benefits of applying structure to your training.  In Jens initial years as a racer, she too had a personal coach, enabling her to learn and understand how to prepare properly for competition and to enjoy the racing experience.  Jen now races for one of North America’s top adventure racing teams, DART nuun who is currently ranked 6th in the world.  She works and coaches individuals throughout the USA and Canada, helping people of all levels achieve personal goals.

To register or for more information:  Contact Jen via email at jen@challengebychoice.ca or online at www.challengebychoice.ca.

Be prepared to work hard and achieve great results!

Note: If you are wanting a plan that is customized to your personal schedule, goals & abilities, contact Jen about her online individualized coaching options.

Jen’s support crew is doing an awesome job of emailing me reports from the field:

here we are, back on line, it was 30 hours without any signal, rolling around very remote areas, wich are awesome! so, the team is at the moment arriving in Viçosa do Ceara, coming from trekking, and switching to biking. it is going to be a big trek, including climbing, ascent, descent! they are considering to do this piece in 10 hours time, since they already payed 5 from their 8 mandatory hours! on the last PC, about 5 hours ago, according to myself, Jen was the best shape in the team, she is handling very well the local hotness! Good girl! now, dart nuun are at 8th position, checked on the last PC, 5 hours ago! that’s gonna be all for now, coming back from the next PC, if the signal helps! 8-)))))))))

They have been racing for over 53 hours now.  The race organizers estimated the winning time to be around 65 hours, but i’m not sure how close the top teams are to that.

Rob Howard from Sleepmonster.com wrote:

Dart Nuun were another team who found the ride hard, but the US team are still racing and are in the top 10. They said the ride was so sandy it was hard to make progress and wasn’t an enjoyable experience! (It was because of the sand that SOLE were stripping down their bikes as much as possible and rigging a new towing system to cope with it.)

Be sure to head over to Sleepmonsters.com and read the full race report.

Another message just came in from DARTnuun’s support crew:

Hi from Brazil!!!!

Our team looks good, they used some good sleeping hours through the kayaking section and were feeling well and positive….  First thing Seggs said  smiling when came in ” Look at my hands,”!!!!! after 20 hours paddling….they were nasty…wrinkles!!!!
The team took a 25 min break, and start the bike section, we will probably meet them in 8 hours. Not sure if we will have internet connection from now; we;ll try to keep you updated!!!!

Support crew, Tati and Fred.

I’m also going to through my support behind the French team Wilsa Helly Hansen because Helly has supported the MOMAR for the last five years.  They are sitting in 10th place right now. Go HH Go!

Here’s a message from Fred who is part of Jen’s support crew:

So, yesterday, the team left the starting point at 15:30h, and ran for 5 hours approximately on the dunes, close to open sea, arriving in Tutoia for the first transition, where they got the kayaks and left to Parnaiba, racing for approximately 18h, with maybe, and only maybe, 1 or 2 hours of mandatory sleep.

The team was feeling pretty well on the transition, and they were in very good shape after running on the dunes! They spent around 10 minutes to drink and eat, then left for kayaking cruise on open sea, and mangroves!

They are now sitting in 12th spot but according to the SPOT map, they seem to be very close to the leaders, Team Nike.

Holy shit. Jen Segger finished Badwater in 9th place overall and was the 5th female! 32:37:57 was her time.  I don’t think I’ve run 32 hours this year!  Way to go, Jen!!! You rock!  You’re an inspiration to everyone and congratulations on ripping it up?

Did you leaving anything in the tank for the MOMAR in 11 days???

The MOMAR Squamish Course Director, Jen Segger, is down in Death Valley running the Badwater race.  This is one of the toughest races in the world with a course that stretches 217km through the scorching dessert sun of 55c temperatures.

This is a race that you only accepts the best of the best and you have to apply to get one of the 80 spots. Jen is the youngest female to ever make it in.  She’s running strong and as of now she sits in 9th spot (possibly 7th — the results aren’t that clear).

I think Jen is hoping to make a go at the 28 hour course record!  She started the race yesterday at 10am so she’ll be finishing around 2-4pm today.  You can follow her progress at www.badwater.com.

GO JEN GO!!!

The blogosphere is alive with great post race stories from the MOMAR Squamish!  There’s nothing like getting the story straight from the horse’s mouth.  Grab a coffee, a beer or a protein shake and settle in for a play by play account of how it all went down at the front of the pack.

