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Contents 1 2009 Lionheart Info 2 2009 Lionheart Pictures 3 2009 Lionheart Map 4 2009 Lionheart Website 5 2009 Lionheart Results 6 2009 Lionheart Reviews 6.1 Josh's Take 6.2 Stefanie's Take 6.3 Jack's Take

2009 Lionheart Info

• American Adventure Sports Lionheart 24
  • Date: August 8th-9th
  • Location: Ohiopyle State Park, PA
  • Event Details: 24 hours
  • Event Description: This race is transitional/unsupported & will be raced in a Rogaine format. The race will start/finish & transition at Wilderness Voyageurs. This is our 3rd year using this race format & the feedback has been very posotive. This format allows for many different strategies/route selections.
    • Solo's, 2 person, 3 person & 4 person teams will race 85 to 90 miles across the beautiful & rugged Laurel Mountains of south western Pennsylvania.
      • 40-50 miles of mountain biking on single track, quad trails, rail trails & back roads.
      • 25-30 miles of trekking & orienteering
      • 9-15 miles of kayaking on the Casselman and, or, the Middle Yough river
      • 150' rappel off of the Historic railroad tressel (optional points)
      • 150 meter river swim on flat water
  • Event Points Category:
    • USARA National Qualifier, USARA Point Series Day Race + 10 pt bonus
    • Checkpoint Tracker Day Race
  • Team Registered: Josh, Jack, Stefanie (recruit)

2009 Lionheart Pictures

2009 Lionheart

Online album with higher quality files

2009 Lionheart Map

2009 Lionheart Website

• American Adventure Sports Lionheart 24

2009 Lionheart Results

• Results Spreadsheet
• 11th co-ed category out of 14 teams; 22nd overall

2009 Lionheart Reviews

Josh's Take

Stefanie's Take

The Lionheart 24 proved to be a very big learning experience. It was only my second adventure race ever, but it was completely different than the last race we did in VA. The VA race tested our mental state of mind by making the course very heavy in navigational skills. This race had none of that. It was 100% physical the entire time. The CP’s were just out in the open on trails. The night before, I was very cocky (in my head at least) that we would sweep the course due to the easy navigation skills required. What I did not realize is when the lines get really tiny on the map it means a cliff / Mt. Everest stands in your way. I am fairly certain we ascended Mt. Everest during this race. My legs sure felt that way.

Prologue:

Running about 2 miles up a mountain to obtain the passport and then running back down. This was my specialty. I am a runner. I am not a kayaker, biker, ect. However, as soon as I began running, my legs decided that I was not going to be a runner today. They felt like jelly. At this point I am really regretting the century bike ride I did less than a week ago. What was I thinking?? I told Josh and Jack at this point the course was going to take a physical toll on us. Since I am a runner, I understand that uphills are not what gets the body, it is the downhills.

Stage 2:

I like to call this section the bike ride from hell (or maybe it was to heaven since we climbed straight up). It was the worst hour of my life. The craziest single track I have ever ridden and we are now going up it. Josh and Jack made it look easy. I was back behind them pushing my bike and trying not to cry. How can you bonk in the first 2 hours of the race?? We really did not travel that great of distance on the bike (maybe 4 miles??), but it was straight up out of the gorge. I was never in all of my life so glad to get off of a bike. I could tell Josh was worried that I was already bonking. I am a trooper though and rallied once we got on foot (again, I am a runner, not a biker).

Stage 3:

Running /trekking!! Yeah! This is my specialty and it was downhill! My legs starting feeling better as did my mind during this part. I am pretty sure this is where Jack started feeling bad though. One of the great things about adventure racing is the timing of everyone’s different bonks. In a perfect world, it would all be at once, in the real world they occur at any given time and it seems someone is always struggling. Jack was a trooper and rallied towards the bottom as we got near the kayak.

Stage 4:

Kayaking. Again, it is always a great idea to do something for the very first time during a race. I have never kayaked before, but I had a blast. Jack did an excellent job leading our little raft down the river. I am not sure what sick person decided wooded paddles with a lead bar down the middle were a good idea, but I would like to hit them with the paddle if I ever found out.

Stage 5:

Rappelling. Woo hoo! Again, I have rappelled before, but always down some object such as a wall, mountain, ect. I have never just dropped down without anything to place my feet on. It was a blast though and definitely made the whole race worth it. Josh and Jack made it look so easy and zipped down the line. I think I took about 5 minutes getting down. It was a nice break from the rest of the race.

Stage 6:

I like to refer to this part as the Baton Death March. We trekked out of the gorge and back down it about 100 times. I am probably over exaggerating a little, but not much. I learned I loved my new trekking poles on this section. I will never make fun of anyone for using those things again. I also learned that crossing a river in the middle of the night is really scary. It seems I always am with Josh and Jack when this happens. They are great though. They always hold me up as the current takes my feet out from under me. I should probably load my pack with heavy rocks next time to give me some extra weight. I will speak of this section again at the summary of my review as this is where I learned all of my lessons from the race.

