The Best Darn Adventure Racing Company in TEXAS!

St. Patty's Sprint Adventure - March 3, 2001

Congratulations to all of the participants in the first Rattlesnake Racing Sprint Adventure race. The Take the Bite Sprint Adventures started off with a splash. The rain was non-stop Friday and Saturday. This was not a deterrent to the competitors. All teams who registered showed up for the event and pushed themselves hard.

The morning started chilly and wet. The racers were given their UTM coordinates for check points at registration. Racers received their maps during the race briefing at 8:15 am. The check points for the entire race were laid out on the UTM sheets and racers had 15 minutes to study their maps and know what was coming. The race started at 8:32 am, a slight delay due to rain. Racers thought they were starting with an eight mile mt. bike, but were soon handed sacks and had a 300 meter 3-legged race. The 3-legged race is fun, is physically exerting, requires teamwork and was used to prevent bottlenecking on the mt. biking trail. The trail was partially marked and each team had a state trail map. Teams had been warned about the swampy conditions and wet bridges. Some of those who did not heed the slow down warning during the race briefing slid off the bridge into Lake Raven. Teammates helped them back up and they were soon on their way. Teams returned to the transition area wet and muddy. All of the bikes were dirt brown.

Racers then plotted their check points and some beginner racers took advantage of the land-nav instruction offered by race directors. Before heading into the woods, racers checked in at the transition area and were given a memory test: they were allowed to look for 15 seconds at a white board with several items glued to it, then had to answer three questions about the items (now hidden) before they could continue on the five mile orienteering section of the race. Racers in the go, go, go mode had to slow down, re-engage brain and think.

The trekking portion of the race started with very easy points to find and became progressively more difficult. This was done to build confidence and to challenge each team's skills. Many beginners participated in this race, and they all did very well. Due to the careful design of the land-nav course, none of the racers got hopelessly lost, yet expert teams still found the course challenging.

Unfortunately, the rain forced cancellation of the next team challenge: a rock climbing wall furnished by Team Synergy Inc. It was replaced with the closed water pipe pvc puzzle, a challenging mental and team communication test. This puzzle has hundreds of ways to be solved, and there were no two teams who solved it the same way. Only three teams were unable to solve the puzzle and they were forced to agonize and argue for 20 minutes before continuing the race in kayaks. Race organizers confirm that some teammates resorted to throwing puzzle pieces at each other in frustration, but no teams imploded due to this event.

By the time racer's entered the water on the kayaks everyone was wet and cold. It was still raining. The St. Patty's Challenge was the first adventure race in Texas to include a hard-shell kayak class and the reaction to this class was very positive. Racer's in inflatables and hard-shells paddled thru the rain around Lake Raven for about an hour and then paddled to the finish.

"We thought the race was over, but there was renewed energy in each racer as they sprinted to the hot showers!", said Leiza Morales, Race Director for Rattlesnake Racing.

The success of this event is a reflection of the continued improvement and expansion of Rattlesnake Racing's events, which are already known for their quality and competitiveness. The Take the Bite Sprint Adventures are an excellent example of Rattlesnake Racing's desire to provide the most competitive and technical adventure races at a very economical entry fee. For example, the St. Patty's entry fee of $45/person is close to half the cost of other shorter distance adventure races offered in Texas, and the Rattlesnake events offer the added technical features of full-race land-navigation, team-dynamic challenges, and the hard-shell kayak class. The low race entry fee is also making the Sprint Adventures competitive with triathalons, duathalons, marathons, and other endurance events.

Send mail to leiza@rattlesnakeracing.com with questions or comments about Rattlesnake Racing.
Copyright © 1999 Rattlesnake Racing Co.
Last modified: January 04, 2002