ECARS season halfway over, competition at all-time high

The East Coast Adventure Racing Series season is halfway done with the latest races concluding May 19. There were two races that weekend; one in Oak Hill, WV and one in Lower Catskill, NY. Both were 24 hour adventure races.

In the Catskills, National Champion TeamSOG won in the three/four person coed division; Sweaty Sock Gnomes/Blinds Man-Date won in the three/four person male division; Calleva/TeamHalfwayThere.com won the two person coed division; and team Gung Ho won in two person male.

Each winning team earns points and merits for each race they compete in depending on how they finish. 12 hour races earn one merit, 24 hour races earn two merits and 48 hour races (and the ECARS Championship) will be weighted with three merits. 100 points will be awarded to the winning team, 90 for second, 81 for third and so on. Then multiply the points by the merits and add them up at the end of the season.

So far this year team Heat (Rafael Martinez) is leading the solo male division with 342 points, 142 clear of team Kinetic and team Odyssey (Mark Lattanzi) who is both tied with 200 points. There are only two solo females competing. Liz Notter is leading Michelle Faucher by 100 points.

In the two person coed division, team Fortitude made up by Steve Wendell and Stacey Gelhaus have taken a 270 point lead over second place team Annapolis AR with a grand total of 560 points and six merit points. The two person male team race is close so far with Howler Monkeys taking a slight 52 point edge over Willa’s Wheels. The two person women’s division is even closer with team DNR and team Bright Byte tied at 200 points apiece. AR Militia is not far behind either staying strong at 180 points.

In the coed elite division, where teams are usually compromised of professional level racers, Remington-Mountain Khakis/Rev3 Adventure #1 is winning so far with 444 points and 5 merit points. Goals ARA is hot on their trail though with 352 points. Don’t count the other teams out though as all the teams could leapfrog to the top with a win in a 48 hour event and 300 points to boot. Last year’s national championship team, TeamSOG, is quietly lurking in fifth place with two upcoming events on June 2 and June 9, both being held in rural Pennsylvania terrain.

Lastly the four person male division is being led by team Fat Boys at 342 points. Chicken Bones & Chocolate and Balls Deep AR are in their rearview mirror though each with 200 points.

June 2-3 the G.O.A.L.S. Cradle of Liberty 24 hour adventure race will be held near Downington, PA, an hour west of Philadelphia. This course is entirely different from any other raced here in the past as course designers Brent Freedland and Abigail Perkiss have unleashed new trails and are experienced racers at the international level. Disciplines being covered are mountain biking, trail running, and paddling. More
information and registration can be found at http://goalsara.org/2012-races/the-cradle-of-liberty-24-hr-ar/.

Out at York County on June 9, the Gung Ho Adventure Race will be held at Roundtop Mountain Resort. The 10 hour race will include trekking, mountain biking, lake paddling, zip line and navigation. For more information and registration details please follow http://www.gunghoadventurerace.com/.