• Team Helly Hansen / MOMAR captain Gary Robbins details how he uses a broken shoelace to deak out the followers. GO.
• Team Helly Hansen / MOMAR navigator Todd Nowack writes about hardtails and navigation — he even admits to small mistakes on the nav! GO.
• Elm Health’s Sarah Seads writes about being the first female across the line and lessons learned along the way. GO.
• Team Helly Hansen Vancouver Island’s Justin Mark tells the tale of how sweet the MOMAR victory feels. GO.
• Team Helly Hansen Vancouver Island’s Kristenn Magneson writes about losing a bike shoe in the trek. GO.
• Course Designer Jen Segger-Gigg details the great feeling of having designed on killer course. GO.

And if you prefer the old school way of getting your news then you can check out the Whistler Question, SNAP Magazine, and the Pique for awesome post race coverage.

Thanks to everyone for telling your stories!  You are an inspiration to us all!

If I missed any blog reports please let me know and I’ll post it up.

I just arrived home from a fantastic weekend up in Whistler and Squamish that was filled with live music, good food, incredible XC riding, and a lot of time running in circles.

Friday morning I left home and headed north. My first stop was at The Rack Stop (MOMAR’s newest sponsor) where Steve the Owner hooked me up with a complete Thule rack system for the top on my new van. The system includes two Big Mouth bike racks and a Glide and Set kayak rack. It took Sam and Charles at the Rack Stop less than 45 minutes to install and then I was back on the road up to Whistler.

I was up in Whistler to check out the Telus Ski and Snowboard Festival and to watch Julian Marley perform. As I was walking by Citta’s, the HairFarmers (photo above) were playing live. This is the band that will be rocking the MOMAR After-Party on May 10th. They were playing Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin’” and the crowd was going nuts! Anyway, I wasn’t able to stay too long as I had to get back to Squamish and get going on finalizing plans for the upcoming MOMAR.

I met course designer, Jen Segger-Gigg, at 10am on Saturday and our plan for the day was to map out the entire orienteering section. This is an area that has a lot of great trails but none of which shows up on the existing local trail map. The GPS was working great but it was a challenge getting every trail and road mapped out. We ended up traveling over 20km for the day (lots of back and forth) and it was great to see these relatively undiscovered trails and some of the crazy stunts.

For those of you that are racing the MOMAR, you can expect this stage to be at least 10km. There are places where you will get really turned around if you’re not paying attention. It was a pretty tiring day and we spent over seven hours on the mapping, but now we have this race stage all ready to go. The great thing about this area is that few locals know these trails so this should level out the playing field and reduce the homefield advantage.

SIDENOTE: I have to mention this excellent Japanese restaurant that we went to after. It’s called Sushi Sen and it’s in Garibaldi Highlands. Check it out.

Today we met and rode over 20km of amazing single-track and did some trail running in a really cool forest. Part of the ride was in snow that will hopefully be gone in three weeks. The MOMAR Berg Bike held up awesome on the flowy trails of Squamish which I’m liking almost as much as the trails on Tzouhalem in Duncan. This is actually the final week for the Berg before it is disassembled and reborn as a dually! More on that in a future blog post though.

The last thing that Jen showed me was the rappel site. Holy crap! It was pretty FREAKY! I couldn’t look over. 100′ up with an awesome view of the Squamish Valley. Wow!

Thanks to Jen for the amazing weekend on the trails! Racers entered in the Squamish MOMAR are really going to love this course. Big thanks to Howe Sound Inn and Brewery for setting me up for the weekend in their first class rooms. It’s always a treat to stay there. Good times!

Photo: Me and Jen at one of the many view points

Photo: The MOMAR Berg in the Snow

Team Helly Hansen / MOMAR’s Gary Robbins and Todd Nowack at last year’s MOMAR Squamish. Photo by Tony Austin

Here’s a quick list of some adventurous blog worthy reading:

+ Gary Robbins writes about his triumphs at the Diez Vista 50km Trail Run
+ On the flip side, Todd Nowack describes race lessons learned at the same run
+ Jen Segger-Gigg writes about her new love… paddleboards
+ Read Lina Augaitis‘ great postrace report following her 3rd place finish at the Baja Travesia