FINAL
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Ladysmith, British Columbia,
0905hrs - 27.4 degrees Celsius, already 3.4 degrees higher than the average temperature
normal for this area of the island. Bryan Tasaka has just sounded the air horn
starting the Ladysmith Mind Over Mountain Adventure race. I'm here racing solo
as team "25% of Team Spirit." My other team mates of Team Spirit Canada
are conserving energy as they will be racing in a few days at the Raid the North
Extreme, part of the Adventure Racing World Series in Cornerbrook, Newfoundland.
I'm feeling sorry for myself as I can't race in Newfoundland, but I'm racing the
next best thing, MOMAR. So, here I was in my kayak, digging deep with my paddle
and trying to establish a clear path through encroaching double and single kayaks
with other sunscreen layered racers.
A beautiful
bright sunny day for a race! I think I can speak for all who were racing and those
volunteering that we'd soon be cursing the sun and heat as the race progressed
- the temperature was climbing.
Oh yeah, where
was I….I'm at the red can buoy, and looking at the tug and barge that had delayed
the start of the race - it's slowly pulling away from the race field…not only
is the barge pulling away from me, but so are the solo racers on racing kayaks/surf
skis. No matter how hard I paddle, I just can't keep up to those boats so I tuck
in behind a double and draft to Coffin Rocks. I pick another double and draft
to Bute Island, then we make our turn for the home stretch to CP2. With the beach
in sight, the double pulls away from me as the paddlers dig harder and faster
to reach the shore at Transfer Beach.
Onto the
beach, a quick run to CP2 and punch my control card. It's hot; I'm hydrating and
preparing to start the trek/run/walk/crawl leg coming up, from CP2 to CP7, the
bike transition. This is the first time I have raced Ladysmith and my friend Brent
Chan had given me a few pointers about the course from last year. Once I received
the map after checking in, I plotted my course and compared notes with Brent who
was also racing solo: we had both planned on bushwhacking from CP4 to the start
of the Heart Lake trail that would bring us to CP5, then from CP5, shoot a bearing
to the trail just before CP6, then hit CP6, run east on an established trail about
400 meters then drop north downhill to hit CP7.
So
that's what I was planning and all things were going fine until I caught up with
Chris Piller and Roger MacLeod who were racing as a pair. We were striding up
hill in the bush and Roger was stung by a wasp on his backside and I had to laugh
as he was dancing about swatting his butt trying to get any wasps away from him.
At this point, karma took a hold of me with a vengeance and soon after, I felt
a sting on my left leg then another, and another and I was flailing about with
arms and legs going everywhere at once trying to keep the wasps from stinging
me. I'm sure Roger was grinning ear to ear as I took my turn being an insect pin
cushion. 7 wasp stings! Rule number one: Don't follow a team mate or other racer
too closely - quite often the lead racer will disrupt a wasp nest and the second
racer, third and fourth gets stung. The problem for me is that I'm allergic to
wasp stings so I had to stop and take two anti-histamines and hope that I didn't
puff out like the Michelin man.
I kept my pace
up and made my way to CP5 and was monitoring my condition. After the mandatory
jump into Heart Lake and a great cooling down, it seemed that the 2 anti-histamines
were working. But soon after leaving CP5 I could feel my lymph nodes starting
to swell and I was getting itchy all over which is a bad sign for me cuz things
usually get ugly after that point so I stopped and gave myself an injection of
epinephrine. Rule number two: Always carry an anaphylaxis kit if you have serious
allergies. I never, ever, ever, race without one.
A
strong thank you to the volunteers at CP5 who radioed race headquarters and in
turn, all CP staff were advised of my condition and without fail, every volunteer
from CP5 on stopped me and asked how I was doing. That's a good feeling knowing
that the race organizers are on top of every situation and ensuring the race is
safe for everyone out there. On that topic, during the trek portion, my friend
Brent impaled his right leg on a branch and it punctured deep into his quadriceps
muscle. He was able to pull the stick out and make it to the next CP where he
was patched up by SARBC volunteers.
Despite the
injury, Brent finished the race and was then treated by the St Johns' Ambulance
staff and told, ok, ordered to visit the local hospital for stitches. He made
it to the post race banquet and was heralded for his triumph of mind over mountain
and displayed the 14 stitches on his quads to one and all. That had to have hurt.
The medical personnel were kept quite busy during the race and they tended to
injuries ranging from ankle fractures, wrist sprains, heat exhaustion, insect
stings, and road rash and sun burn. SARBC volunteers were also kept busy at the
end of the race having to transport injured racers off the course to an ambulance
due to serious heat exhaustion.
