Joshua Tree National Park and the Friends of Joshua Tree release ‘Save the Date’ info for Climb Smart Festival, October 21-23

Joshua Tree National Park and nonprofit group Friends of Joshua Tree (FOJT) invite climbers of all skill levels and fans of Joshua Tree National Park to ‘Save the Date’ for the 2011 Climb Smart Festival, to be held October 21-23, 2011 in Joshua Tree, Calif. This year’s event celebrates the 75th anniversary of Joshua Tree National Park and kicks off the climbing season with fun, education, service and support for key services around the Park. Event registration available at www.acteva.com/booking.cfm?bevaid=220907.

The 2011 Climb Smart festival, including climbing clinics, camping, park projects, multimedia and athlete presentations, vendor fair and more, is the perfect event for kicking off the climbing season, connecting with kindred spirits and giving back to the park. Presenting sponsors are Black Diamond, prAna, adidas Outdoor, Evolve Sports, Sterling Ropes, Joshua Tree National Park and Adventure 16.

Clinics for all abilities will be led by American Mountain Guide Association (AMGA) accredited guides from Wilderness Outings, Uprising and Vertical Adventures as well as top sponsored and legendary climbers of yore.

During the Climb Smart festival, climbers and park supporters will also have the opportunity to learn about and shape Park policy as the Park’s long term General Management Plan goes under review this year. Park policy toward climbing nationwide is heavily influenced by Joshua Tree, one of the world-renowned climbing destinations in the United States.

A one-time fee, $105 ($85 early bird), will give attendees an all-access pass to the weekend event’s festival, clinics, camping and fun at the new festival location, Joshua Tree Lake Campground. To register for Climb Smart 2011, register at www.acteva.com/booking.cfm?bevaid=220907.
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The North Face has long been associated with great clothing and gear for hiking, running, camping, and casual life… but mountain biking? It’s not often you see an established brand break into a new market like this, so I was very curious to see what they had in store!

Their Trail and XC line debuted on shelves this past spring, including everything from standard shorts & jerseys to all-weather jackets and essential accessories. I was excited to test out the women’s Creeper Jersey, Dusties Shorts, and Brakeman Glove.

While listed on their website as a men’s accessory, the Brakeman could easily be considered unisex, as they fit my relatively petite hands, well, like a glove. I demoed the medium, surprised that it felt almost too snug to begin. After a few trips to the trail, they loosened up and were quite comfortable to ride in. The Brakeman is a hybrid design: your typical fingerless glove paired with a longer pointer and middle finger for added protection. (The extra length does wonders in the hot sweaty south, making sure your digits are dry for maneuvering the shifting & brake levers.) There is extra padding and breathable mesh in all the right places, with an uber-soft nose wipe on the thumb (perfect for wiping sweat from your eyes). Another great feature is extra grip on your braking finger, so you can take on gnarly descents with confidence. However, their ruggedness does not take away from dexterity. While only time will test their durability, the Brakeman’s solid construction has me feeling they are well worth their $28 price.

The Dusties Shorts were my first foray into baggies. I guess I’m a bit of a traditionalist when it comes to cycling (be it mountain or road), my normal kit consisting of a Lyrca short and zippered jersey. I always thought the baggies were for “extreme riders” aka downhiller/freeriders (or those that just wanted to hide their bodies more). I put aside all my preconceived notions for my maiden ride. Getting into the shorts was a bit of a challenge. There is an inner chamois loosely connected to the waistband by elastic strings — ones that look permanent, not like they should be cut. (So I’ve left as-is for now…) Continue Reading

Atmosphere Raid the North Extreme (ARTNX), Canada’s premiere expedition-style adventure race, is proud to announce a new media strategy that focuses on gaining maximum exposure for all stakeholders through a unique online experience that evolves in tandem with the race itself.

“Adventure racing is a dynamic and exciting sport and we have chosen to move away from our traditional media approach to develop a content-rich, in the moment, online experience including daily videos, blogs, social media feeds, and interactive message boards.” said Geoff Langford, Race Director for Atmosphere RTNX. “This bold new move allows us to share all of the race week excitement and drama with as many people as possible, as close to real time as possible.”

Atmosphere RTNX’s innovative media strategy will allow viewers to be immersed in many aspects of the race – from watching daily racer videos and tracking their locations on an interactive map, to catching a rare glimpse of behind the scenes action – as it unfolds. It will be the next best thing to being there.

