Greetings from sunny Montana!! Its amazing, the sun is out, however the peaks are full of snow. We went through gear check and skills check today and now have tomorrow to relax, which is brilliant. Most of the teams have arrived and there is a great buzz around. I suppose the fact that we are going to be out for ten days hasn’t really hit us yet!!!

We all bought our bear spray today. We are hearing lots of bear sighting stories and and also they are trying to clear avalanche hazards at the moment. I’m more worried about the bears and have my bear spray ready to go in its holster … :)

She sent us on these photos of their gear check and skills check day! Check out the rest of the set here on their team blog.

Avril you’re an absolute super hero, we’ll be following you and willing you on every day (in the comfort of our armchairs!)

-Aisling-

Quotes and images belong to Avril Copeland.

SINGAPORE (Team Geared Up) - Team Geared Up are delighted to help out a regular reader over the last 7 months, Avril Copeland who with her team ‘Hunky Dorys Adventure Racing’ will partake in the world famous Eco Primal Quest in 68 days.

You can follow their preparations for the worlds toughest endurance race on their TGU microsite blog http://hunkydorys.teamgearedup.com/.

Their team is spectacular, Avil Copeland, Peter Spagnoli & Scott Pleban - Make sure to read their bios. To give you an idea of the experience…

• Adventure Racing World Championships, Scotland
• Eco Primal Quest Utah
• Subaru Primal Quest Pacific Northwest
• Eco Challenge NAC with Team New Balance
• Primal Quest Adventure Race
• 2006 Eco Primal Quest
• Salomon X-adventure World Tour, Utah
• 13 time United States Champion - Ski Orienteering
• 7 World Ski-Orienteering Championships
• World Masters XC-Ski Championships
• AR World Championships, NZ
• Subaru Primal Quest
• AR World Championships, New Foundland

Here’s a great short video about the race…

Head to their team blog to continue reading hunkydorys.teamgearedup.com! Expect to hear updates on TGU - and don’t hesitate to ask a training question on their blog.

-Robin-

(Image Credit: Avril ascending a rope section, Hunky Dorys Gallery.)

SINGAPORE - Well it’s a bit warmer in Singapore today than it was in Vail, Colorado, USA last December. Part cold, part wanting a camera-mounting, part I was about to throw myself off a few black diamond runs… I decided to buy a ski helmet. In the USA its different - everyone has helmets. Everyone. Helmet = ‘cool’. Helmet with camera on-top seemed to = ‘ultra cool’ or so the comments I got suggested.

I bought a Boeri Vortex (own one? click [Add To My Gear] above if signed-in) The helmet is in the low-mid range, I think I paid close to US$89 + tax for it. It’s very comfy. Nice and padded. Very warm ears (important in CO!).

I can’t tell you how it performed on impact as I didn’t have any - but it felt very secure, nicely fitting and snug. My goggles sat over it perfectly and had no loss of ventilation affecting de-misting. I wore a Rat Race Buff underneath it to protect my neck & chin as the temperatures were hitting -12C. So cold the Buff would come off frozen in one solid piece the shape of my face!

So the interesting bit is the camera. It’s a small security camera with an A/V output. It’s attached to my helmet with a large elastic band (so it can break off if in a fall) through the vent hole. Three leads come from it (audio, video, power) which run down under the padding on the inside through the vent and out a vent at the back where the small 9V battery to power the camera sits under my goggle strap. The Audio & video leads run down my outer jacket collar and under my right arm into the chest pocket on my smock where the AV Recorder (very simple video recorder I bought in Bangkok) sits in the warmth to preserver batter power. Here I can easily pull it out to watch playback while on the lifts.

It really works well. Video quality is pretty rubbish - but it’s only an experiment for the web. Here’s 2 embedded videos take on the first day of the trip.

Part 1.

Team Geared Up: Vail, CO. (Part 1) from Robin Blandford on Vimeo.

Part 2.

Team Geared Up: Vail, CO. (Part 2) from Robin Blandford on Vimeo.

