I know, I need to write another blog entry about what I’ve been doing recently, but this story is way cooler. If you look back at this entry, you’ll note that my little brother Justin is a bad-ass adventure racer. And when I say “bad-ass”, I mean “crazy good.”
He and WEDALI do really well in races across the country to earn points—he and his teammates have been racking up lots of frequent flier miles—the points at races sanctioned by United States Adventure Racing Association accumulate until (hopefully) qualifying the team for the final race of the year. I think they finished fourth for total number of points, so last weekend was USARA Nationals.
Here’s a little blurb from the front page on the website:
“About The Race
“The USARA Adventure Race National Championship is the “Heart & Soul” of Adventure Racing in the United States. Co-ed teams of 3 compete in 45 USARA regional qualifying events across the U.S. for a chance to battle it out for the title of USARA Adventure Race National Champion.
“Teams are required to navigate a series of checkpoints using only a map and compass to guide them while transitioning between several disciplines such as: Trail Running/Trekking, Mountain Biking, Paddling and Orienteering.
“These teams will have to push the boundaries of human endurance and teamwork just to finish. Winning will require extreme willpower, mastery of all disciplines, and a little luck.”
But here’s the most important page on the website: the final results. That’s right, WEDALI didn’t think fifth at Primal Quest last year would be enough of a legacy. They had to go ahead and WIN Nationals this year. Daaaaaamn…
So to Justin, his wife Molly and their teammate Erl, congratulations. Lots and lots of congratulations. I got to see a picture of the trophies they received—individual and a team trophy—and lemme tell ya, whoever keeps the big one will need to reinforce the mantle above the fireplace. Big trophy for a big accomplishment.
