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Welcome to our series “15 First Adventure Races” which interviews veteran adventure racers on how they got started in the sport. If you’d like further resources, check out our New to AR? page on usara.com for additional material!  Erl (far right) with WEDALI teammates Justin, Andrea, and Jason. What's your name? How old were you when you did your first adventure race? Why did you want to participate? Scott Erlandson (most people call me Erl), I was about 33 when I did my first AR. I had seen Eco-Challenge British Columbia on TV and was drawn to the teamwork aspect across multiple sports that AR required. I was running road marathons at the time and wanted to try another sport that wasn’t so hard on my body. How did you find your first adventure race? Which race did you pick and where was it? There was a quarterly magazine called Midwest Sports that I received. The magazine included an events calendar for Minnesota and Wisconsin. There was only one adventure race listed and that was a six-hour race at Camp Ihduhapi, just west of Minneapolis. Did you create your own team or did a team recruit you? My Uncle Roe was a triathlete so I asked him to be my teammate. The race was four-person teams only, but the Race Directors helped pair everyone up so the two of us were placed on a team with two others. I don’t remember much about our other two teammates - so they weren’t terrible! Did you need to get any new gear, what did you need, where did you find it? I had a decent mountain bike already, but I bought a Camelbak Mule for my race pack from REI. How did you train for your first race? Did you need to gain any new skills? I was already into running road marathons so I had pretty good fitness, but I added in some bike miles as well. The paddling section in the race was pretty short and my uncle and I felt good about our paddle skills for that distance. Were there any resources (online or in person) that significantly helped you prepare? Please provide links if applicable. I didn’t find anything. After the Ihduhapi race, I wanted to get more involved in AR, so I went to an adventure racing indoor climbing clinic put on by some former Eco-Challenge racers. That’s where I met a guy named Paul, and after the clinic we decided to do a race together. The following weekend, the Minnesota Orienteering Club hosted a navigation clinic, and Paul met another guy named Justin. I reached out to another adventure racer named Amy who I had met at Camp Ihduhapi. So myself, Paul, Amy and Justin formed a team called “We Eat Dust And Like It” which eventually evolved into WEDALI.  Erl (far right) with teammates Andrei and Emily at the start of the 2017 USARA National Champs. How did the race go?
So, we finished under our own power, but were past the cutoff and the finish line had already been taken down and put away. All of the post-race food was gone and the RDs were about to leave. I don’t even think we found half of the checkpoints. Our team just had a lot of fun together on the course. Before the race, I thought the checkpoints would all be on the trail, but most of them were off-trail, and I wasn’t quite ready for that. What hooked you on adventure racing? Honestly, based on my team's experience at our first race, I should have hated it. But I didn’t. Adventure racing was just so different from anything else I had experienced so far. I really enjoyed being in remote wilderness areas with just my team to rely on. I liked all of the different sports that went into AR and wanted to improve in each sport. I liked developing good teamwork and being a good teammate. AR is just fun to me. Since your first race, name one or two AR highlights you’ve experienced. My most treasured AR memories are all of the amazing teammates I have gotten to race with, including meeting my wife! I have gotten to travel all across the US and also internationally for races. Adventure race directors always find the most interesting spots, even in areas that might seem boring on paper. It is so cool to explore new parts of each state or country that most people don’t get to see. Also WEDALI started in 2003, and won USARA National Champs in 2010 and 2012 with myself, Justin, and his wife Molly. Those wins were a highlight because we all started at the same time and worked our way up together. Stay tuned for more from USARA! Visit www.usara.com for more information on adventure racing in the United States. Welcome to our series “15 First Adventure Races” which interviews veteran adventure racers on how they got started in the sport. If you’d like further resources, check out our New to AR? page on usara.com for additional material!  