Swamp Stomp 2008 - Part III

The mile posts shown on the map were actually physically marked posts out there on the trails. This really did help a lot with the navigation – whenever you would find a post, you would no where you were. The problem with that is many of them had been renumbered. We quickly figured this out as we ran into posts that were not on the map or were obviously wrong. But this was not the real cause of our problems and the problems of many other teams. That would be the trail to marker 60. Since nearly all the teams were coming from CP21 – we had all plotted the shortest trail distance to get to BP16 which would take us down that road. When our team arrived, there were a few teams that were obviously bailing out on that route. That is never a good sign. We were pretty sure we knew where we were and there was a road heading that direction. The trail was at first rideable, then pushable, then it was a bikewhack, and then it became a carry. We got within site of our destination across the swamp – but knew as it grew deeper that we would probably have to turn back. So like many teams after wasting 1 1 ½ hours we bailed out.



After we exited we still wanted to get BP16 (and the other two BP’s near it, 17 and 18). Rob who lives in Sarasota pointed out that the power lines just north were fast riding. So we headed for them and sure enough, they were fast (and a little wet) as well as the other trails leading around from the back side. After having wasted almost 2 hours – it felt good to snag these bonus points. It was a quick ride to CP23 – except we realized that we had not gotten CP 22. At this point Sheri was hurting and did not relish the going 5 miles out of the way on horse trails to grab this CP. But Rob and I were having fun, and the riding was pretty fast. We picked up both CP22 and BP 19 and then headed to CP23 and the start of bike leg 2.

It was getting pretty late (10:15) as we arrived at CP23. I had calculated we would have just enough time to get the mandatory CP’s and make it in on time. We were told that the two difficult CP’s had been removed, so now we had a choice. We could do the run (which I figured at 30 – 40 minutes) and then pedal back. This would have been an easy 4 points boosting us to 23 points. At the same time we knew we were out of the running with a lost team-mate and a lost passport. Sheri was also hurting a bit and she would have had to run at least one of the miles, though Rob and I would have been happy to run 2 each – I don’t think the rules allowed that.

We also had a fun discussion with a park ranger about the missing road back at BP17. He confirmed that the road had flooded and that they had ceased mowing it – allowing it to quickly get overgrown. He thought it was pretty humorous we had tried to get through it, at night, with bikes….

So we decided to head straight back. Local knowledge came into play here. We knew we had enough time to even pick up some BP’s on the way back, but again we were being prudent and Sheri kind of looked like she was ready to puke. I was getting pretty hungry – having not eaten very much the entire race. Even Rob was starting to show some signs of fatigue. The fun here was passing other teams, we were catching teams about every 5-10 minutes. It gave us a chance to say high and see how others were doing. Our pain and misery (I was now nauseous as it started to get hot) was being shared by plenty of others. Rob and I teased Sheri by telling her that people were behind her – and since she was too tired to turn around and look, she simply kept peddling.

We even saw Team Relentless again. Lisa had kept Paul moving after an incredible recovery – they were biking strong. We crossed the finish line about 11:30 (a full 1 ½ hours to spare). After we crossed the line Sheri even asked if we could go back out and get the closest BP (the answer was no – and that was from Rob and I). I wanted to get my stomach settled – it was hot coming in, and that made it tough. I also enjoyed seeing some folks from other teams I had raced with in the past. Following the race that EMS and Snickers had with each other showed that it was an epic 2 team showdown, and Snickers won it with Michael Moule leading the navigation.

The next big race (for me) will probably be the ACC. I’ll be coaching soccer on Saturday’s and being a good dad since my family is letting me race in the PQ. My team was great – I really felt Greg’s pain, and Rob and Sheri just took every setback in stride. So if you wanted to get a feel for our finish – we had 19 points and finished at about 11:30.