Dec 12, 2010
Team Equinox started the year with a mud-fest 24 Hour race, and nature had it that the year would end with a 6 Hour race in some wet culverts and on some muddy trails in the Urban Canyons of San Diego.
A week before the race the region got almost 1½ inches of rain. By most standards this is laughable and a pittance, but for Southern California it is one fifth the annual rainfall and it all came down at once. With sun-baked ground the water either runs of and floods, or soaks into the top 3 inches and makes for mud soup.
Race day started with the sun on the horizon
, but the forecast called for morning rain and for once it was correct 
. For that reason this report has no photos as the cameras were put away due to the weather. If anyone did take photos and forwards them to me I will be happy to add them to the report.The race started at 0910 AM and by 0915 the first showers washed across Mission Bay as racers were out on the kayak section. Steve Moore and Kristine Gillis had put together a 6 hour race advertized as 105 minutes in the kayak, 105 minutes on the bike, 105 minutes running and 30 minutes to race back from the final TA to the finish line. However, it was up to racers to watch the time and play to their strengths and weaknesses in visiting mandatory checkpoints and picking up optional checkpoints to amass the most points for a win.
There was no UTM plotting, but with the locations of the required and optional checkpoints it made for some puzzle solving for route choice.
I ran the race with Saida Perez, and while she is strong at all disciplines, I was weak at the running but better at the kayaking, so our pre-race strategy was to spend up to 2½ hours on the water, then take 1½ hours for the bike getting the mandatory checkpoints and just a few optional ones, and on the run we would do the minimum. It seemed a good plan when the course was revealed, as the distance for all checkpoints on the kayak was about 10 miles, which included a portage, and the bike section was about 14 miles (6 on pavement). The run was in a very hilly section of Tecolote Canyon and placement of the mandatory checkpoints would make it difficult for us in good weather conditions.
As we started Josh Williams took off in his surf ski and we only saw him when he returned from a couple of out-and-back checkpoints, otherwise he was way ahead of us. We had good company on the kayak with Jake and Dave trading the lead with us as we worked our way from checkpoint to checkpoint. We were equally matched in the kayak with the team concentrating best getting slightly ahead and leading the way to the next checkpoint. We paddled from South Shores to the south side of Vacation Island for mandatory CP1, then went down the channel toward Quivera Basin for Optional K1. It was then up to Carmel Point for optional K2 then under the north Vacation Island Bridge for CP2. Optional K3 was a San Diego Christmas tree on an island in Mission Bay, the clue said to write the word down three times, and we guessed HO-HO-HO correctly, but had to visit the CP to validate it.
Most of the checkpoints had a Festive theme with Santa characters, Holiday sayings, Christmas songs and the North Pole prominent. The race also sponsored Toys for Tots, with most contesants bringing a Toy for the Marine Corps Toy Drive.
Then we paddled over to the east shore of the bay and if we wanted optional K4 we had to paddle up the inside passage of Fiesta Island. The trickery on the paddle section revolved around mandatory CP4 which was on the west side of Fiesta Island, with the optional CP on the east side. We opted to get the optional K4, then beach the boat and run to CP4 before returning to the boat and paddling up to the causeway where we portaged to get back on the water and a short paddle to TA1. In hindsight about all we could have done better was to take the wheels to make the portage easier and faster. Especially since the tide was way low and we had to carry the boat 100 meters up the beach before the 150 meter portage, then another 100 meters back to the water. But we finished the kayak in 2 hrs and 10 minutes so were please that we were off to a good start on the Bike.
The bike section headed along Rose Creek and up Santa Fe Road to San Clemente Canyon. This is one of my morning training rides, so navigation was a non issue to get to the first bike CP and the muddy trails. When we were told optional B1 was at a bridge I knew exactly where it was as there is only 1 bridge on the two trails in that area. Then CP2 was manned by Steve's wife Ann in the parking lot.
We were scolded by the Ranger as we approached CP2, he yelled at us that we should not be riding our bikes so soon after the rain. I wanted to tell him it kept the dust down
, but it was better to say nothing and ride away as quick as possible. Besides I was eager to find a new trail that I never knew existed in that area, but which Steve had found going south from San Clemente Canyon.In the mud, this rarely used trail (probably only known to the local kids in the area) was in very good condition with lots of vegetation still holding the trail together. That is until it crossed the cement creek which was flowing well with about 6 inches of water. We worked our way up the trail, riding some, but also having to push the bikes as we scouted for the second optional bike CP which was about 60 ft above us on the other side of the creek, or so the map showed.