Homemade video camera work well. But what I really want is the O’Neill Backpack Alx reviewed.

-Robin.

(Image & Video Credits: Vail, Colorado in December. By author with thanks to Aoife for the shots of me!)

ZURICH, SWITZERLAND (Team Geared Up) - Hey all you Geared Up heads! I’m heading over to the states for a couple weeks with some time to kill and would like to know who and how many people would like to come out for a reader meet up! I’m going to be in Boston from the 5th to the 9th of February and then I’ll be in New York City from the 9th to the 14th. I’ve set up two polls, one for each city, (using Doodle) so if you are interested just go in and leave your name (first name is fine) and what date/time would work best and leave a comment with where you think we should meet up. And since *ahem* I’m underage we are a health conscious site lets try and meet up at a cafe or rec center or something instead of bars. ;) After the success the Irish team had in Dublin I’m excited to set one up for the American readers and meet with you all so lets make this happen! For any questions you can contact me at: contact[at]omnialx[dot]com

For all Boston based readers click here.

For all New York City based readers click here.

-Alx-

SINGAPORE (Team Geared Up) - At present it may be U.S. resorts only, but Liftopia.com is attempting to get cheap ski-tickets to snow sports enthusiasts.

Liftopia partners with leading resorts across the nation in an effort to get people like you to their slopes more often. We work directly with our Resort Partners to identify opportunities for discounts and promotions that give downhill adventurers more opportunities to ski and snowboard for less. Liftopia is the best place to find great lift ticket deals at mountain resorts nationwide.

From what I make of this, ski-resorts will post up cheap tickets on Utopia for low-days where not enough are forecast to be sold. It doesn’t cost them any extra to have a skier on the slope once the lifts are running. Better to have some money than none. I guess this is not far off the RyanAir / Budget Airline model of once the plane is flying you may as well fill it.

It’ll be interesting to see if this is a success and transitions to Europe.

-Robin-

DUBLIN IRELAND, (Team Geared Up) I’m reading an article in the current issue of my local free newspaper, the Southside People, about super ultra athlete Tony Mangan’s latest victory. He cruised to victory in the 72 hour Across the Years ultra in Arizona, winning by a whopping 23 miles. He ran 274 miles around a 500 metre track! Wow, imagine the mental stamina needed for that never mind the physical!

Taking to the front from the start of the race with steady, controlled running, Tony was able to build up a big unassailable lead through the short sunny days and long freezing cold nights.

The Southside people tells us his next challenge will be the defence of his 48 hour world record indoor title in Brno, Czech Republic in March.

Athletics Ireland have it covered here.

-Aisling-

Qoute from Southide People.
Image from Ultrabeh.sk

DUBLIN, IRELAND (Geared Up Blog) - The location for Primal Quest 2008 has been announced as Montana. The race will take place between the 21st of June and the 2nd of July. I checked the team list and the IrishAR team aren’t there. I wonder are they concentrating on a different race for next year? I did notice Team Nike on the start list who will obviously be back hoping to retain the title the won in 2006.

From the Primal Quest Newsletter:

Because this year’s race is a supported event, it made sense that we should create a more challenging course than we did with Primal Quest Utah. While the Utah course was demanding with its very hot temperatures (112 -116 degrees at times) and a desert that had a way of draining all energy reserves from the competitors, the Montana course will present new demands on your bodies. Teams will face less harsh weather, but unrelenting climbs on both foot and bike.

In Primal Quest Montana you can expect to climb over 100,000 feet (Everest x 3), you will paddle and swim in big white water and you will perform world-class mountain navigation. The pain and the suffering you will encounter will be made even more rewarding by the never-ending 360 degree vistas of absolutely beautiful, rugged and remote terrain.

-Eoin-

WS100 is an historical run and is one of the four 100 mile races that comprise the Grand Slam of Ultrarunning: Vermont 100 Mile Endurance Run, the Wasatch Front 100 Mile Endurance Run in Utah, and the Leadville Trail 100 in Colorado.