Phil (far right) at his first Berryman Adventure Race in 2004. What's your name? How old were you when you did your first adventure race? Why did you want to participate? I’m Phil Nicolas, and I was about 25-years-old when I did my first adventure race, around my birthday in 2000, I believe. I saw a flyer at work and thought that this 'event' looked pretty cool; adventure suited me well and it looked exciting. How did you find your first adventure race? Which race did you pick and where was it? I saw the flyer on the wall for the Extreme Heart Challenge in Ponca, Nebraska. It was the second running of the sixteen-hour race directed by Dave Sly and my curiosity got the best of me. Did you create your own team or did a team recruit you? I created my own team - I asked my coworker (who happened to be standing next to me), then he asked a friend of his, and then I asked my sister to join. We all agreed that it sounded like fun. Did you need to get any new gear, what did you need, where did you find it? I didn't own a bike at the time. I bought one the week prior to the race, and I used an old backpack of mine that fit everything. I had never navigated anything before, so I bought my first compass, which I still have. Also, I needed to purchase a handlebar-mounted light, which turned out to be worthless! How did you train for your first race? Did you need to gain any new skills? I ran a couple miles per week in the two weeks leading up and a few laps around the nearby corn field - literally four miles total. I rode around those couple corn sections a few days before the race and thought "I'm good to go!" Our team had no plan for navigator or navigation in general; no one on the team had any idea what we were doing. We knew about a rope section and I was pretty comfortable with ropes, so no issue there! I was thinking: Adventure! Were there any resources (online or in person) that significantly helped you prepare? Please provide links if applicable. Internet information was minimal; those were the days when you had to mail in your registration check before the deadline - <yup> old school mail-in registrations.  Phil (far left) and teammate Kevin at the finish line of Untamed New England 2018. How did the race go?
Our first race was a total bust, quite predictably really. Two teammates quit after the first section, my sister and I were allowed to continue as a 2-person team. I was the only one on the team who had a clue how to open and read a map, this is why I was always the navigator in the early years. That first race, I was not aware we could write on the map, and when we would get close to the area of a checkpoint, I would eyeball the checkpoint location and say, “It should be around here somewhere,” and we would search. We were the last two racers to cross the finish line, the race personnel dropped the banner, packed up and that was it! I had packed 2 Gatorades and 2 sandwiches for 16 plus hours of activity, and I was starving. What hooked you on adventure racing? My sister and I crossed that finish line together; my wife was waiting for me and that continues to be a driving force for me when I experience low times in races today. That race kicked my butt and I knew I could better, and yet I had such a blast challenging myself in the outdoors, I knew beyond a doubt, I wanted to do it again. I talked about it for the next month to everyone that would listen. Since your first race, name one or two AR highlights you’ve experienced. There are many memories and lessons I've learned from AR. I'll never forget the beautiful pristine high alpine meadows of my first expedition race in the western Kootenays, and also the lesson on the importance of giving 100% and racing our own race. Stay tuned for more from USARA! Visit www.usara.com for more information on adventure racing in the United States. Welcome to our series “15 First Adventure Races” which interviews veteran adventure racers on how they got started in the sport. If you’d like further resources, check out our New to AR? page on usara.com for additional material!  Mike setting up to photograph teams during Primal Quest 2018 in British Colombia. What's your name? How old were you when you did your first adventure race? Why did you want to participate? I’m Mike Seroczynski, and I was 41 in my first adventure race. At that time, I had been burnt out from running marathons and triathlons (mostly regional stuff). A race that required teammates and orienteering popped up locally here in northern Michigan, and I was interested in something new. How did you find your first adventure race? Which race did you pick and where was it? I had just raced a half-marathon and was drinking beers and a friend mentioned maybe I should check out this local adventure race in Ludington, MI. He said it had maps, bikes, and paddling, and I was intrigued. I needed to know more! This was in 2007. Did you create your own team or did a team recruit you? I went to Facebook and started looking at my friends who were semi-athletic, mountain biked, trail runners etc. I sent out messages to about six people and sucked three friends into racing on a team with me. The only common denominator was me. We met once before the race to paddle canoes, then we all showed up pre-race night! Two guys, two gals. Did you need to get any new gear, what did you need, where did you find it? I borrowed a mountain bike. I had a compass from the Marine Corps. I was a forward observer in the Marines, so I had decent skills navigating. I got a couple large ziplock for map cases, but had all the other basic gear. The nearest store for anything in Northern Michigan is Walmart's. This is pre-Amazon! How did you train for your first race? Did you need to gain any new skills? I started trail riding! Single track day and night, and I became more confident on single track. My whole life previously was all road biking. I also started to refine my paddling skills in canoes and kayaks. Were there any resources (online or in person) that significantly helped you prepare? Please provide links if applicable. Honestly no. It’s hard to imagine, but back in 2007, YouTube wasn't really a thing.  Mike (far right) with Team Checkpoint Zero at Eco-Challenge: Fiji in 2019. How did the race go?