The newly designed race week portal is now live at www.raidthenorthextreme.com with pre-race information and updates. Live action race feeds will commence with the crack of the starter’s pistol at 10 am on July 24th, 2011.

Atmosphere Raid the North Extreme, the six-day, non-stop expedition race, takes place from July 23 to 31, 2011 in the West Kootenay region of British Columbia. It will feature four-person co-ed teams from around the world as they navigate more than 500 kilometres of unmarked terrain through the Selkirk, Purcell and Monashee mountains. Teams will face extreme challenges including a rugged wilderness, team dynamics, sleep deprivation and gear failure as they bike, trek, paddle and use ropes to navigate their way to the finish line in Trail, BC.

ABOUT FRONTIER ADVENTURE SPORTS & TRAINING INC:

Frontier Adventure Sports & Training Inc (Frontier) is the leading adventure racing company in Canada, operating the popular Raid the North adventure racing series. Now in its 14th year of operation, Frontier has an international reputation for solid logistics, challenging courses and events built around the history and tradition of each region. Atmosphere Raid the North Extreme is one of just two qualifier events in North America for the Adventure Racing World Series to be held this year in Tasmania. Each Raid the North race always remains true to its slogan: Real Wilderness. Real Navigation. Real Adventure.

Collectively, team DART-nuun-SportMulti has some of the best experience heading into this year’s Raid the North Extreme. We caught up with Cyril last night as the team will be leaving for Canada today.

Who are the team players for this year’s RTNX?

Mari Chandler – 34
She drives the team on foot and on the bike and is the master of TAs. All the boys train to make sure they don’t slow Mari down.

Aaron Rinn – 32
The team’s powerhouse. Tows, powers the boats, carries all the gear and when we all falter, tows everyone and navigates. He’s an amazing route finder

Matt Hayes – 30
Navigator and all-around speedster

Cyril Jay-Rayon – 45
The old dude on the team. Navigator and loves the technical stuff, which the RTNX should have plenty of

What is your team doing to prepare for the big race?
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The East Coast Adventure Racing Series is over half way through the 2011 season. Here are the most recent point standings for the 3/4-person coed division! Click here to see all the rankings.

I caught up with JD Eskelson, captain of Team SOG, as he is making his way driving from Utah to British Columbia for the Raid the North Extreme. He has been training out west in preparation for the race which begins later this week. We also added a question in regards to the team’s food plan for the 6-day race.

Who are the team players for this year’s RTNX?

Captain: JD Eskelson, | U.S. Army Airborne Infantry, Europe (28+yrs) & Professional Ski Instructor | Age: 47
Teammate 2: Peter Dobos, Ottawa, Ontario | Pedorthist | Age: 43
Teammate 3: Julia Pollock, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | Banker | Age: 30
Teammate 4: Lee Mebel, Denver, Colorado | Sr. HR Manager | Age: 35
Our average age of 38.75!

What is your team doing to prepare for the big race?

JD recently raced the APEX 4 day AR in Switzerland and has been training at home in Germany with his 3 personal trainers (2 Chocolate Labs, Tolborona & Toffee, Father and Daughter and an U.S. Military Force Protection dog named Nora). Oh, plus training with his Wife, Robin Currently, JD’s travelling thru Utah, Montana and Idaho doing some high-altitude workouts too.
Biggest asset to the team: AR experience since 2002, Decision maker, Navigator, Motivator… Army cadences, plus poor joke telling and singing! Also, perseverance and dedication in racing & to team.

Julia starting the 2011 AR season off Julia raced the 26hr Rev3 Epic AR in April in Virginia winning 1st place 4 person co-ed then in May she raced the 10hr AR Yough Extreme in Pennsylvania winning 1st place 3 person co-ed, next in June she raced the 30hr The Longest Day AR in New York and won 1st place 3 person co-ed. Moreover, Julia followed that race by competing in the 48hr Endorphin Fix AR in West Virginia and won 3rd place co-ed 3 person! So, if she’s not adventure racing on a regular seems-like-every-other-weekend she’s out doing RTNX training on the hills, rivers and rocks in Pennsylvania.
Biggest asset to the team: Paddling Fiend and Motivator Mama… by keeping all us boys in line, awake and does not want to hear any whining. Also, good at Nav and telling bombastic bank jokes! Continue Reading

By Cathi Cannon

Yes, I am here to dispel all the myths you have heard about wool — gone are the thick, itchy sweaters from holiday photos. Enter the new and improved wool of today: soft, breathable, and all kinds of comfort.

