MVP Health Care Frigid Infliction
2011 Results
(Less detailed text results are available, and you can also view the results in the very cool new timeline format!)
|
I know we say this every year, but every year its true - this year's MVP Health Care Frigid Infliction was our best yet! 14 inches of fresh powdery snow fell in the 24 hours before start, which made getting to registration a whole lot more interesting, and provided some of the best conditions we've had at a Frigid in years. This year's race started at 5:05 am with teams donning headlamps and snowshoeing to three points in any order. (We race staff had a lot of fun watching headlamps bouncing all over the hills behind the nordic center.) As the sun rose the teams returned and picked up their skis to grab 3 points (after one was cut due to conditions) before getting to the lodge at the base of the Broadway trail, then off on a quick snowshoe to the tyrolean traverse. After the traverse, a posthole, and then the hardest leg of the day - 6 points via snowshoe. Loads of elevation to gain and lose in here, and with all of the fresh snow on top of Bolton's icy solid base going was extra tough. After a long day breaking trail, 2-person coed team UltraBambi crossed first with a time on course of 9 hours, 6 minutes with 3-person co-ed team Half Hazzard just three minutes behind. Of course, just as rewarding as tiring out such experienced racers was seeing such a diverse group of racers on the course competing - whether experienced or newbie, aged 16 or 62 -- everyone crossed the finish line with a huge grin. (Sometimes just before collapsing exhausted onto the snow.) Only 7 of 28 teams made it to all the checkpoints, but every team had fun. Last but not least, it was off to The Ponds (Bolton's newest building and prize event space) for dinner, race slideshow, awards, and door prizes a-plenty. We all loved seeing such a great group on the course. A fun mixing of old friends and racers from past events, along with a whole bunch of racers new to us and the sport. Saying hello on the course, listening to stories at the finish, and hoping to see everyone again - we've built up a great community over the years, and that's what makes these events great for us! So on a bit of a bittersweet note, GMARA will be going through some changes, and this year's Bitter Pill will be the last race we hold under business as usual. Which isn't to say things won't get better! It is to say that you'd better haul yer keester to that race, 'cause its gonna be a blowout like we've never had! Photos are online here: http://gmara.smugmug.com/Races/Frigid-Infliction-2011-All. (As usual, you are free to use them any way you see fit, but please give us credit, and if possible link back to the gallery or the race website.) You can also click any of the random photos in the sidebar. Please, if you have any photos or blogs about the race, send them to us at info at gmara.org, and we'll put them online for everyone. I'll post 'em here when I get them:
Of course, we have to thank our sponsors! Please patronize these fine businesses, and tell 'em GMARA sent ya: Title sponsor MVP Health Care, prize sponsors Eastern Mountain Sports, Endurance Aventure, TrailRunner, Catamount Outdoor Family Center, Union Street Media's web hosting. And last but definitely not least, our amazing volunteers. We have a pretty tight crew of people who willingly wake up early and help us manage the craziness that is an adventure race for the pleasure of helping out racers, a shirt, and a dinner or two. Many of them have been with us for years, and without them, these races wouldn't be the same - "thank you" could never be strong enough! Race on! -Tim and the GMARA gang (PS: there are still some shirts left over - please email if you'd like to purchase one) (PPS: a bit of a note about the results. We told folks we were extending the "be in before 3" deadline due to the late start, but the course also ran longer than expected due to all the fresh snow. In order to keep things fair to teams who still worked to cross in time, we've added one penalty checkpoint per 15 min past 10 hours on course, and feel that the final results are in keeping with both the letter and the spirit of our rules.) |
Results tracking/display Copyright 2006-2011, Tim Curtin and GMARA - tim at gmara.org for info
Timeline view:(hover over any mark to get more info)
Results tracking/display Copyright 2006-2011, Tim Curtin and GMARA - tim at gmara.org for info
