How To Adventure Race https://howtoadventurerace.com/ Tips, techniques and resources on how to adventure race Tue, 08 Feb 2022 19:12:45 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.5.2 https://i0.wp.com/howtoadventurerace.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/howtoadventurerace-favicon.png?fit=32%2C32&ssl=1 How To Adventure Race https://howtoadventurerace.com/ 32 32 201269909 Team Dynamics https://howtoadventurerace.com/2022/02/08/team-dynamics/ Tue, 08 Feb 2022 17:32:35 +0000 http://howtoadventurerace.com/?p=1822 Team Dynamics is often what makes a team happy and successful, or miserable and ready to give up. Your team is your Superpower. Choose them wisely.

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Team Dynamics is often what makes a team happy and successful, or miserable and ready to give up.  Your team is your Superpower.  Choose them wisely.

Solo vs Team

I have raced as a solo adventure racer and on teams.  I started out as a solo racer, because I did not know anyone in the AR community.  I did not know how I compared to other racers – always certain I was much slower than them.  At these races I would tromp around the woods by myself, running into teams from time to time, worried I was lost, somehow finding checkpoints and then moving on.  When I finally made it to the finish, I was relieved I made it there.  

Now that I am more seasoned at adventure racing, doing a race as a solo is not as emotionally exhausting, but there are still the doubts that creep in.  As a solo adventure racer you are reliant on yourself entirely to find all the checkpoints, transition successfully, carry all your gear, give yourself those needed pep-talks, and move your body through the course even when it is tough.  

Once I was asked to be on my first team, there were definitely fears that crept into my mind – what if I am too slow, what if we do not get along?  But once I raced with them, I was hooked.  Being on a team is by far the best way to adventure race. 

That first team I was on, and many other teams I have joined, showed me the joys of making your way through a race with like-minded people.  Of course we had our low times, but we had so many highs as well.  When you are on a team, your team provides you support in so many ways beyond what you realize.  There is the emotional support, the physical support, the camaraderie, challenging each other, moving fast when everyone feels good, and slowing down when someone is not feeling well.  There is the feeling of “well, we might be lost, but at least we are lost together.”  

And then there are the highs of finding the checkpoints, moving quickly through a leg, and finishing, knowing what your team endured to make it to the finish. I would argue that adventure racing is not a solo sport.  Being part of a team and getting through the course together is yet another important element of the overall adventure racing challenge.

Here’s a great feature-length documentary to get you stoked about teamwork and AR in general.  “For The Team” – a cinematic journey that reveals the underlying mechanics of the 6x World Adventuring Racing Champions from New Zealand.

Team Cohesion

Once I started adventure racing with teams, I began to formulate what “type” of team I wanted to race with.  I found that I wanted a team that treated each other well.  I discovered that my criteria included individuals who were thoughtful and considerate to others. I cannot race with drama, anger, or egos.  

As an adventure racer, I am very picky who I race with.  Through the years I have raced with many people, and pulled from those experiences what I want, and what I do not want.  

I require the team character to entail a few key features:

  • consideration of your teammates’ and how they are feeling
  • a sense of support for each other with the intention that we all get through the race feeling our best
  • a similar determination to keep going even when you are at your low
  • team harmony where we do not argue or undermine each other
  • team trust and respect where each person is valued for what they contribute
  • a team mentality of equality (there is not someone trying to be better than or outshine the rest of the team)

You become the team.  The individual decisions you make are for the team.  Certainly a consideration of what you need is important, but that must be dovetailed with what is best for the team. If you decide you need X, gather your team and have a discussion.  Everyone needs to be on the same page, and then a team decision needs to be made.  I understand that team harmony may not be possible at all times, but ‘be there’ for your teammates, and they will ‘be there’ for you.

Good Habits

There are always the basics that you need for a team.  Set your team roles. Each person on the team can have a specific role to help the team be successful.  Once the team roles are determined, each person needs to take that role seriously, knowing that the role you are given is one factor in making the team a positive, strong force in the race.

When you are on a team, your team provides you support in so many ways beyond what you realize. 

There are several good habits teammates can adopt to support the team.  Be efficient with yourself and your equipment.  Ask your teammates what they need or what you can do for them.  Give everyone reminders of drinking and eating.  Additionally, remind your teammates to identify where there are physical pain points or discomforts to get those taken care of as soon as possible.  When there is a low moment, learn what helps your teammates to get through those moments.  Look after each other, knowing when it is time to push and when it is time to pull back to allow for recovery. 