One of the leading innovators in merino wool performance clothing, Icebreaker, recently provided two items from their summer GT Run lineup for us to test: The Rush Tank and Swift Skort. While I was familiar with their winter collection, this would be my first foray into “summertime woollies”.

A rigorous 3-point test began.

Day 1: Trail Running. Temps were in the mid-90s and we started to sweat just tying our shoes. Perfect testing weather. The first thing I notice about both pieces was how comfortable they were, both in fit and material. I’m not shy about sweating and the Rush Tank did its job in moving it away from my skin quickly, keeping me as dry and cool as possible. (Note: it’s always best to wear a top slightly fitted so that it can transport sweat more easily; a larger shirt flapping in the wind is just not going to work as efficiently.) The Swift Skort was a surprising winner. Made out of slightly heavier 200gsm wool (the tank is 150gsm), it still keeps you cool while maintaining a high level of durability for any unplanned meetings with the ground (or in my case, a crazy bushwack around a hornet’s nest). A slit on the left may be a bit sexy for the uber-modest, but just think of it as built-in air conditioning. On the side is a smartly placed zipped pocket, adequately sized for keys and a few gels or bars. The one thing perhaps missing are gel grippers on the inner short; while they rode up slightly, it did not detract from the overall comfort or “wearability” of the skort.

Day 2: Aprés Bike. Skiers have their aprés gear, so why can’t we?! After a day in the chamois, I can honestly say nothing could be more comfortable than the Swift Skort. Soft and airy, the skort also scores points with a stylish asymmetrical waistband and complimenting panel construction.

Day 3: Hike. I actually started with an hour run, then met up with friends for a two hour hike. I was thoroughly soaked with sweat at the start of the hike, but about an hour in, both items were nearly dry. Using a light pack was comfortable with no chafing or other problem spots. Win!

I can now reveal the secret test I was also performing. Unbeknownst to my hike-mates, I had not yet washed the tank. One of the benefits of wool I had read about was its resilience to the “funk” so common with synthetic performance gear. So, in the spirit of thorough gear testing, I had to indulge. I am happy to report that after multiple uses in the horridly hot conditions of the deep south, the Rush passed the sniff test with a smile.

While I do some laundry, go explore Icebreaker’s website. In addition to purchasing all of their products online, you can learn more about the company and their dedication to sustainability. And while you’re there, say hello to the sheep & farmers that produced my Rush Tank (baacode # 07D1AD41A) and Swift Skort (# 5BAB8B80B).

Check out the full Icebreaker GT Run lineup here: Men’s | Women’s

Cathi Cannon discovered mountains after growing up in Florida thinking the world was flat. She now works in Chattanooga, TN, as a graphic designer to fund her trail running and cycling habits. Cathi is a volunteer race director whose adventures appear at bebackonmonday.com.

Competitors in the 2011 The North Face Peak to Peak (August 6) will be going all out to topple the record time of 2hours 02.51 clocked in 2010 by Queenstown’s Fergburger team in the prestigious mountain-to-mountain multisport event from the top of The Remarkables to Coronet Peak.

Race Director Geoff Hunt says there are several hardcore teams aiming to break the two hour mark.

“It has always been a target for some of the top athletes and last year’s race which saw Fergburger just pip the experienced defending open champion team Outside Sports by two minutes has intensified the goal to go under two hours.”

The North Face Peak to Peak is being staged for the 18th consecutive year and the August timing this year is due to the later New Zealand school holiday period.

“We don’t expect the change from the traditional July date to have any impact,” says Hunt. “There is a lot of interest already building out there amongst both returning and first time athletes. There are a number of school teams competing which is good to see as we are keen to foster the younger, up and coming multisporters who are the future of the sport.”

The 44km race starts at the top of The Remarkables with a 2km ski/snowboard on The Homeward Bound run finishing at the skifield access road. A 17km mountain bike ride down the high altitude road finishes at Frankton Beach and is followed by a 7km paddle to Queenstown Bay. From the Bay it is a 9km run to the foot of Coronet Peak and a 9km cycle ride up the access road to finish at the base buildings. Continue Reading

Raid the North Extreme gets underway later this week. Check out this video from Team Kootenay Kaos from a recent 24-hour training session.

