Hi-Tec Adventure Race #3, Atlanta, GA, 6/24/01

Close your eyes and think of GeorgiaÖ Southern Hospitality, Summer Afternoons, Ice Cold Lemonade, Quiet Walks on Country Lanes, Peaceful Flowing Rivers, Green Fields, Pastures, Farmland, Peace and Quiet.

Yeah Right, Think Again, Itís Hi-Tec Time!

The Hi-Tec Adventure Racing Series made its annual return to these genteel surroundings with a blast of anaerobic energy, testosterone and adrenaline!

Over 330 teams descended upon Fort Yargo State Park for this annual suffer-fest of kayaking, trail running, mountain biking and those little things we in the business like to call "character builders", the special tests.

Racers were informed at the pre-race meeting that they were to toe-the-starting-line with PFDís buckled and two kayaks in hand. Once the Star Spangled Banner was finished resonating in the still morning air, teams were handed orienteering maps. An orienteering kayak leg: A Hi-Tec First. Teams were to navigate the lake, in the process gathering three control points: two along the shoreline and one 100-meter inland. (This last point had to be gathered by a minimum of two team members.) The cannon sounded and teams raced to the waterís edge a quarter-mile in the distance. One, or could it be three, things were missing, paddles. Once in the water, teams had to doggie-paddle their boats to a floating raft 100-yards off-shore piled high with their paddles. Once racers were paired with their paddles, the kayak leg began. Team Balance Bar, Red Bull, SoBe and Ultima raced to the forefront. But when the dust would settle, Team Sevylor, staying true to their sponsorís name, landed first ashore with checkpoint cards in hand.

After depositing their boats and handing in their maps and checkpoint cards teams sprinted to their bikes. Before they could get out of the transition area, however, racers were faced with the "Bike Mechanicís Nightmare" special test. At the pre-race meeting, teams were told to dismantle one of their bikes, removing the front and rear tires, removing the seat and loosening the handlebars turning them 90-degrees askew. Coming off the kayak, racers had to quickly become race mechanics, pit stop time is crucial in NASCAR as well as Hi-Tec races, re-assembling the bike before riding away. No lead changes were evident as each team raced to complete the repairs. The first of two, 5.5-mile mountain bike loops complete with an amazing mix of gravel fire roads, double-track trails and technical, single-track awaited. Team Balance Bar rose to the front and maintained their lead despite being harried by Team Red Bull throughout the course.

Once through the first loop, the racers took to their feet for a leg-blasting 6-mile trail run. After the trail run, with hearts racing, they were faced with two more special tests: The "Electric Fence" and the now, infamous Slippery Mountain. This ten-foot long, forty-foot wide wall of formica, sloped at a 45-degree angle and lathered with 200-pounds of Crisco and Wesson Corn Oil reared its ugly head here in the quiet hills of suburban Atlanta. All the teams summitted "cleanly"(if you can call being slathered in Crisco and Corn oil clean) and raced onward. Covered in cooking oils, the teams were forced back on to the bike for a second 5.5-mile loop. This time, however, they had to cope with their hands slipping off the handlebars at inopportune times especially during crucial turns.

Finally dismounting their steeds, special tests again prevailed with racers facing not one, but two, final tests. The "Human Ladder", and the ubiquitous "Military Wall." The "Human Ladder" entailed a chord stretched between two trees, 12-feet off the ground. Dangling from them like jewels were several carabiners. Teams were instructed to build a ladder of human bodies, putting one racer atop the "ladder" in order to remove one carabiner. Then, in a strategic twist, they were to replace the carabiner onto the chord, this time by a different person. Balance Bar emerged in the lead through this first test and raced to the Wall with Team Red Bull practically in their hip pocket. It was to be another nail-biter finish with only the Wall separating the victor from the spoils. Remnants of Crisco and Corn Oil on their hands, bodies and feet would prove to be a terrible foe as the racers climbed up the Wall and slid back down, yo-yoing their way up and down the Wall. Whoever got the best purchase on the top of the Wall first would be the victor. Darren Wood of Team Red Bull, following closely on his wife Jennyís heels, bested Bob Schulz from Team Balance Bar. Once up and over, Team Red Bull raced to their first victory this season with Team Balance Bar placing an admirable second. No blame can be laid, you all raced like champions. In a repeat of the Detroit finish, this time for third and fourth, Team SoBe approached the wall with Team TIMEX again racing close behind. SoBe would quench their thirst first as they battled over the Wall taking third followed closely by Team TIMEX in fourth. No rookies to the Hi-Tec circuit, Team PAR ñ Pennsylvania Adventure Racers, a.k.a. Team FogDog, showed why you can never count these soldiers out in a battle. (Both Doug Crytzer and Toby Angove are Army National Guardsmen.) With a surprise attack, they made a charge in the later stages of the second mountain bike loop to pass Team Ultima to capture fifth. Ultima, boys and girl, you battled greatly, but the heat and humidity were unfortunately no match. Honorable mention goes to you, finishing one off the podium in sixth.

The Co-ed Division saw Team The Fox and the Hounds take top honors. Team Cranky continued to mount the podium steps, still the bridesmaid placing second. In two consecutive races Cranky has been beaten by and at the Wall. Hopefully this trio will surmount the Wall in style come Dallas. Team RAD posted a third place finish with Team Carolina Adventure Racers placing fourth and Team Adrenaline completing the podium in fifth.

All-female team, Team BuyRichsauto.com, anchored by last yearís Team Heineken Captain Dominique Ulrich (wife of veteran racer and previous yearsí Team Exide Batteries/Natureís Garden stalwart Butch Ulrich) began their reign on the podium. Team 1 Experienced and 2 Virgins took second-place while Team Training Bra-eds finished third. Team Naked Aagnesí Jewels and Team Los Rancherous finished fourth and fifth, respectively.

The all-male division saw Team Ugly Mugs reach the top spot on the podium, emerging victorious, while Team Guinness, continued its reign on the podium finished second and Team PeopleSoft finished third. Team Sir Cramp-A-Lot (my personal favorite name) and the Gimps took fourth with Team The Freak Express taking fifth.

In the Masters Division, Team Xtreme finished atop the podium while Team Faster Masters grabbed second with Team PushiníUp Daisies/Rattlesnake Racing again crawling up the podium steps taking third. Team Dragoneers took fourth and Team Shaggy rounded out the podium in fifth.

Topping out the field in the Corporate Division, Team ClubSport/Uncle Credit Union Racing came back to the podium for more booty after a second-place finish in L.A., with Stroehmann, another two-time visitor to the podium, and Team Molon Leve taking second and third, respectively. Team Mexican Madness/Serrano Ent. Placed fourth while Team Solgar, a two-time visitor after placing first in Detroit took fifth.

- Tiger Mann, Captain - Team TIMEX Adventure Racing