The race directors had placed ribbon at an entrance to a trail to go to the CP and we followed it until it became very slippery because of the racers before us. So, looking at the watch we decided to forego that CP and go for the second one which would gain more points. We bushwhacked and went cross country behind houses with the dogs barking at us till we found a way to the road and a park where we had to count the number of green slides. One red slide, no green. We came all this way to find nothing. It was a similar answer to one of the kayak questions (How many blue port-a-potties – there were no blue ones they were gray, but Steve told us at the end they were blue last week – I think he is going color blind, because he dinged us for this CP, claiming we were at the wrong park
).Anyhow, we scrambled back down the hill to the bikes to find a lot of racers were with is on the trail We were racing with Erni, Andrew, Isaac, Colin and Calvin. I’m not sure if they caught us or we caught them. We were all pretty lucky as we rode along the trail except Bonnie with 8thday Adventurers, who fell into the stream up to her waist
when the trail gave way from creek erosion. Fortunately she was okay, though I think a little shaken to have the accident with everyone around. We continued up the creek to CP3 at a log bridge, which was just a big log fallen across the creek and someone erected a 2x4 as a hand rail. It was too slippery for us, so we waded through the water rather than fall from the bridge.That canyon led us to some surface streets where we had to navigate half a dozen blocks and find our way to a park leading to the north end of Tecolote Creek. Again, this is an area I have biked before so I was able to lead the group to the trail head which could easily be missed if you never looked over the embankment. We then had an uneventful ride down Tecolote, and a crossing under Balboa Road in a big ditch I have always wanted to go through. Well and good except it has a chest-deep drop off as the storm water exits the drain.
From there it was a ride to CP7 which I had a hard time finding. I insist the CP was in the wrong spot as the map showed it opposite a steep canyon, but when I did find it, it was opposite a bluff. But I’m going back to that location hiking later with Steve, so either my eyesight is getting bad, or the CP was placed according to GPS which is not always correct.
It was a quick ride from there to TA2 and transition to the run section.
We had a problem when we got to the TA because we took 2½ hours on the bike and only had 1 hour remaining in the race, with a good ½ hour to ride to the finish line. We would not be able to gather the mandatory checkpoints. But all racers were having a similar problem and Kristine who was manning the TA told us of a rule change. All checkpoints were now optional with the former mandatory CPs worth 5 points. Saida and I started to go for 3 checkpoints. Mandatory CP1 had little elevation change, then we figured on getting CP5 which was up a hill and finally optional R5 on our way back to the TA. But the trail was very slippery and after taking time to change to running shoes, then sliding on the tail we were still 300 meters away from CP1 when we realized we would run out of time, so we changed the plan and went for the optional R5 checkpoint as it was worth 20 points.
Back at the bikes we had just 20 minutes to get to the finish line 4½ miles away. I figured we may be 1-2 minutes late but with really sticky mud on the chain it would suck up as we pedaled and for no apparent reason (other than the mud) you came to a quick stop while riding. So the ride back to the finish was very frustrating and took us way too long, as we arrived 16 minutes late. We had given up almost all of the 20 points we got on the run. In hindsight we may have been better to blow off the run and we could have picked up a couple of optional checkpoints on the ride to the finish and not been late. But you don’t know all that till its after the fact and too late.
The race was lots of fun, and I especially enjoyed it in the rain. While this report may complain of the mud, it was the challenge of the mud that made it so much fun (other than the clean up afterwards). It amazes me every time we go out hiking or biking in San Diego how many “undiscovered” trails exist in the many canyons we have in the city. I’m just glad Steve and Kristine found some new ones to surprise me and the others who competed.
Our team was not the only crazies out there as the race had 16 teams compete and 30 racers got to frolic in the rain which is a rarity here in San Diego.
Thanks to Steve, Kristine and Ann who worked the race, and to the crew members of other teams who cheered us along. It was fun to race again.
For race results follow this link to the Equinox Events pages
http://www.baadventures.com/event09MBay.html
