Next in the queue

It might be a bit premature to put this up, seeing as how no one has yet posted a race report for the event that we just finished this past weekend, but since there is only a month to go it's time to put up some information about the Krista Griesacker.

I competed in the Krista two years ago and remember it as the single most painful day of my life. Maybe that is because I was being dragged through the event by two teammates who were both significantly faster than I was...but whatever it was, this was a tough race for me. I think that this year our entire team is better prepared for this than I was then.

So, that being said, the differences between the two races are basically these:

1. Since the Krista is conducted on a mountain, there are some hellacious climbs involved in this race, both on foot and bike. Hill training over the next few weeks will be absolutely key to how we perform in the race. I guess this is the trade off for the race being half as long as the Cradle.
   
2. It stresses navigation quite a bit more than the Cradle of Liberty. While the navigation points in the Cradle, even on the orienteering portion, seemed to be pretty straightforward and easy to find, as I look back on the Krista through a haze comprised in equal parts of time and pain, I remember it being a good bit harder to find the checkpoints. It is worthwhile to note that I did not carry the map the last time I did this race though, so my memory could be skewed. A good indicator of the difference in navigation is that each team was required to pass a skills test for map work and compass use...something that was not done at the Cradle.
3. There will be an obstacle course and rope work during this race. In the 2004 event the rope work consisted of rapelling down a sheer face and then ascending back up the rope. We will need to do this at a bare minimum once, and preferably twice, before the race in order to refine technique, size the foot loops, and get used to using ascenders.

Pretty much the entire race will be during daylight, although if we run long we could stray into the early evening, so lights are strictly a safety precaution. The trails for the mountain biking section last time were pretty straight forward. A lot of painful climbing, but nothing that I consider to very technical. As I recall, at least one competitor was competing on a cyclo-cross bike and doing pretty well. To get ready for this we need to spend some quality time at Hartshorne and really hit the hills.

The packing list for the race is pretty much identical to the Cradle of Liberty. Only addition is the ascenders and foot loops. This is an optional piece of gear since the race staff will provide them if we don't, but considering that sizing the foot loops is an individual thing, I think it's worth while for us to get at least two sets of these.

Two other items of note: I think we should register for this race as two teams of two, just as we did for the Savage. This will get us two canoes for the paddling section which might be a HUGE item if the water is running as low this year as it did in 2005. Also, our paddling gear, to include PFDs, will be transported to the put in for us. So, plan on paddles, vests, and all the rest of our stuff.