By Wes Erck
After torrential "showers" on Saturday, the weather outlook for Sunday was at best uncertain, but it turned out to be a beautiful day for a run in the woods. The air was clean and cool, the sun was out, but there was some mud—well, a lot of mud.
As a first-time event director, I was nervous, but can now attest to the depth of support and willingness to work that make BAOC events run so smoothly. Thank you all!
Many seemed to have a good time, and I saw quite a few smiles on tired faces. Most had at least a few signs of contact with the earth. No one got hurt and no one got lost, but some decided to pack it in rather than continue plodding and sliding.
Our course setter did admit that "the difficulty and mud on the Brown course did overwhelm those runners." Having vetted Brown myself a few days earlier, it was challenging and varied when dry, but must have become a lot more difficult after the rain. Green must have been even worse, with 7 of the 19 entrants opting to DNF.
This event was also the debut for a new, simplified procedure utilizing the GeBe printer for e-stick download and software developed by Mark Blair. It all seemed to work well with only tiny corrections being identified afterwards. This new method will greatly reduce the complexity of e-punch operations at events (in particular by not requiring a computer and printer in the e-punch tent).
When verifying that everyone who started also returned, we noticed that some runners who did not complete their courses went only to download and bypassed the Finish control. This breach of procedure complicates the process of matching entries on Start sheets with entries on Finish sheets. At future events, please note that all runners should check in at the Finish control.
Lost & Found
A black folding compass with a sighting window was found after the event. I will bring it to the O in the Oaks A-meet in Joseph D. Grant Park, where the owner can claim it. Call me if you would like me to mail it to you instead.
And the Winners Are ...
Congratulations to the winners, and to all who persevered in spite of the gooey conditions:
Gavin Williams took first place on White, followed by the two fastest girls, Julia Doubson and Elena Belk.
David Harrison took first place on Yellow, with William Morris only 3 minutes behind. Ana Herreros was the fastest girl with an injured Rosemary Johnson close behind.
David Morris was the fastest on Orange, followed closely by Hilary Hardcastle.
Greg Ehrensing blew away the competition on Brown, with Wayne Caplinger and Bjorn Widerstrom 16 and 17 minutes behind, respectively.
Kent Ohlund romped to an easy victory on Green, with Piers Newbery and Jim Waite 4 and 5 minutes behind, respectively.
Steve Gregg had a late start on Red due to his duties at registration, but must have been well rested because he finished well ahead of Matthias Kohler and Blas Lopez who were separated by only one second!
On Blue, Francois Leonard and Benjamin Legg must have had wings, because their times were even faster than the fastest runners on Red. Modestas Bacys, in third place, narrowly missed this feat.
Thank You For All The Help!
Special thanks to Jim Fish who showed up at 8 AM to set up tents, ran his course, worked at registration, and stayed to the bitter end to help with control pickup.
Many others contributed enormously:
Las Trampas Rangers: Jim Wolf, Kevin Fox
Course Setter: Mark Blair
Vetter: Hannu Haarma
Maps: Bob Cooley
Insurance: Brad Wetmore
Beginner Clinics: Nancy Lindeman, Chuck Spalding
Registration: Steve Gregg, Jim Fish
E-punch: Rosemary Johnson, Greg Ehrensing
Starts: Gavin Wyatt-Mair, Stephen Harrison
Finish: Matthias Kohler, Vicki Woolworth
Parking Control: Ben Legg
First Aid: Joan Roos
Snacks: Rex Winterbottom
Control Pickup: Harold & Penny DeMoss, Peter Graube, Jim Fish, Theo Verhoeven, Luc Poppe, Dean French
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