Check out this previous post from Eoin with a video of last year’s winner. I might make one of these a goal for 2010?

-Aisling-

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I’m fully expecting Tango & Cash to have these new underglow lights on their Mountain Bikes at the next event. Boys, go for blue ones, way cooler.

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GoBlog do it again (we love you guys!) with two great videos. Embedded below.

Combining a ski jump with base jumping off the 39th floor of a tower block. Bizzare!

And a safe way to ice-climb by using 4 ice-axes to do it. Slow you mean! This is very tongue in cheek!

“The climber brings up some very good point, however they are on his crampons and no where else.”

lol

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I’m in the market for a good waterproof headcam, and this kayaking video on The Outsider made me want one even more. Video from Broadbandsports.com.

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The Adventure Blog links to a great post on Mountain World about how to get great expedition photos. I need to sit down and read this in full.

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-Robin

DUBLIN, IRELAND (Geared Up Blog) - I listen to Endurance Planet’s podcasts regularly but i have fallen behind recently because i lost my ipod about a month ago now. So I’m just catching up to date with all the new stories. The one that stuck out to me was t-shirt etiquette at races. Endurance planet got the story from a trail runners blog in the states who goes by the name of Bad Benand his opinion on what t-shirt should be worn on race day. I thought it was a pretty funny account of what he thinks are guidelines.

1. A shirt cannot be worn unless the wearer has participated in the event. There is an exception, though: “significant others” and volunteers are exempt.

2. Any race tee, less than a marathon distance, shouldn’t be worn to an ultramarathon event. This goes double for the wearing of sprint-tri shirts to Ironman and Half-Ironman events. It simply doesn’t represent a high enough “cool factor ” and sends a red flag regarding your rookiness. It’s like taking a knife to a gunfight. It’s probably best just to wear a generic name-brand athletic shirt, and go hide in a corner until race time.

3. When you are returning to a race in which you have previously finished, then wear the shirt from the first year you completed the race. Don’t short-change yourself by wearing the shirt from the year before. It doesn’t adequately display the feat of accomplishment or the consummate veteran status that you are due.

4. Never wear a race event shirt for the (same) race you are about to do. Only rookies do this. It displays a total lack of integrity and might put the bad-heebee-jeebee-mojo on you for the race. Wearing a T-shirt of the race, while currently running said race, is discouraged. It’s like being at work and constantly announcing “I’m at work”. Besides, you wont have the correct post-race shirt then…unless you like to wear sweaty, pitted-out clothes on a regular basis. If you do, then go back to the swamp, Gomer.

5. Never wear a shirt from a run that you did not finish. To wear a race shirt is to say “I finished it”. Exceptions: see guideline #1.

6. A DNF’er may wear a race shirt if… the letters DNF are boldly written on the shirt in question (using a fat Sharpie or a Marks-A-Lot).

7. During a race, the wearing of shirt from a previously completed year is acceptable. Wear the oldest T-shirt you have from that race (see guideline #3). This is probably a good practice because you now have no excuse to drop out since you’ve done it before.

8. If possible, runners should buy significant others T-shirts which can be worn without regard to running the race. (see guide #1). Keep in mind, they support your “running Jones” more than you think. They also have ways of punishing you that you can’t even imagine. Or maybe you can.

9. Volunteers have full T-shirt rights and all privileges pertaining thereto. So there. Remember, you can always volunteer for a race and get a shirt. I encourage this as your civil duty to be a member of the running community. Races don’t happen without volunteers, folks.

10. No souvenir shirts: therefore, friends or anyone else not associated with the race may not wear a race shirt. If your mom thinks that your Boston shirt is lovely, tell her to QUALIFY for Boston herself, & send in her application early for next year, so she can earn her own shirt. A downside to this: she still has plenty of time to write you out of her will between her training runs for the big race. Note that your mom CAN wear your finisher’s shirt under one of these 4 conditions- 1) you still live with your mother; 2) she funded your trip to the race; 3) she recently bailed you out of the slammer; or 4) All of the above. There is an exception to this guideline: (refer to # 1…If you are a “non-traditional family,” and your mom actually is your Significant Other).

