Another Year Another Legend

The 26th Mt. Baker Legendary Banked Slalom went down over the weekend. Those of you who follow me on Twitter (@boredyak) already know that Harry Kearney won Pro Men's, Maelle Ricker won her fifth consecutive Pro Women's and that Terje Haakonsen won the switch run. You won't find that last one on Baker's site, but I assure you it happened. No duct tape trophy for that, just some commemorative goggles that ended up in the crowd. Ricker won hers with her broken hand tucked inside her jacket. Rumor has it that Maria DeBari hired Tanya Harding to smash her in the knee with a pipe, but Maelle got a hand in the way, saving her knee and her gold duct tape. I started that rumor, of course.

You better aks somebody.

I didn't race this year as I yet again failed to have my name drawn from the lottery. I did get to shred two days on a legendary hill with equally extraordinary folk. Saturday it was windy enough for the powers that be to shut the diesel off and kill the lifts early - save the one lift that shuttled riders to the top of the course. Then, it dumped eight inches overnight, tapering off for a mostly sunny opening on Sunday. My friends and I showed up for first chair only to find that two of us forgot our boots. Team Rental Boots still shredded the pow mercilessly. Honestly, the rentals were as comfortable as my own boots. I took the occasion to ride a couple different borrowed and demo boards; a K2 Turbo Dream and a Bataleon Omni. Even with our lack of a local guide, we found fresh snow until it was time to return the smelly boots. Helluva day. We even managed to find a crew who barbecued a whole pig in the parking lot and provided dinner for a crowd. Didn't really expect that.

Look close enough and you might even see a race course.

Another year without running the race and I find the LBS to be all about friends. Friends from as far as Norway or as near as Bellingham, with Utah, Colorado and Seattle in between. I wish I could have caught up with everyone. Thanks goes out to all who provided me with hospitality and congrats to those who brought home the tape, came close, qualified, gained entry or just caught up with their own friends. You know what it's all about. Watch out next year in the Masters class, though. I'm aiming for the top. Only 364 training days left.

Funny, I Don't FEEL Like a Warrior

The first people I see are dressed in spandex unitards: one poison-frog green, the other flamingo pink. This would be strange if I wasn't planning on donning a ninja's garb with six of my friends. Plastic swords included. Farther down the road, dozens in various states of muddiness do their best to clean themselves in a pond the color of German chocolate. Those emerging only slightly cleaner than those entering. Up the hill, past registration, the race's end comes into view. First, hundreds of tires. Then, two small rows of flaming logs, maybe 50 feet apart. Finally, the mud pit. Dive in, crawl under six strands of barbed wire and down the muddy slip n slide to the finish. This is, of course, the reason we're all here, the Warrior Dash.

Ready to rock or ready for bed?

Ruthless

CHAAAARGE!

Then we disappeared into the woods for half an hour. Running up and down hills. Over junked cars and hay bales. Through ponds dotted with floating logs. We weren't all scheduled to run together, but we decided to anyway. The consequence of this was that those among us set to run at 3:30 were still digesting a heavy Mexican breakfast. Had they remembered that when we re-planned and hit the gates at 1:30, I'm sure they would have thought better of it. With the full posse together, we all helped each other out and ran together. We also hid behind obstacles and ambushed each other. That's just what ninjas do for fun. Fast forward to the end...

Like something out of a John Woo movie

You'd think this was a forced march, but we paid THEM

Comin' to git ya!

Is that all you got?

Which way to the showers?

Seriously!?

As clean as I get

Enjoying a warrior's dinner
(thanks to Jackie for all the photos)

Honestly a damn good time. Some people were more hardcore about it than others, but it seemed like most were there for a good time. The top finisher was under 16 minutes (for a 5k over plenty of hills with obstacles!?), so if you're out for one of the rad metal helmets, you better bring your A-game. If you just want to run a little with some friends, wear some funny costumes, eat a turkey leg, drink a beer, listen to a mediocre cover band, get a free shirt and an equally free fuzzy warrior hat, just check out warriordash.com, plunk down $40 and look for next year's race. Not a bad way to spend a lazy Sunday... Just don't expect to feel like a warrior when you're done.

(Note: My project at giveforward was a success. I raised $290, which is why you saw me in a rad costume. That money is going to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society to help out some real warriors. I'd like to thank everyone who contributed, including my one anonymous donor. I really appreciate your support on my first ever running event. More importantly, the LLS appreciates it. Also, I would like to thank Bob Horning and all the folks at Horning's Hideout for hosting the Warrior Dash. It was a great venue. I could do without all the hills for running's sake, but the ponds and amphitheater were great. See you again next year..?)