The G-Rant : Grant's Rants on Adventure Racing

• 6 Things To Like About the Zurich Bike Commute

  I have never commuted by bike before, not because I didn't want to, but because I'd be putting myself in harms way on the Virginia and Maryland roads.  If you know Hampton Roads, imagine biking down Jefferson Blvd or some other 4-lane road without a hint of a bike lane and a automobile culture that considers bicyclists as obstructions.   With that said, here are the 6 things I like most about my bike commute in Zurich:   -4 feet wide bike lanes -- well-marked and on both sides of the road -I can get through the city faster than an automobile.  They do have a few intersections that cause major back-ups for car drivers, but I can cruise by on my 2 wheels. -Trail systems, ridges, and mountains (small mountains . . . not the Matterhorn or anything) surrounding the city -A culture of respect for bicyclists; cars regularly pause at crosswalks and wave the bikers and pedestrians across.  If I get too used to this I'll be killed if we ever move back to the US! -My employer has special areas for storing and locking your bike, and very nice shower and locker room facilities -I'm sure you saw this coming: I can get some exercise going to/from work instead of sitting on my butt some more.  As I wrote in my retrospective on training for Patagonia, finding ways to integrate a more "active" existence into your regular day-to-day life is a great way to condition yourself for the rigors of a long race.  I consider anything that stops me from sitting down, even -gasp- yard work or running errands, to be a step in the right direction in terms of fitness.  Biking to work is perfect in this regard.   So that's 6 positive things that come to mind . . . I have to mention 2 negatives . . .   -After having a beer or two after work on a Friday, biking home can be more challenging.  Lucky for me, I don't work with the volunteers from 2008 Untamed New England Adventure Race (you know who you are guys!) . . . I'm sure my beer consumption, and poker playing, would spike! -It can be demoralizing (or, maybe I should say "inspiring") when somebody bikes passed you with their kid on their back.  Maybe they're on a road bike and you're on a fat-tire ride, but it definitely brings a smile to my face as I work to catch the bike-and-baby commuter so I can draft from them for a bit.  Maybe it's time for me to invest in a road bike . . .     Posted Aug 24 2008, 04:15 AM by gkillian with 3 comment(s)

• An O-Map for the end of Summer

  I think this is the orienteering map with the highest elevation in Europe . . . pretty cool . . . and a perfect work distraction on one of these final Fridays in Summer:         Posted Aug 22 2008, 02:19 AM by gkillian with no comments

• Getting things done with a "real" job

  I've been really busy of late; I started a "real" job a month ago and so I have an actual office to go to 5 days a week!  It's been 2 or 3 years since that was the case, so it's quite an adjustment.  The steady income, however, is pretty darn nice so I'm not really complaining.  I'm just having to shift around how I get things done.    I'm doing my best to integrate training time into the job and it's going really well so far.  The Swiss are great about providing shower facilities and recognizing the value of giving staff time to exercise in the day.  It's working out really well.  I can bike into work more quickly than I could commute by train; my record is about 30 minutes from door to door.  There are great options for extending the morning ride, with trails and climbs at the beginning and end of my commute, so I can be flexible based on my schedule, the weather, how I'm feeling, etc.  The same goes for the ride home, too, so at a minimum I get 60-90 minutes of riding in each day.  Over lunch, I go for a run on the copious trail system on Zurich's West end.    A minor setback for me: I strained my groin muscle playing soccer (football as they call it here) over lunch a few weeks back and that's been keeping my lunch-time activity to around 45 minutes or less.  I'm slowly healing, though, and it won't be long before I can maybe log a 90 run over lunch each day.  I haven't played soccer in many years and it was fun to get out again -- I was just over zealous with my return, and, of course, tweaked a muscle in the process.    Maybe I'm just getting old?  A real 5-day a week job . . . a muscle strain while running around at lunch . . . what's next?      Posted Aug 21 2008, 01:30 AM by gkillian with no comments

• Untamed Switzerland 2009

  I'm in talks with a few towns about hosting Untamed Switzerland 2009 and there is a leader emerging . . . I can't say for sure, but they're being very helpful in letting us put together an "economy" and a "luxury" package for our participants to choose from.  "Economy" will mean staying in dorms or facilities for sport teams (like the Swiss cross country ski team, for example); "Luxury" would be a bed and breakfast with private bath, etc.  Ultimately, we will have to rename "economy" and "luxury" to something less polarizing, but I'm all for "Luxury" after a full day of taking on a stage like this one from the 2008 event:     One thing is for certain, people love the concept (Swiss and non-Swiss alike) and if we can get an affordable plan together we'll build on the success from 2008 and have a blast in the process!      Posted Aug 12 2008, 04:43 PM by gkillian with no comments