By Brian Schmitz
All photos below by Chris Radcliffe

It was an early Sunday morning in March 2010. Tecnu Extreme / StaphAseptic was just a few hours from winning one of it’s biggest adventure races yet, West Virginia’s Endorphin Fix 2 Day Adventure Race (billed as the “Toughest 2 Day Race in the Country”). Instead of racing to a glorious first-place finish, the team voluntarily walked off the course with a DNF. Worried that one of their teammates would degrade further from breathing problems, the team decided that winning was not “that” important.

Fast forward to June 2011 and the team was back to finish what it had started. This year’s team, Marco Amselem, Kyle Peter, Leslie Rueter, and Brian Schmitz, had already been racing well through the first half of 2011 and wanted to maintain that energy.

This year’s race started just after noon on Friday, June 24, with an 11K riverboard swim. The team lead from the start. The conditions were mixed, with long sections of steady slowwater kicking in between short sections of moderate whitewater (nothing too intense; but just enough to keep it more fun than work). Hats off, by the way, to Marco for helping Leslie down the river. For most of the way, Marco towed Leslie while swimming. Wow!

The team was first off the riverboards after almost 2 hours of swimming. What followed was a 32K river kayak. This section would provide a bit more excitement. The flow was stronger, which provided more whitewater. Yahoo! After about 3 hours of paddling (including a minor repair to a leaky boat), the team was holding steady in second place. Then came the last set of rapids. From afar, this set looked a bit gnarly. The first part was challenging, but uneventful. Both of the team’s boats paddled through fine. Then the second part, with an evil hydraulic called “Surprise”, stunned the team. In seconds, Marco was thrown from Kyle’s boat and now lost in the foamy whitewater. Then, seconds later, Leslie and Brian’s boat went over. Brian and Leslie were now in the river and their boat was overturned and fading away. Leslie was able to catch the boat while Marco and Brian met at Kyle’s boat. The team was finally able to recover and finish off the paddle with no more drama (and holding onto second).

The next section was a 15K run with a mix of on-trail and off-trail running and bush-whacking. What followed was a run/orienteering section that added a very pivotal and strategic element to the race. This section allowed the team to start and finish that section at this one time or split it up and start it now and eventually finish it later at the end of the race on Sunday. It raised the question as to whether it would be smarter to try to push through more of this section while fresher but risk missing aggressive cutoffs or easily make those cutoffs and save more for the end (but more tired). The team decided to do the former. Pushing through the night and coming off that section after a self-imposed deadline, the team cleared a majority of the section. However, there was one bit of drama along the way. One checkpoint was never found. It was eventually determined that checkpoint was misplaced. The teams that attempted to find that checkpoint received a time bonus for their spent time.
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After six XTERRA regional championships around the country the stage is now set for the XTERRA U.S. Pro Series finale at the USA Championship at Snowbasin Resort in Ogden, Utah on September 24.

For the men, Stoltz is still in the driver’s seat at the top spot with Middaugh firmly in second and the top American. Lebrun jumped from 5th to 3rd with his strong showing today while Wealing jumped from 8th to 5th. Rakita dropped two spots to 4th.

The women’s chase is documented above and promises to provide great anticipation for the USA Championship throwdown.

2011 XTERRA U.S. Pro Series Standings (after 6)

PRO MEN

Pl Name West /Scentral/ Pacific/ S’East/ East/ Mountain/ Total
1 Conrad Stoltz 90 100 100 100 100 DNR 490
2 Josiah Middaugh 100 90 75 82 DNR 100 447
3 Nicolas Lebrun 75 75 DNR 69 82 75 376
4 Branden Rakita 82 69 69 x-58 75 69 364
5 Seth Wealing 58 82 82 DNF DNR 90 312 Continue Reading

Josiah Middaugh and Shonny Vanlandingham lived up to their reputations as great climbers in the thin air of the Rockies by winning the XTERRA Mountain Championship on a beautiful blue sky day at Beaver Creek Resort in Avon, Colorado this morning.

For Middaugh, the third time is a charm. After two years of finishing third in his backyard (he lives just a couple miles away from the course) he thrilled an incredibly supportive local community by crossing the finish line 19 seconds ahead of runner-up Seth Wealing with a course-record time of 2:12:05.

“I’m certainly thankful that I was finally able to take this race,” said Middaugh to the appreciative crowd gathered for the awards ceremony. “I’ve had a little bit of a monkey on my back these last couple years not being able to pull this one off on my home course.”

