I’d like to take a moment and say thank you to each of our sponsors in 2007. Without their sponsorship, your swag bags would have been lighter and the prize table smaller. Our sponsors were very gracious this year and we want to take a moment to highlight the companies that helped us in 2007. We choose sponsors that produce/deliver products that we use ourselves or that we think would be of interest to those who participate in our events. We hope you enjoyed the goodies provided by our sponsors. Please think of our sponsors when you are making your next endurance related purchases.
Hammer Nutrition: Hammer Nutrition makes a ton of products for endurance athletes and provided samples and prizes for the UOG. I’ve sworn by e-caps for a number of years and use some of their other products as well.
Zanfel: Zanfel provided some prizes for the UOG. Cathi and I have used Zanfel after placing checkpoints in Poison Ivy infested areas a number of times the past few years. I think the most either of us got after using Zanfel was maybe one or two bumps with zero itching. I highly recommend their product.
Paceline Products Butt’r: Paceline Products provided samples and prizes for A24 before it was canceled. Anyone who has ridden a long ride without Butt’r can tell you what a great product it is. Any ride over 2-3 hours shouldn’t be done without Butt’r.
Mytopo: Mytopo printed all the maps for UOG this year. They make it affordable for us to give you great maps. You can print out your own custom map at their website too. Patrick and I have been very pleased working with Mytopo the last few years.
I’ve been meaning to put up a Checkpoint Adventures online store for quite some time. I finally got around to doing it last night. Right now there is only one item, but it’s a cool one I think. We’re selling the sticker below for $3.00 and that includes shipping. If you’re interested, check out our online store.
For those of you looking for a race in October, I suggest you check out the Strong Adventure Race. The race will feature a youth event (2 hours) and a longer main event (6 hours). The race takes place in Chattanooga and benefits a local YMCA so the proceeds are going to a very good cause. The Strong AR is directed by our very own Cathi Cannon!
Registration is currently underway and the price is very reasonable. Your money includes a goodie bag, food, drinks, and an event shirt. 3 person coed teams (main event only) will compete for a $1,000 cash purse. Check out the race website for more information.
It’s been exactly a month since the Ultra O-gaine started on June 8th just outside Chattanooga, TN. 24 hours later, the event ended and months of planning came to an exciting conclusion. Jon Barker, from Team Checkpoint Zero took home first place in the Ultra (24 hour) course. In the Half Ultra (12 hour) course, Team Toccoa (with some of my old teammates) took home first place. Congratulations to both Team Toccoa and Jon Barker for their first place finishes!
Robert Milks from Wilderness Adventure Photography was out on the course and took a bunch of pictures. Drop by his website and pick up a few pictures for your collection. Jim Farmer took a few pictures too and you can see them here.
Patrick and I would like to say thank you to everyone who came out and participated in the UOG this year. We have received some amazing feedback from everyone and from our survey results everyone really enjoyed themselves. Those participants that have raced both UOG’s said this years race was much more enjoyable. We really went over the feedback from last year and made changes that we felt would make it a more enjoyable event. We’re very glad it seems to have paid off.
A big thank you to our volunteers (Colleen and Marc) and to our sponsors Hammer Nutrition, myTopo, and Zanfel. We look forward to seeing you at another one of our events. Best of luck to you all for the rest of your racing season!
I’ve made the difficult decision to cancel the Adventure24 this year. Why? To be honest, the passion and heart just isn’t there right now. Putting on an event like this, the passion and heart just have to be there.
When Cathi and I started Adventure24 scouting in 2004 she lived just down the street from me and we got together to look over maps and planned the areas we wanted to visit. Scouting a new area is an adventure itself. You’re exploring new land and seeing sights you’ve never seen before. Those scouting trips were exciting.
Times have changed since those early days. Cathi lives in Chattanooga and I’m married and living in a 70 year old house. Trips to scout for the race used to be time away from my empty condo which required very little attention. Now scouting trips are time away from my new wife and our home that needs way more attention that I ever expected. I’m also in the process of getting back into school to finish up my masters degree that I started a few years ago. Needless to say, the amount of free time I have has been drastically reduced and I need to prioritize.
What does the future hold for Checkpoint Adventures? Well, the UOG is just a few weeks away and it will be a great event. Patrick and I have been hard at work placing checkpoints in Prentice Cooper gearing up for what again will be an event to talk about. As for the Adventure24, it might return one day. If it does return, it will be in a new location because part of the enjoyment of race directing is seeing and experiencing new areas. There might even be some new events and new people in the coming years. If you are interested in helping plan an event but don’t know where to start, contact me and we’ll talk. We’re on the lookout for a few good men or women to keep you adventurous types busy.
As for me, I’ll be spending less time working on events and more time out on the trails myself. I dusted off my mountain bike last weekend on a nice 9 hour bike/push suffer-fest that reminded me of the first NGAR I raced in (the snow edition). My teammate and I called that NGAR “Nature Walk with our Bike” because we pushed our bikes as much as we rode them that day. Last weekend was the same way, I even ran out of water like I did at that NGAR (where my water frozen and I got dehydrated). I’m also going to go camping and sit around the fire and drink some beers with my friends. And for once, it won’t be a camping trip revolved around scouting the area. See you around, and hopefully at the starting line again.
