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6:15 am and I am just rolling in off of the bike course after laying the final touches on the longest bike course in the history of Grass Roots Racing. The night slipped away from us but the GRR staff stayed up for all of it and put together an incredible course that would utilize every bit of what Frick Park had to offer. No time for back patting though—the first heat of the paddle prologue is scheduled to start in 15 minutes and the racers aren’t toeing the line yet. However, a quick inventory of the transition and paddle area shows that Andy and Toby dug deep and pulled off the impossible. Have to remember to thank them!

6:35 and heat (1) racers have paddles in hand and PFD’s buckled. At the sound of “Go” they sprint 300 meters to the tandem kayaks waiting for them on tether in the mighty Monongahela as the mist rises off of the water. Once in boats the ten teams will paddle up-river into the rising sun for one mile and turn around the bridge piling at the C+O Railroad Bridge. Tethered to the piling is a paddle prologue premium (PPP) containing an undisclosed sum of money. It is up to the paddlers to risk the time to retrieve it and Team Bagel—heat (1)’s leaders and eventual winners take the chance and secure a $20 bonus for their efforts. Also—as the heat’s winner—they secure a 30 second time bonus to be deducted from their total race time.

7:45 and we are a full 30 minutes behind schedule. The paddle leg is proving to be a bit slower than anticipated. Having time trialed the leg in a canoe in 40 minutes, race directors thought the kayaks would travel a bit faster. This reasoning proved faulty and it feels like the wheels are falling off of the wagon. However the racers are showing incredible patience and spirits are high due in part to the gorgeous weather we are experiencing. Heat (2)—the all male teams—takes off heading into the full rays of the sun just as a barge rounds the bend in the river. Fortunately a Coast Guard warning has been sent to all river traffic and the barge captain is keeping track of our racers. Team Snot Rockets emerges the victors of this heat by finishing over three minutes ahead of Team Bagel’s opening leg and more than a minute ahead of their heat’s closest competitors. They receive a 30 second time bonus for their efforts. They do not, however, manage to retrieve the premium and leave it for the second to last place heat finisher, Team 2 Humble 2 Win.

8:45 and the wheels are no longer on the wagon! Heat 3 was slated to take off at 8:00 but remarkably racers—despite growing mildly impatient—are focused and excited to race. The final heat—co-ed division—takes off and all we can do is wait. Fortunately the time between heats has allowed racers to set up T/A, and take advantage of a short but helpful navigation clinic. Team Spang takes this field with a finishing time of 43:31, with Stix and Stones nipping at their heels at 43:58. The last team crosses the finish line at 9:40 and it is looking like a 10:00 starting time is a reality. This is a full hour later than planned but the racers are very understanding—and we are very thankful!

9:45 and racers are lined up at the start. The GRR crew is busily handcuffing each one of them using 14” zip-ties. Handcuffs? Yes! The start of the race will require each team to get through a 16 inch high by 4 foot wide tunnel while hands are cuffed together and attached to their waists. Bear in mind that the “tunnel” is 16 feet long! Racers are lined up according to their prologue finishing time and Team Snot Rockets takes off first and makes short work of the tunnel. Once they get to the other side they locate the wire snips needed to release their hands and take off on the run course.

100 yards on pavement and then straight down a steep hill and into “Nine Mile Run” they go. No, the run isn’t nine miles—that’s the name of the stream they must run in. For almost one mile racers must alternate between ankle to knee deep water and short breaks on the rocky shoreline. Once clear of the stream the racers run uphill to the top of the slag pile created from years of steel production. Though this area has been abused for many years it has—like a phoenix—begun its rise from its literal ashes and is slowly improving. The terrain makes for a demanding run course with many ups and downs and rolling hills. After almost two miles of running in the slag, racers descended at an alarming rate back into Nine Mile Run for a wet dash back to T/A. The team with the fastest time on this leg would be awarded a time bonus. That team was Blaze—a co-ed team made up of John Ralston and Chris Valentine. After a disappointing paddle leg would the one minute bonus prove to make a difference?

10:30 and the front runners are entering T/A for their bikes. As they suit up and head out of T/A they see that they will be required to get their bikes and themselves through the same tunnel as at the start. Front wheels are quickly removed and teams are pushing and pulling for all they are worth to get through this hazard before it “bottlenecks”. The first several teams are successful but as time passes things go wrong. One team can’t get their bike apart so another helps them and soon—just like the Squirrel Hill Tunnels at rush hour—there is a back-up. Again racers are patient and are helping each other and soon this “hazard” is clear.

Once past the hazard, racers are following blue bike course markers for almost two miles. Again these markers lead racers down to Nine Mile Run—but this time it is just before Commercial Avenue. Here they discover a tunnel that goes under the busy road so that they can cross without danger. The only hitch is that Nine Mile Run gets very deep here. Front runners quickly find a way through that enables little more than their feet to get wet. However, as more racers go through the water gets murky and visibility is reduced. Soon racers are up to their chests and necks in water and are hoisting their bikes high over their heads to get into the tunnel. Every one of them is smiling!

On the other side of the tunnel racers find their first of two maps. The maps are simple park maps and are pre-plotted with a total of 20 points which are to be retrieved on bike. If racers follow their instructions and retrieve the points in order—and follow the course that directors have in mind—they will be treated to some very nice riding. If not, then they will be treated to a level of frustration that often accompanies adventure racing. Judging by the time it is taking to complete this leg of the race I am thinking that the latter is the case. I am kicking myself because “over-reaching” is a flaw I am so aware that I have! I head onto the course to get a feel of what is happening. When I get there I am pleasantly surprised. Yes, racers are having some issues with the navigation (most of which seems to center around following bearing) but every one of them is enjoying rising to the occasion and is working their way through this test of tenacity, patience, and fitness.

After three hours a leader emerges, and it’s Team Blaze! Hot on their heels is all male Team Snot Rockets—trying to rebound from a major navigational blunder. Shortly behind them is another co-ed team, Team Spang. As all three blast through the dirt trails leading back to T/A it is Team Blaze that shows their experience with an amazingly fast transition and an equally quick final run that places them almost 3 minutes ahead of Team Snot Rockets with a finish time of 4:00:39. Team Spang seemed to lose some wind from their sails but crossed the finish line with a very respectable 4:14:42. All male newcomers “Big Lead Pipes” finished fourth in 4:21:41—due in part to a “missed point” penalty of 10 minutes. GRR is expecting “Big” things from these guys.

In the points series it is Team Snot Rockets—Brandon Kellogg and Ryan Hoffman—that dominates with 88 points. What is exciting to see is that the next two places are occupied by co-ed teams: Team Spang—Edna and Tim Spang with 82 points and Team Blaze—Chris Valentine and John Ralston with 79 points. The next race—the Moraine Adventure Dash—takes place on July 21. With over 35 teams registered at this early date it could prove to be the highest points race to date. This fact could shake up the standings a bit and we are looking forward to watching as this race unfolds.

Can’t wait to see you all in a few short weeks at MAD!

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