We came in fourth overall. We hiked sand dunes, and we overcame one teammate with heat exhaustion. There was one CP in the middle of the stinky muddy marsh, and we played Rock-Paper-Scissors to see who had to go punch it! What hooked you on adventure racing? The self-suffering that I put myself in and the accomplishing the course. I had dropped running on pavement years earlier, after destroying my knees, hiking with eighty pound rucks in USMC. It felt great to do something physical. And since I'm constantly in the outdoors, adventure racing was another excuse to be there. Since your first race, name one or two AR highlights you’ve experienced. Well, the Sea to Sea in Florida - I've done it four times. Great race. I also value the connections and friendships I've made from adventure racing. It’s allowed me to travel to New Zealand for GodZone, British Columbia for Primal Quest, Ecuador for AWRS Championships, Belize, and so many places in the USA. When I broke my foot, I pulled my camera out and started taking pictures instead of racing. I’ve also helped design races and put on a few races of my own. Welcome to our series “15 First Adventure Races” which interviews veteran adventure racers on how they got started in the sport. If you’d like further resources, check out our New to AR? page on usara.com for additional material!  Art Cook in one of his first adventure races. What's your name? How old were you when you did your first adventure race? Why did you want to participate? I'm Art Cook, and I started racing at the age of 33. I wanted to adventure race for the first time because I mountain biked and I ran, but I could not swim in a straight line for more than twenty feet. How did you find your first adventure race? Which race did you pick and where was it? I was visiting family in the general area of the Muleshoe Bend Sprint Adventure Race put on by Terra Firma Racing. The park is just outside of Austin, Texas on Lake Travis. I had some friends who were volunteering, and I thought I would join them. It was 1999, and I had watched a couple of other races to that point. I had never done a trail run, a mountain bike race or any kind of competitive paddling. Did you create your own team or did a team recruit you? Like I said, I showed up to volunteer. The race was teams of two. When I arrived my friends told me there was a woman racer who wanted to find a teammate for the co-ed division. She happened to be the number one women's mountain biker in her class in Texas. I said, why not? If she is willing to race with a newbie like me, her expectations must not be too high. Did you need to get any new gear, what did you need, where did you find it? Keep in mind that this was a rather short sprint race with no navigation, so there was little equipment required. Since I was coming from a family event, I brought nothing but a couple of Dasani bottles of water. Luckily my friend loaned me her little pink ladies mountain bike. How did you train for your first race? Did you need to gain any new skills? I have always been a jock and I have always done active jobs to stay fit. I think at the time, I might have been playing softball a couple of nights a week. Occasionally I would go for a bike ride or a run. That was it. Were there any resources (online or in person) that significantly helped you prepare? Please provide links if applicable. I had friends that were good adventure racers, and they gave me pointers.  Art (right), now a co-owner and race director at Too Cool Racing. How did the race go?