The day started with Wealing first out of the 66-degree Nottingham Lake water in 16:53, a full 30-seconds ahead of a pack of swimmers that included Branden Rakita, Patrick Valentine, Brad Zoller, and Tim Reed.

Middaugh exited the swim about one minute, 40-seconds behind Wealing and quickly started his assault on the mountain that has made him a local legend. In the next five miles and 2,000-feet of climbing to where the course tops-out at 9,400-feet elevation Middaugh passed Jason Michalak, Reed, Zoller, Valentine, Rakita, and finally Wealing.

At the 10-mile mark he had roughly 30 seconds on Wealing, with Rakita and Nico Lebrun (who was third at XTERRA France last week and was 1:40 behind Middaugh coming out of the water) riding together in third and fourth. Brian Smith, who was the last male pro out of the swim (nearly five minutes behind Wealing), was amazingly in fifth place and just a few minutes back by mile 10.
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Checkpoint Zero, LLC announced today that Swiftwick has extended their sponsorship of Checkpoint Tracker Adventure Racing with a commitment to provide their exceptional compression socks and arm sleeves to all racers competing in Checkpoint Tracker’s annual Adventure Racing Championship.

Swiftwick is a Tennessee based company that produces high end compression socks that utilize construction methods, designs, and materials that have made them the first choice among both world class athletes and everyday consumers alike. Swiftwick takes pride in the fact that production is entirely domestic and the vast amount of materials are sourced within the U.S. Swiftwick also takes great pride in the fact that the material selection and manufacturing techniques are “green” by design. Swiftwick socks offer top of class moisture wicking and climate control, not through chemical treatments, but via construction techniques and fiber selection. Swiftwick socks also feature compression throughout, with both the footbed and the uppers offering an undeniable performance advantage that must be experienced to be fully appreciated.

“I first got my hands on a pair of Swickwick socks when they sponsored our inaugural championship race in 2010″, commented Paul Angell, President of Checkpoint Zero. “Since then I’ve ditched every other brand of socks in my drawer and replaced them 100% with Swiftwick socks. There is simply no comparison in terms of quality and performance. I was delighted when they approached us about expanding their support and offered to equip all of our Championship racers with socks and arm warmers. More adventure racers are sidelined because of issues with their feet than anything else. The simple fact is that Swiftwick’s compression socks are the best way to mitigate the most common foot problems you’re likely to have while training or racing. Period.”
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Pete Cameron, the captain for Atmosphere MOMAR, took a few minutes to fill us in on the preparations that he and his team have been making for this year’s Raid the North Extreme. The team had to find a replacement for one of their teammates after a injury sidelined him for this race.

Who are the team players for this year’s RTNX?

Leanne Mueller

Age: 35
Biggest asset to the team: She’s the best piece of ‘mandatory gear’ our team has for this race! She navigates, bikes like an animal (hence the nick name ‘Leanimal’), and is likely the strongest of us all…AR women usually are! Having given birth to a little girl only 7 months ago, she’s really happy how nursing her daughter has resulted in 10 lost lbs!

James Galipeau

Age: 31
Biggest asset to the team: What do you get when you combine a wrench, an unwavering positive attitude, and a deep chasm of staying power? You get 5’8” of pure James…priceless!

Jean-Yves Dionne

Age: 31
Biggest asset to the team: JYD’s biggest asset is his ability to drop everything, pack up loads of gear, and get to Nelson, BC with only 2 week’s notice. We’re lucky to have someone so strong and positive at the last minute after Todd’s back forced him to the sidelines.

Pete Cameron

Age: 35
Biggest asset to the team: Pete gets the team looking good in Salomon gear, all of the logistics sorted, and everyone to the start line on time…after that, we hope he can navigate as well as he thinks he can.
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Typical adventure racing teams opt for the 3 and 1 format with that including the female as the ‘mandatory equipment’. However, for this year’s RTNX, Erik Nachtrieb will be the team’s solo male as he is joined by Deb McInally, Jude Ultra, and Michelle Maislen to form Mandatory Equipment. The team will also be one the teams being followed by the production crew, New Edge Productions. Also, check out the team’s web series at the bottom. We have included the Trailer. A link at the bottom will allow you to view the rest.

Who are the team players for this year’s RTNX?

Erik Nachtrieb

Age: 41
Biggest asset to the team: Navigator, ridiculous bushwhacking, non-stop story teller and “the serious guy”.