Bad Habits

Through the years of racing on teams, I’ve also seen the bad habits that teams can fall into.  Leaving slower teammates behind before reaching the checkpoint, not listening to each other’s needs, and arguing are just a few examples.  A team that belittles each other, tries to out-do or dominate each other, and pushes others harshly without consideration of the mental and physical state each person is in, is not a team that I would want to stay on.  I had a teammate say to me, “You are here to help us win!” in an angry tone after I had said that it was early in the race and we should not be worried about our place in the field.  I almost dropped off the team at that moment.  As a person with self-respect, if I experience verbal or emotional abuse from any teammate, I should drop off the team and never race with that person again. 

Gary Larson – The Far Side

I also consider how my teammates treat other people who are a part of the race.  If I am on a team where individuals are unkind to race staff and volunteers or other racers, I will not continue a racing relationship with those teammates.

Over to you

Clearly, I have a strong opinion on team dynamics and why it is important to have a good team for adventure racing.  There may be adventure racers who disagree, but for me, the dynamics of a team are a very important part of adventure racing and it contributes to what the sport is as a whole. Racing is supposed to be fun and challenging, and having a good team keeps it that way. 

Written by

Jess Evans

The post Team Dynamics appeared first on How To Adventure Race.

]]> 1822 How to Plot UTM Points https://howtoadventurerace.com/2022/01/30/how-to-plot-utm-points/ Sun, 30 Jan 2022 17:21:47 +0000 http://howtoadventurerace.com/?p=1571 If you need to brush up on your plotting skills (or learn completely from scratch) here’s how to plot UTM points for adventure races in
5 steps.

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Plotting UTM points onto an adventure race map is typically a skill reserved for “longer” races. It often shows up in expedition races, where you’ll plot UTM points either pre-race when mapsets are received, or on-the-clock when more of the course is revealed during the actual race.

That’s not to say you won’t see it for certain 12 hour or 24 hour races, depending on the old-schoolness of the Race Director. Plotting your map used to be the norm. It was one of the basic required skills in the navigation bucket. 

The good news is, that you should be given a heads up if you’ll need to plot points. If it’s not explicitly stated, a great tipoff is the inclusion of a UTM Plotter listed on the mandatory gear list. Another tell is if you see mention of a pre-plotted map – this simply means that checkpoints are already printed on the map for you.

So, if you need to brush up on your plotting skills (or learn completely from scratch) here’s how to plot UTM points for adventure races

5 steps to plot UTM points for adventure races

First things first, you’ll need a UTM Plotter. Most ARs require a 1:24,000 scale plotter (this is the scale you’ll be using for most maps that need plotting). There’re two styles, Slot and Corner. Both work well, it’s just personal preference; some find the slot style a little quicker.

With plotter in hand, you’re going to receive your race map(s). These maps will have a UTM grid overlaid on them with each square equaling 1 kilometer. Along the edges, you’ll see the actual UTM coordinates for each easting line (the lines running up & down along the Y axis) and each northing line (the lines running left to right along the X axis). So, here are examples of both the Race Map and UTM Coordinates you’ll receive. Let’s try plotting the Start/Finish to a 24 hour race we hosted in Kentucky.

UTM coordinates
UTM grid squares

Look at all those numbers! Don’t worry, you only need a few. When we race, our team actually crosses out the extraneous digits on the UTM Sheet, so there’s no confusion. Sometimes the Race Director will do this for you, providing a simplified version. Also note that the digits to start with are actually larger in the image of the coordinates above (09 and 79) making it even easier to know which ones to start with. Now we’re ready to plot this point on the actual map.

identifying the correct grid square associated with an UTM coordinate

UTM 16S 04 09064E 40 79417N

STEP 1: just find the grid square the point is in.

using a UTM plotter to plot a UTM coordinate

Overlay the plotter tool

STEP 2: put the upper right corner of your plotter tool on the lower left corner of the correct grid square (just make sure you’re using the right scale on your tool, 1:24,000).

using a UTM plotter to plot a UTM coordinate

UTM 16S 04 09064E 40 79417N

STEP 3: slide the plotter right until you reach the correct easting. This one is 06, so it’s just 60 meters off of the line. 64 meters if you want to get really precise, but for our purposes, not trying to plot with that level of accuracy is precise enough for this scale map.

marking a checkpoint using a UTM plotter to plot a UTM coordinate

UTM 16S 04 09064E 40 79417N

STEP 4: slide the plotter up until you reach the correct northing. This one is 41.