Oh yeah, I was
telling my story……..After my shot, I was able to get to CP6 as planned, then dropped
downhill to CP7 and grabbed my bike, but not without the infamous chain break
test - I think I set a personal best for the chain break and was soon on my way
thinking this bike ride was too easy. The fire road was smooth and slightly uphill
and I could keep a good pace and get some distance from others behind me. Well,
a big hill got in my way and I wound up struggling up this steep pitch and then
pushing my bike. Yes, I cursed Mr. Tasaka's name and I'm sure he could hear me.
The temperature was now about 30 degrees Celsius.
By the time I got to the Boardwalk at CP8, I was ready for another cool down and
Bryan obliged - into the swamp and bag the CP. Ugh…swamp gas mixed with sweaty
adventure racers is not a pleasant smell. I was trailing bog bits as I got out
of the swamp. Bryan flashed a grin at me and asked if I liked this portion of
the race. Good question, Bryan, good question. He also chided me for the condition
of my race map, which was now soaked. I had my map tucked under the leg of my
bike shorts in a zip lock bag, which was about as effective as wrapping it up
in rice paper and it leaked. Well, duh! So my map was now at that dangerous condition
of being wet and very fragile. I gingerly placed it into the back of my pack and
rode off to CP9.
Rule Number three - invest in
a good map bag (yes, I have three of them in various sizes and did I remember
to bring one….no!) or clear plastic laminate to protect the map. In fact, laminate
your map and place it in a map bag for additional protection. If you don't have
your map, you're not going to race; you're going to plod along and waste time
at every trail intersection and rely on fellow racers to help you along, unless
they are devious and send you in the opposite direction - not that this would
happen during a friendly competition would it?
By
the time I hit CP9, my map had disintegrated. I tried to pull it out of my pack
and it ripped - most of the ink had worn off anyway and I was now left with racing
by memory. Now, my brain cells are on vacation having left town many, many years
ago. Besides, with past MOMAR races and the infamous parties, I had drowned most
of my adventure racing brain cells and the ones left over only function after
numerous promptings and prodding's. I managed to ride down to CP10 and then things
started to get a bit confusing: I knew most of this was downhill but I had no
idea if the race course was on fire roads or trails. I didn't have any racers
near me to latch onto so I put my brain on hold and went by intuition. Rule number
four: Read/remember the CP descriptions included on the map - this would have
eased my fears as they gave me the clue to the next CP: CP 10 to 11: "easy downhill
ride on logging road." See Also Rule Number 3. I had trimmed my map and cut the
CP descriptions off and did not have them with me. Sigh…mistake after mistake.
From CP 11 to 13, I was able to roll along fairly
quickly as I happened across a team of two who were on the short course and I
managed to sneak a look at their map. I memorized the route and rode off into
the distance, hoping to make up time and find some water. I had been hydrating
heavily and was almost out of water and electrolyte. Without my map, I really
had no idea how much time it would take me to finish and my bladder in the pack
was dry and I had maybe a gulp or two left in my bike water bottle.
From
CP13 to CP 14, you'd think it would be a given but I missed the tunnel under the
highway and wound up above the Trans Canada highway in Ladysmith. By this time
I was tired, hot, and thirsty and definitely hoping the race would come to its
miserable end. I finally was able to get my act together and made it to the finish
line. Another punishing anaerobic exercise in racing and humility: the first place
finisher spanked me by an hour!
By the time I
had finished, the temperature was 32.5 degrees centigrade and the majority of
the racers were still out there along with all the volunteers. Rule Number five:
Hydrate, hydrate and hydrate. Start a few days before the race and increase your
water consumption. This does not mean coffee and/or soft drinks. By race day you'll
have: 1) peed a lot and 2) also saturated yourself. Invest in an electrolyte and
remember to hydrate on a regular basis. When you come to recognize you are thirsty,
you're already dehydrated and it may be too late to stop the process. Sodium is
lost along with sweat. If you only replace your lost fluid with water it will
contribute to a decreased blood sodium concentration. You can lose 2 (or more)
grams of salt per liter of sweat. On a day like Saturday, with high and sustained
energy output in a hot environment, you could lose up to a liter (or more) of
sweat each hour. Replacing this loss of sodium during the event is critical to
your race performance and safety or else you'll suffer from cramps, nausea, headaches,
fatigue and weakness which leads to the big bonk.
Bryan
put on a great race and I appreciate the organization and planning to deliver
a seamless experience for us. The volunteers were exceptional and the professionalism
of the St Johns Ambulance, radio operators and SARBC was evident in dealing with
all the problems as they arose. Kudos to all connected with the race and thank
you again for making it a great experience. Now, if only I could race smarter
and faster….any suggestions Bryan???