Stage 7:

The bike ride to the finish. Did I mention I hate biking on single track? Josh and Jack now expected me to ride down that stupid single track that almost killed me climbing up it in the dark with a headlamp on. Really?? I told them just to go on fast and wait on me ever so often. I honestly did not want them to hear me cussing under my breath at how miserable I was going down this huge gorge. They occasionally would yell back at me when they heard me scream due to a fall or me plowing in to a tree. All I could do was laugh at myself on the way down because I really am just terrible at single track. I did make it down in one piece and we zoomed to the finish with all required CP’s completed and no optional points obtained. It was an official finish.

Lessons learned:

This race taught me so much about team dynamic. I always looked at the team website before I officially raced with them and was curious why some were called motivators. It turns out they may in fact be the most important part of the team. They always keep the mood elevated and spirits high. They keep the crazy work horses (those of us who just push everyone so hard it runs them in to the ground) in check and keep those who are bonking moving along. I was fortunate in my first race to get to race with two of the best at this – Joanna and Laura. However, in this race, we did not have them. You had Josh and me who just push everyone so hard it runs them in the ground and Jack who is an awesome racer but was not allowed the breaks he needed because Josh and I were too busy trying to rush us through the course. Jack was extremely hard on himself in his review. We were all at fault for the breakdown. We should have listened to Jack and his needs better. I can assure Josh and Jack both that I was going to have major needs on the last part of the course that we did not do – the biking. I am a weak biker and that is a fact. Josh and Jack would probably have been very frustrated with me had we got to that section and they may have pushed me to the edge. We will never know, but the point is, you have to listen to each other and really encourage them during their weakest events. I almost broke down during the first bike section because I felt like I was disappointing Jack and Josh the whole way up the mountain with my walking. I think Josh and I probably made Jack feel this same way during the treks (which were both of our strong suits). The main thing is I had so much fun during this race and really enjoyed getting to know Josh and Jack better. We did something that few people in their lives will ever attempt and we finished. We may not have placed where we hoped, but if you come out of something on the other end a better person, then you are a winner.

Jack's Take

Race? What race? Bronchitis, bad foot blisters due to waterlogged feet mixed with sand, failure to maintain food intake, & failure to be aerobically fit, did not make for much of a race. I sucked during this race. I doubt I'll ever do a 24 hour race again (definitely not with bronchitis and in my current aerobic shape). Anyway, here's my take:

Prologue: We ran up out of the gorge to the campground and back down. This was a lung burner for me, and Stefanie was warning that if the race had this much downhill, we could be in trouble.

Bike up out of the gorge: Really steep, but not too bad. We finished within 19 minutes of the fastest team.

Trek/Run down into the gorge: By this time, I was not feeling well (stomach), the large gravel (2-3" size) was rough on my feet, and I was worried about inflaming my arch tendon injury from last year. I took it slower than Josh/Stefanie would have liked, while I tried to get some food in me (it was around noon and I don't recall eating much prior to this point). We got past by several teams, which was a real downer, as they ran down the rocky road. (I have to run more during training, if I decide to ever do a 24 hr race again). Still, we beat 4 co-ed teams to the paddle.

Kayak: Team EMS only beat us by 10 minutes on the split time for this section, and Nature Cure only by 4 minutes, despite the fact that I ate something during this 2 hr 46 minute section of the race.

Rappel: Awesome, and it gave me time to actually eat something. Amazing how much better you feel after being allowed to eat (heart rate returning to normal levels).

Death March: The trek from CP6 to CP7 and eventually to CP8 was not fun, at all. We hiked up out of the gorge, again, then got CP7, then back down to the river, waded across at the rapids just downstream from where we hit it, then up out of the gorge again. At this point my feet were on fire, with every step (even while being towed) resulting in sharp pain. The downhills were spent trying to keep up with Josh and Stefanie (well, this is the same as the uphills). Upon reaching CP8 (after 7.5hrs of trekking from CP6), I took off my socks and discovered the issue. My severely pruned feet had captured sand in every crack and crevice. This ground away at the folds, resulting in linear blisters along each wrinkle. I couldn't imagine walking or pushing a bike up a hill at this point. Not wanting to DNF, I let the team know that the best I could do was ride back down into the gorge for an official finish.

The bike down to the finish was spent riding blistering fast, then regrouping, then flying downhill in the dark again. If the rest of the race guaranteed no pushing of bikes, I probably could have gotten plenty more optional CPs, but pushing the bike was just as painful as walking.

We finished with all mandatory CPs, but no optional. Definitely not a 1337 performance on my part. Overall, my altimeter showed 17,300 ft of elevation gain (and I'm sure about the same for loss, as we finished at the same place that we started).

Josh and Stefanie are true athletes and could have done much better with a third team member who was in better shape.

Lessons learned:

1. Not being in better aerobic shape led to higher heart rates, while trying to keep up with Josh and Stefanie.
2. It's hard to to eat while your heart rate is in the 175+ bpm range, which leads to a lack of energy and bonking.
3. Not carrying an extra pair (or 2) of dry socks to be able to change into after river crossings before miles and miles of uphill hiking leads to foot issues, which ultimately did me in.

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