• Thursday Aug 7, 7 PM, at the Richmond Blue Ridge Mtn Sports

  From the BRMS Chesterfield (Richmond) webpage: From Patagonia to the VA Piedmont: Adventure Racing with Untamed Adventure Slide Show Join us for an evening of adventure scenes and stories. The slideshow will get you amped for the epic "Untamed VA Adventure Race". Coming to Richmond, VA the weekend of September 12th 2008, test yourself through 100+ miles of paddling, biking, running, orienteering, ropes, riverboarding and more! We have two races courses for you to choose from: if the 30-hour course is too much for you to tackle . . . try our 4-hour fun and beginner-friendly "Dash" course and compete in parallel with our Pro course teams for their final 4 hours of racing. The Slide show will be held @ 7pm @ the Chesterfield Towne Center location only!   Sherry is going to be leading the show and I'm sure it will be entertaining so check it out if you're in Richmond tonight.   In other news, less than a month until I hit Virginia soil again for Untamed VA 2008.  The 30-hour race has around 5 team spots left, so don't wait until too late if you're counting on racing the 30-hour event.  The 4-hour Dash course has plenty of space, still.     Posted Aug 07 2008, 01:18 AM by gkillian with no comments

• Monday Aug 4, 7:30 PM, at the Fairfax REI

  Just posting a reminder that this Monday at 7:30 PM, at the Fairfax REI, Tom and Deb O'Donnell (the Dynamo O'Donnells!) will be doing a presentation on their Untamed Switzerland experience and relating it to the upcoming Untamed Virginia adventure race.  I know the photo set Deb and Tom will share is amazing, and they're a very fun couple so I encourage you to make the trip and get inspired!   For a more immediate bit of inspiration, here is Jill and I scoping out some options for a future Untamed Switzerland . . . Posted Aug 01 2008, 11:29 AM by gkillian with no comments

• Seat Post Carrier Options (version 2)

  We pruned some old content from the Untamed Adventure website and, unfortunately, one of the casualties was my info about the seat post carrier I use and a buddy asked about it so let me post this here, on a  more durable server location, for the sake of posterity . . . .   These pics from my Flickr site show the bike rack in action.  I use a Swiss made carrier but you can buy them in the US (http://www.thorusa.com/pletscher.htm), I think I have the  "System EasyFix" Master from Pletscher, or one of their other heavier duty models  -- it works well for my particular 29r bike and I can put a really heavy pack on there.  They have lighter ones you could experiment with, too.   I know Sherry went to her local bike shop, with her loaded backpack, and worked with them on a specific rack and combination that would suit her bike frame and size.  If you've got a good shop nearby it'd be worth a visit. In a longer race, shifting the weight off my back and onto the bike rack is a nice change and -- if necessary -- you can put a teammate's pack on their or something else if you end up needing to bike and haul additional gear.  It's nice to have options when the race is long and the gear is copious!     Posted Aug 01 2008, 08:22 AM by gkillian with no comments

• Nordic Walking in Grindelwald

  Here is a quick video from our recent Nordic Walking escapade in Grindelwald.  Jill wasn't too excited with all the climbing, but she toughed it out and we finished the 21k in a bit over 4 hours. It was a lot of fun, and -- for the record -- there is plenty of running at a Nordic Walking event so don't take it lightly! The full photos from the weekend: http://www.flickr.com/photos/11605162@N08/tags/eigernordicwalkingevent/show/ We've narrowed our list of locations for Untamed Switzerland 2009 to Grindelwald and Engelberg.  Two fantastic mountain destinations, one in the shadow of the Eiger and the Jungfrau and the other nestled against the towering Mt. Titlis.  It's going to be so much fun . . . we're really excited.   Posted Jul 28 2008, 03:08 PM by gkillian with 1 comment(s)

• Untamed VA Interview

  We've added an introductory interview to the Untamed VA Live Race portal (under Audio Content on the lower left hand side) so we can add to your summer Friday distraction level at work.  Enjoy! For us, we're off to Pontresina for some hiking this weekend.  Hope you're up to something fun -- and don't forget the riverboarding clinics if you're in the Richmond or DC areas, there's some space available but you need to contact Shane (Shane@Ripboard.com) to make it happen!     Posted Jul 25 2008, 01:53 AM by gkillian with no comments

• New England Shots

  We've got a photo gallery together for Untamed New England; there's some more photos to add but this brings together many from various volunteers and photographers.     I've gotten behind on some things since I started a full-time contract with a big Swiss investment bank (yes, it's a cliche to be in Zurich and work in finance but I gotta pay the bills somehow!).     Posted Jul 22 2008, 04:05 PM by gkillian with no comments