Deb McInally

Age: 41
Biggest asset to the team: Team organization, pulls the bike train, attention to details, mechanic

Jude Ultra

Age: 28
Biggest asset to the team: The engine, keeps pace on foot, team singer/rapper, feeds the navigator

Michelle Maislen

Age: 36
Biggest asset to the team: Conflict resolution, navigation support, voice of reason
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by Pat Kinsella

With the Adventure Racing World Championships (ARWC) now just three months away, the planet’s best off-road multisport athletes are running out of chances to book their place in the sport’s biggest annual event, due to take place in Burnie, Tasmania, in October/November 2011.

In the last few weeks two additional names were added to the illustrious list of teams who are currently locked in to be on the starting line when the ARWC kicks off, when international qualifying events were run and won in Switzerland and Costa Rica.

Spain’s Columbia Spot team recently took out the 2011 Costa Rica Adventure Race when they crossed the finish line at the Hotel Almendros y Corales in Playa Manzanillo after prevailing in an intense battle with fellow Iberians, Thermocool Buff.

After negotiating the final stage – which included a 12km trek and a 27km mountain bike ride between Playa Negra and Playa Gandoca – Columbia Spot finished the 800km race with a total time of 82 hours and 30 minutes.

Difficult sea conditions and darkness meant some teams were prevented from completing the kayaking stage, which led to their times being neutralized and opened up a real scrap for third place, with home team Gropo Orosi Costa Rica eventually completing the podium.

And previously, in the alpine adventure-playground surrounds of Interlaken in Switzerland, team Silva Gerber Adventure (whose ranks now include ex-pat Kiwi Aaron Prince) won the APEX event, and promptly booked themselves a ticket to Tasmania. The race – which featured total elevation gain of around 15,000 meters – took place under the eye of the Eiger in the Jungfrau region of the viciously vertiginous country, and in the second half of the race, which took place at altitude, the weather gods turned against racers, serving them up a bitter cocktail of constant wind, rain, and snow.
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Spain’s Victor Del Corral and Switzerland’s Renata Bucher won the XTERRA France Championship in Xonrupt on Saturday, July 10. The victory marks the first XTERRA Championship ever for Del Corral, and the first of 2011 for Bucher (the four-time XTERRA European Tour Champion now has 22 career XTERRA victories).

XTERRA Managing Director “Kahuna Dave” Nicholas was on site for the race and brings us this report…

In the north of France, another great European race with twists and turns and loads of entertainment. Race morning was sunny and warm as the 400 participants in XTERRA France Decouvert (discovery) headed out exactly on time at 8:15 a.m. Next, over 100 kids from 7-13 went out in real swim-bike-run races in 3 age groups and had some exciting battles. Size and gender mean nothing to kids; the girls and smaller boys were unbelievably fast.

About an hour before the championship race start the clouds came in and the rain started. The good news is it stopped just before the 2:00pm start. A great mass of 500 stood on the shore when the “bomb” went off and the game began.

Ben Allen, an Aussie living in France and fresh off a victory at XTERRA Brazil, killed the swim leading second-place by 30 seconds. Frenchman Benoit Augeux and an Englishman living in France, Asa Shaw, were next, followed by Olivier Marceau, Ronny Dietz, Yeray Luxem and the rest of the pack.

For the women, South African Carla van Huyssteen was first out of the water followed by Marion “Bubu” Lorblanchet. Lorblanchet muscled her way past the diminutive van Huyssteen leaving transition knowing that the “Swiss Miss” Renata Bucher would be strong on the bike. Bucher had what she termed a bad “sveem” and was more than three minutes behind Lorblanchet from T1 and had a lot of work to do.
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When I spoke with Masha Glanville, team captain of Dancing Pandas, she chuckled as she told us that the 4-person team has a combined age of 196 and over 40 years of expedition racing experience. Perhaps all that experience and wisdom will prove most useful at Raid the North Extreme.

Who are the team players for this year’s RTNX?

Thorlene Egerton

Age: 46
Biggest asset to the team: Navigation (one of the top navigators in Australia!), wisdom and she is one tough (and really nice) chick all around.

Peter Spagnoli

Age: 51
Biggest asset to the team: EXPERIENCE (12 years of expedition adventure racing, 30 years of ironmans/triathlons and 10 years of mountaineering), unbelievable calmness under ANY kind of pressure or stress, strength and humor

Michael Chastaine

Age: 51
Biggest asset to the team: EXPERIENCE (8 years of AR, 30 years of endurance racing – running and mountain biking), strength, navigation and humor

Masha Glanville

Age: 47
Biggest asset to the team: Experience (12 years of expedition adventure racing), strategy and head mom
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Our pre-race interview with Kyle Peter of Team Tecnu Extreme/StaphAseptic as they make final preparations for Raid the North Extreme. You can also follow them on Facebook.