STEP 5: mark the checkpoint! Now you know where the start of the race is and more importantly how to plot UTM points onto an adventure race map – always helpful.

Pro Tips for plotting UTM points quickly and accurately

Using the Slot style tool saves you the step of moving the tool up for the northing, you simply mark it through the slot.

If you have a teammate, it works very well for one person to read the digits to the person plotting. For the example above, “grid square 09, 79” gets them in the right square. “06,41” lets them plot the point. We like to have the person plotting guess the feature to verify it’s correctly placed, “hilltop”…”yep”.

The more races you do, the more formats you’ll see UTMs written in. For the example above, it could be written as 409064,4079417 (zone and leading zero removed). A typical format for adventure races would be 409060E,4079410N (leading zero removed and last digit truncated). Regardless, plotting remains the same.

Mark Lattanzi nails it perfectly in his book Squiggly Lines. This is pretty much the bible of navigation for AR, so check it out if you don’t already have it. If you do have it, flip to page 30, read three pages, and you’ll be a near-expert.

Written by

Shawn Lemaster

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]]> 1571 What is Adventure Racing? https://howtoadventurerace.com/2022/01/18/what-is-adventure-racing/ Tue, 18 Jan 2022 01:50:16 +0000 http://howtoadventurerace.com/?p=1517 On the surface, an adventure race is a team endurance activity that requires using a map and compass to navigate your way around a course to find checkpoints using different athletic disciplines. But what does that mean?

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I am sure many of us who do adventure racing get this question quite often…  “What is Adventure Racing?”

When I try to answer this question, my answer always feels inadequate.  On the surface, an adventure race is a team endurance activity that requires using a map and compass to navigate your way around a course to find checkpoints using different athletic disciplines.  But what does that mean?

 To adventure race properly, you need a team, you need to navigate around the course with a map and compass (no directional signs showing you the course route), and you may be jogging or trekking one section, biking another section, kayaking a third section, biking again, then getting on an SUP on flat water, then jogging again, and so on. Each leg of the course has different athletic disciplines that the team must use while finding the checkpoints (orange and white flags in the woods or on the shoreline). 

Let’s break this down a little further.

As a team you are relying on your wit and will to get through the course, as much as your gear and your physical fitness.

The Team

The team is a key element of adventure racing.  It is the team dynamics which helps the team move through the course.  If you have a dysfunctional team, you are not getting very far very fast.  It is the team camaraderie and communication that propels the team forward successfully.  There is a special bond between the teammates.  As a team you are relying on your wit and will to get through the course, as much as your gear and your physical fitness.  

There is truth in the saying “your team is only as strong as the weakest link.”  Your team is like a series of links chained together.  The team can only take as much as the weakest link.  And your weakest link changes as the race progresses, because each person will go through their highs and lows throughout the course of the race. As a team, you must support each other through those highs and lows to get the entire team to the finish.  

There are always the basics that you need for a team.  What are the team roles?  Each person on the team can have a specific role to help the team be successful.  Here are a few to consider when looking at your team and what strengths each individual brings to the table.  

  • Team Leader – the person who makes the final decision after listening to his/her teammates ideas and thoughts. 
  • Transition Area Leader – the person who keeps everyone moving in the transition area, determining who needs assistance, ensuring everyone is eating and resupplying properly, and keeping an eye on time to ensure the team gets out of the TA in the time designated.  
  • The Pack Mule – the person who has enough strength to carry other team members’ packs if they are struggling.  
  • The Cheerleader – the person who encourages their teammates throughout the course and reminds them to eat and drink.  This role helps keep everyone’s energy and positive attitude up.  There are any number of other roles each team can decide to incorporate into their team.  Teams may wish to designate these roles ahead of time.  
  • Lead Navigator? – Many teams do have a Lead Navigator, one person who does all the navigation and relies on their teammates for suggestions and feedback through the course…

However, I have been on teams where navigation is shared between the team.  Each leg is handed off to a new navigator.  This scenario has worked well for me, but you must trust each person to be the navigator.  If you do not have trust, then arguments and hurt feelings will occur.  Whether you have a Lead Navigator or multiple navigators, teams should also consider how involved in navigation teammates should be.  Even when I am on a team with a Lead Navigator, I want to see the map and understand where we are on the course.  I do not wish to be completely in the dark, following blindly.

Endurance

When adventure racing first came on the world scene, it was a multi-discipline, multi-day, co-ed team, navigation event.  It was an endurance sport. 

The goal of adventure racing is to challenge you.

