The Descent into Chaos
Balance Bar 24 LA
Team Tamarack Resort
Balance Bar Santa Monica
We had made it through an entire year of racing and only faced one more task to complete the year. A 15,000 vertical foot orgy of pain,
known as the Balance Bar 24 hour series finale. They say that the journey is part of the adventure, and let's just say this journey was
an adventure. A 3:30 am race start proved to be sobering as we got up from a meager 4 hours of sleep at 12:45. 12:45 . . . man that is
just about the time to be poning up to the bar for last call, not cramming into a school bus with a bunch of groggy adventurers.
Like a bunch of angry fireflies fleeing a child with a jar we set out straight up for an 8 mile climb. The steep grade was there, but
unlike so many other races we have done it was only 400 feet above sea level, so we gulped down the oxygen and cruised up in fine fashion.
Fumbling around like young boy on a first date, I some how managed to fumble us by the first CP. Backtracking we were passed by countless
teams, who kept asking Dead end? Dead End? No there is no dead end just a dead head.
From there we headed south like a bunch of fine geese with the directional capability of blind rat as we guessed wrong on the map and had
to backtrack again. The tension was already building, but I was more confident with each passing minute we were getting closer to the next
CP. Adventure Racing is addictive because you always replay it in your mind how you could have done it better, or what could have been.
We entered into a maze of trails, and questioned our route choices continually as we forged into a dead end and faced a time penalty for
going into a supposed "Off-Limits" area. We started up a brutal climb that more closely resembled a mountain climb than a mountain bike I
we spent more time walking than actually biking. Then we reached the top and started down, only to take another wrong turn. It was not my
day. This one crippled us as we missed the cutoff for the kayak section, and were forced into the short course.
The journey was no where near complete, as the temperature heated up and we headed vertical for our first trek. The bike was very
anticlimactic as we dodged eggheads riding 850cc crotch rockets and 50 IQ points. Now it was time to test our limits as we faced a 125
foot semi-vertical tyrolean traverse. This was an immense challenge as we pulled ourselves up the rope, and to the other side.
The night set in and we trekked towards a point on the map 18 miles to the east. As we got closer the weather got worse and our eyelids
got heavy. Reduced to stupid stories and horrible jokes, I tried to keep us awake. The material? High School glory day stories and a
short Bio of the people I grew up with. Hey, you see what you can come up with after being awake for 40 hours with only 4 hours of sleep.
We battled some intense wind, and then mud clops the size of snowshoes, before reaching the final transition area.
Here we reluctantly bundled up and prepared for our last climb before the descent into the chaos of LA. Tensions were short in the TA
as some guy was yelling at his female teammate, "Your transition time has to be faster", we all rolled our eyes and went back to eating.
Starting the descent we were a sight as Jen is not the best technical downhiller, I had a tiny headlamp, and Brad was missing a brake pad.
The night lights faded to the dawn of a new day and the promise of rest.
Exhaustion took over as we crossed the line and went through the medical check. I tried not to focus on what could have been, but it was
tough. All and all we had done well placing 2nd on the short course and the middle of the pack overall. 27 hours of racing, no injuries,
and plenty of memories. We teammates remain at the top of very short list that tolerate all the highs and lows and keep coming back for
more. The course was a great challenge, and I look forward to next year and taking on a 7 day behemoth.