Who are the team players for this year’s RTNX?

Leslie Reuter

Age: 41
Biggest asset to the team: Experience, Technical MTBing, Wisdom

Marco Amselem

Age: 26
Biggest asset to the team: Work horse, Laughter, Nutrition, CP bag spotter

Brian Schmitz

Age: 40
Biggest asset to the team: Logistics, Organization, Navigation, Pace setter

Kyle Peter

Age: 27
Biggest asset to the team: Navigation

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2011 Hardrock 100

Chorier the Executioner!

It takes a structural engineer to lay the kind of plans that allow a Frenchman to travel to the highest mountains of America and dominate the toughest race of this nation, only a day after Bastille Day. But Julien Chorier is more than an engineer; he’s an executioner who stuck to his plans over all but a few of the rugged mountain trails.

Other than getting off course in the early part of the race and losing about 20 minutes, Chorier was like clockwork, keeping right on pace with his meticulous schedule. For the final 45 miles he had the pacing company of fellow Salomon global teammates, Ryan Sandes (Capetown, South Africa) and Rickey Gates (Aspen, CO).

Chorier, who lives in the French Alps, came to acclimate in Colorado’s high country two weeks before Hardrock with teammate Nerea Martinez, from Spain. They spent a few days scouting the course but, sadly, having summited the high point of Handies Peak, over 14,000 feet above sea level, Martinez descended into the wrong basin and got lost enough almost half way into the course in third place for the women that she dropped from the race. “I am very sad but want to return to this race to do the complete beautiful course.”

Chorier finished in 25:17, the third fastest ever, finishing 1:53 ahead of the second-place finisher of Dakota Jones. Said Chorier, after his victory, “Everything here is on a different scale. It is 2x here.”

Our congratulations for Julien are also 2x!

–Adam W. Chase, Salomon US Brand Ambassador

Via Press Release

With Raid the North Extreme starting in just a matter of weeks, we thought this was a great video to show as Adam Campbell on a training run through the South Chilcotins area of British Columbia.

Thanks to Breathe Magazine for posting this on their Facebook page.

Adam Campbell Chilcotins run from ARC'TERYX on Vimeo.

DART-Nuun-SportMulti finished 7th overall and the top American team

Team members Ryan VanGorder, Mari Chandler, Matt Hayes, and Kyle Peter competed in the APEX Expedition race in Switzerland May 25 – 29. The race covered miles of beautiful trails high in the Bernese Oberland region of the Swiss Alps. Incredible scenery, exposed ridgelines, big climbs, tough competition, and lots of vertical were all highlights of the race.

The race started with a 4 stage prologue in Interlaken consisting of two orienteering loops, a trotti-bike (scooter) section, and whitewater rafting. With 30 teams that were well rested and ready to race, the prologue was very competitive. With each section taking about 1 hour, there was a bit of rest time between stages. Each orienteering loop consisted of a couple checkpoints in some flat hay fields around the airport and then a climb and descent on a trail system on the mountains to the south of Interlaken. The trotti-bike section included four loops around the airport roads with teammates alternating loops in pairs. Whitewater rafting included about 10 minutes of whitewater (untimed) and about 20 minutes of paddling on a calmer section of the river. The temperature reached 85 deg F during the day, and with 20-20 hindsight I think many teams, including ours, would have lowered the pace a notch or two.

The race re-start had us on a short run through Interlaken to the first paddle section on Thunersee (Lake Thun). An out and back section on the west end of the lake let everyone see where they stood after a few hours of paddling.

After the paddle, we began an all night bike ride up the Kander valley where we had a short run up to the Oeschinenseee lake, and a good downhill back down the valley. We then rode higher in the mountains through numerous communities, farms, and ranches. The fast pace and heat of the first day hit Matt hard on this stretch. The team towed throughout the night, but it wasn’t until a few rest stops, including a breakfast recovery buffet at a hotel and a Nuun rehydration session that he began to recover and feel better. The end of ride traveled up the Lauterbrunnen valley, which had amazing shear rock walls lining both sides and numerous waterfalls from the cliffs.
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