Training and teaching your body to move nearly non-stop for hours on end is a key part of that challenge.  Do we stop for lunch? No. Do we sleep at night? As little as possible.  Do we take the trail or snake through the woods?  

This is an endurance sport that allows you to make it as long as you like within the time allowed. Often I hear the question, “how long is the course?”  That answer is different for each team.  If you are running a perfect race it’ll be way shorter.  But few of us run a perfect race.  We have to back track.  We may take a longer route to get to the next checkpoint.  We may try one route only to be blocked by a cliff, needing to skirt around it.  We may not pick up all the checkpoints in the designated time.  Therefore, while it is a long course, each team determines how long through their decisions.  

Additionally when I would say, “I am doing a 30 hour race,” people would be shocked.  The thought crosses their mind that I am running for 30 hours.  Not so. I am allowed to get as many checkpoints as I can in 30 hours.  But exactly how many hours I am on the move and how many miles I travel is determined by me and my team.  In the early hours of the morning, when our bodies want to sleep, we are not moving fast but hopefully making few navigation errors.  This is an endurance sport that can also be a stroll in the woods for 30 hours.

Navigation

Adventure racing would not be adventure racing if navigation was not an element of the sport.  The race course is never marked.  There are no signs telling you where you are (unless there happen to be signs created by the public land managers at trailheads and roads).  Knowing how to ‘read’ a topographic map and use a compass is the only way a team can get around a course in an adventure race.  Even following other teams is dangerous, they might be wrong or if you lose touch with them you’ll have no idea where you’re at.

Learning how to navigate in an adventure race is a course in itself and takes practice to master.  Novices can start by getting comfortable with using a compass and map.  Take a topographic map with you when you are hiking on your favorite trails.  Practice identifying drainages, high points, and hill sides while you walk seeing them on the map and on the ground.  Use your compass to keep track of the direction you are traveling.  Get a feel for the landscape around you and the map you are holding.  

A very good resource is the book by Mark Lattanzi called Squiggly Lines.  Read through this book and start practicing.  

Athletic Disciplines

Adventure Racing includes four main disciplines, although others may be included.  The four main disciplines are navigation (using USGS topographic maps often 1:24,000 in scale and a compass), biking (single track, gravel roads, paved roads, and bike-whacking), trekking (on and off trail), and paddling (flat water to white water).  Other disciplines may include ropes (rappelling, climbing), zipline, team challenges, swimming, paddle boarding, snowshoeing, and whatever else the race director can get permitted. Really, the sky is the limit for the other disciplines, but all these various racing legs center around navigation.

Typically, if you can mountain bike with some amount of proficiency, if you can hike and use a paddle in a boat to travel across a body of water, you can adventure race.  Throughout the race, teams are transitioning from one discipline to another to another.  You are typically on one mode of transportation for just long enough to start day dreaming for the next leg.  Adventure racing is a series of ‘looking forward” to transitioning to the next discipline.  

Planning

I covered the key elements of adventure racing above, but I also want to emphasize one last element, and that is planning.  Because of the team dynamics, endurance requirements, navigation requirements, and numerous athletic disciplines, planning out your race is an absolute necessity.  You cannot go into an adventure race without some planning.  When I am preparing for any length race, but especially a multi-day race, there is the food planning, the gear planning, the staging planning, the training planning, and the physical comfort planning.   You must do a lot of thinking before the race even begins. 

How I manage this planning period is through spreadsheets.  I will have a tab on food – how many calories I need and what exactly am I going to eat.  A variety of food is a good thing.  I will have a tab on gear.  There is the mandatory gear and then there is the gear I want to have for comfort.  Do I need extra layers of clothes and a second pair of shoes?  How often do I want to change out my socks? I will have a tab for what goes in my bin, what is in my pack, and what is in the paddle bag.  On that page I may also have how I will divide up my gear/food in the bin so that it is easy for me to grab what I need in the transition area and head out on the next leg.  

While it is impossible to plan for everything that will happen during a race, the planning period is helpful for preparing yourself and your team as much as possible to get through the many challenges an adventure race hands out. 

So… what is adventure racing again? 

It is the greatest sport out there.  To learn more on what is adventure racing, continue exploring this site, reading the articles, watching a few lessons and listening to the podcast episodes.  You’ll learn what adventure racing is and why it is an excellent sport to participate in. 

For other information on adventure racing, visit the USARA website and view a short video on adventure racing created by Adventure Racing World Series. 

Written by

Jess Evans

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