• Things to do in the next couple weeks

  The following race could be a great warm-up for Untamed Virginia 2008  . . . the Calleva adventure race.  It's an 8-hour race in the wilds of Maryland, and a perfect tune-up for the September Untamed VA race.  It's the first race put on by Dima and Calleva, but I know Dima from other races (he raced at Untamed New England, for example) and I'm thinking that by combining his abilities with the Calleva infrastructure the race should be a lot of fun!  So check out the race site and sign-up while you still can -- the race is August 3rd!   Also right around the corner, we've firmed up the information regarding these sessions later this Summer so let me post the cliff notes here: -Sat July 26th Riverboarding Clinic in Richmond, VA -- sign up now as space is limited! -Sun July 27th Riverboarding Clinic in Washington, DC -- sign up now as space is limited! -Mon August 4th Talk "From the Swiss Alps to Untamed Virginia" in Fairfax, VA (REI) -Thurs August 7th Talk "From Patagonia to the Virginia Piedmont" in Richmond, VA (BRMS) -Thurs August 14th Talk "From Patagonia to the Virginia Piedmont" in Charlottesville, VA (BRMS) Full details can be found on our clinic page.  The Untamed Switzerland retrospective with Tom and Deb O'Donnell deserves special attention (Aug 4 at the Fairfax REI); the photos are just amazing -- although I could be biased!  The "Patagonia to VA Piedmont" will be a great review of the Patagonia race from this past February and I think Sherry's on the hook for both talks on Aug 7 and Aug 14.  I recommend both talks, whether you're racing at Untamed VA or just looking for an entertaining evening!     Posted Jul 16 2008, 05:03 AM by gkillian with no comments

• Nordic Walking

  So -- the rogaine we were going to do this weekend has been cancelled, which stinks as we were really looking forward to it.  In a mad search to find another event that I could get my wife on board with for this weekend, we found this Nordic Walking event at the Eiger.  Amazing venue if nothing else! Now, what is Nordic Walking you may ask?  I don't pretend to know, I think it's just hiking with trekking poles.  I wonder if they'll throw a fit if we take off at a run at their Nordic Walking event?  The Swiss love their rules and regulations and I can picture all the participants scolding the Americans as they treat the Nordic Walk as a Trail Run.  If I read German (or bothered to do some research) I could probably determine what the rules are, but we're just going to show up and knock out their long course.  If nothing else, it'll be a fun weekend in Grindelwald!   Here's a pic from the Grindelwald area . . .      Posted Jul 10 2008, 02:57 PM by gkillian with no comments

• Stanserhorn

  It's been a while since I dazzled you with scenery from Switzerland so here's some from my trek up the Stanserhorn: and this is from my route down . . . there wasn't another single person hiking on the South face of Stanserhorn so I had this all to myself for hours . . . Clicking the above photo goes to the Flickr slideshow; but here is a link to the less fancy gallery page. Just one more really good one:  Above is the exposed ridge leading up to the summit; there's a cable car system that deposits tourists up there from the town below, so they don't have to hike it.  The summit is around 2,000 meters so it's right up there with Mt. Rigi and Mt. Pilatus; I really want to check this out in the Winter to see how suitable it is for inclusion in Untamed Switzerland 2009.  There are some places which could be an avalanche danger, but there are also some very beautiful routes that would avoid those potential problem areas.  It'll be fun to keep this on my list!     Posted Jul 10 2008, 07:00 AM by gkillian with no comments

• Adventure Racing Clinics in July and August

  We've got preliminary information posted on some clinics we're doing in advance of Untamed VA; these are "Riverboarding" instruction clinics and "Patagonia to VA Piedmont" adventure racing talks we're doing at Blue Ridge Mountain Sports.  There's some more stuff in the works, like the details on the Riverboarding packages (for those looking to purchase gear) and a hybrid Untamed VA / Untamed Switzerland talk by the Dynamo O'Donnells up in the Wash DC area.  We also may add something further down towards Hampton Roads.   The talks at Blue Ridge will be done by a few of my teammates and, while they don't know the Untamed VA course (as they plan to race it!), I will make sure to give them some juicy bits of information regarding both the 30-hour and 4-hour courses.  One thing is certain for those on the 30-hour course: you will need your portage helmets.   In a perfect world, we would have posted this information a month ago but we had our Untamed New England blinders on . . . hopefully this still gives people enough time to put something on their calendar.     Posted Jul 08 2008, 05:41 AM by gkillian with 2 comment(s)

• TT Race Report for Untamed Adventure

  Happy July 4th everyone!  The 4th day in July is less of a holiday in Switzerland . . . although we did get invited to an "American" party held by some Swiss people.  Based on my reading of the invitation (again the language barrier is substantial!), everyone is supposed to drive their car and show up fashionably late (seriously . . . I guess that is the Swiss stereotype of Americans).  I think I'm going to go for a long bike ride and probably pass on the party.   In news more relevant to adventure racing, we've got the race report from the 2008 Tidewater Traverse up on the Untamed Adventure team page.  There's a couple photos in there etc.  It's something to read while you're waiting for your BBQ grill to heat up . . . enjoy the holiday everyone!   Posted Jul 04 2008, 03:54 AM by gkillian with no comments