We started with a little 5k run, and because neither of us was a competitive runner, we held our own in the middle of the pack. Next up was the 7-mile mountain bike leg. Holy moly! I was holding on for dear life. My teammate, Claire, rode ahead and yelled out directions. She had a rearview mirror on her helmet, and she continuously looked back to make sure I still there. We passed lots of teams on that leg and made it to the paddle in the top 20 of 90 plus teams. The paddle was about a mile long in inflatable kayaks that were pretty miserable. Keeping a straight line was almost impossible, but we held our own to finish in 16th place. I have no doubt that Claire could have been on the podium with a better partner, but I at least think she had a little fun. What hooked you on adventure racing? Although that was a fun first race, what really got me hooked was the navigation and unmarked course racing. I really enjoy that smart racing often trumps fast racing in adventure racing. Since your first race, name one or two AR highlights you’ve experienced. I completed Primal Quest Lake Tahoe in 2003. Since then one of my teammates, Robyn Cantor, became my business partner at Too Cool Racing, LLC and we have produced more than 60 adventure races in Texas and New Mexico. Stay tuned for more from USARA! Visit www.usara.com for more information on adventure racing in the United States. Welcome to our series “15 First Adventure Races” which interviews veteran adventure racers on how they got started in the sport. If you’d like further resources, check out our New to AR? page on usara.com for additional material!  Anna (far right) in one of her first adventure races, on a rollerblading section with her now-husband, Tim! What's your name? How old were you when you did your first adventure race? Why did you want to participate? My name is Anna Nummelin. I was twenty when I did my first race. I initially wanted to try adventure racing because it seemed so drastically different from anything else I had ever experienced in my life and I wanted to see how it would challenge me to grow. How did you find your first adventure race? Which race did you pick and where was it? I did a google search to see if there were any adventure races in my area, and found the 2004 Driftless Zone 12-hour AR in south western Wisconsin. Did you create your own team or did a team recruit you? I raced as a soloist. Did you need to get any new gear, what did you need, where did you find it? I already had a cyclocross bike and a kayak. I found most of the other gear I needed (pack, compass, headlamp) in my parents’ garage. My dad was an avid hunter and had quite a bit of outdoor gear already. How did you train for your first race? Did you need to gain any new skills? I started running 4-5 months before the race. Prior to that, I wasn’t able to run a mile. I started by jogging 1/4 of the way around a 0.25 mile track, alternating walking and jogging a 1/4 loop at a time. Gradually I worked up to 1/2 loop and then a full. Then eventually up to three miles. I was ecstatic! Some days I went to the track and didn’t have time to run, so I just stretched and did a warm-up, but I kept up the routine. 2-3 months before the race I started to mountain bike and kayak once a week. Were there any resources (online or in person) that significantly helped you prepare? Please provide links if applicable. Back then there really weren’t the online resources and communities that there are now. I bought a couple of books:
 Anna (far right) and her team Rib Mountain Adventure Racing finishing the season as #1 ranked team in the US. How did the race go?
Well, let’s just say when I signed up, i was a very naive but enthusiastic college student who couldn’t run a mile, couldn’t read a topographic map, and had no clue what I was getting into. One hour in, I was completely lost and in last place, having spent the entire time swimming/wading through swamp in the dark, getting my maps wet in the process - and accidentally rubbed the finish line location off with my thumb. Another racer was kind enough to show me the way out of the swamp and on to the coasteering section so I could continue. I raced for 12 hours - kayaking, bushwhacking, rappelling, caving - and had the best time! I completed a fraction of the entire course, but had enough stories to last a lifetime. Best. Decision. Ever!!! What hooked you on adventure racing? The raw, thrilling, wildness of adventure racing is what initially got me hooked. I continued racing with my then boyfriend, now husband, Tim Buchholz and it became a shared passion for us both. After every race, we feverishly reviewed the entire course - start to finish- in the car on the way home. Picking it apart and thinking of what we could do to get faster and more efficient. There was always so much! Beyond just training more and getting faster on foot, bike, and paddle, we attended orienteering club meets, though about how to cut down transition time, and how not to lose time because of mental/emotional hang ups. Over time, we upgraded our nutrition, hydration, supplements, and gear. A few years later we won our first race. Then we started winning more regularly. After a couple more years we were undefeated in our state and then in 2016 ranked the #1 team in the USARA series. Being competitive and winning is a big hook, but just as much, I love the adventure racing community. Our fiercest competitors have become our fiercest friends - good people that without question would stop and help you in the middle of a race if you were in trouble, even if it cost them. Races now feel like as much of a reunion of friends as they do a competition. Since your first race, name one or two AR highlights you’ve experienced.
Stay tuned for more from USARA! Visit www.usara.com for more information on adventure racing in the United States. |
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AboutA space for AR musings from the USARA team and guest authors. Ready to race? Check out the rest of our resources on the USARA homepage. Archives
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