11. Always wear the race shirt of your last race at the current race’s pre-race briefing. The more recent the race, the better. This is a good conversation starter. However, avoid the tendency to explain how that it was a training run for this, and this is just a training run for the next, etc. It just sounds like your rationalizing mediocre performances. Sometimes it’s best to live in the here and now.

12. Your t-shirt should be kept clean, but dried blood stains are okay, especially if it is a trail race or a particularly tough event. If you’re an ultrarunner, you can even leave in mud and grass stains, (and porcupine quills). Not washing-out the skunk scent is pushing the macho thing a bit too far, though.

13. Never wear a T-shirt that vastly out-classes the event you’re running. It’s like taking a gun to a knife fight. Or like unleashing an atomic bomb among aboriginal natives. You get the idea.

14. Also: never wear a blatantly prestigious T-shirt downtown or at the mall among non-running ilk. People will just think you have a big head, which you do. You’ll also get stupid questions, like, “how long was that marathon?” If it’s a shirt to a 50 or 100-miler, they’ll think it’s a shirt for a cycling event or just think you’re totally nuts, which (of course), you probably are.

15. Never, ever, borrow a race finisher’s shirt from another runner to wear to an event that you didn’t run. If you do, remember that in Dante’s Inferno, he wrote about a special Hell for characters such as you; right between Tax Collectors and Lawyers.

16. The Bad Ben Guideline: All children or grandchildren of mine can wear hand-me-down race finisher’s shirts for races that I’ve run in. When they are asked, “did you run in that 100-mile trail race?” They can proudly respond, “no, but my daddy (or grandad) did.” If your progeny has put-up with you being an ultrarunner, they have said rights too. If you have completed an Ironman, your kids also have the same rights. They’ve put up with a lot of crap (or outright neglect) over the years, and deserve to wear them.
Sponsors_Shirt
17. The Bryner Guideline: Never wear a shirt that has more sponsors listed on it than people that ran in the event. (Are you listening, race directors?) A shirt with too many sponsorship logos on it is just plain ugly. If you’re a race director, and have scored that many sponsors, how about sharing the wealth? Just give me a call at 555-6565, and ask for “Bad Ben.” By the way, you can let ANYONE wear this ugly shirt; non-finishers and distant relatives, alike. If you respect your friends, kids, spouse or mother, though, you won’t let any of them wear it. It would serve well as bedding in your kid’s gerbil cage.

18. Never wear a shirt that has any sponsors on it that you don’t agree with. For instance, if you’re a Vegan, you shouldn’t wear a shirt that proudly advertises “Omaha Steaks” on it. If you wear this shirt, the “Karma Gremlins” will catch-up with you . I swear that’s why I fell and broke my nose in my last 50-mile trail run, or why I had plantar fascitis for most of ‘99. I never should have ran in the 1998 “Fantastic 4-Miler.” Why would they enlist a sponsor from an North Korean land-mine manufacturer, anyway?

19. The Spencer Guideline: If an event is cancelled at the last minute, but the event shirts were already given out, you can’t wear the shirt unless you actually ran the race on that day. This means you will have to run your own unsupported event, through snow storms, hurricanes, or whatever lame excuse the Race Organizers came up with for cancelling said event. If you still want to wear the shirt, you have to mark it with a sharpie, “I didn’t run this lousy event, and I’m all the better for it, thank you,” across the front of it.

20. This next one is a big one, and has something to do with the need for more good taste and asthetics in this sometimes ugly world. Never wear a shirt that is so old, thin, and threadbare that you can see the color of your nipples or chest hair through it. This seems to be just a “guy thing,” especially and old-codger-runner-guy thing. Here’s the test guys: if you’re too scared to machine-wash your 1978 Tab Ten-Miler shirt for fear of it wafting down the drain as meer subatomic particles, then it’s probably too transparent to wear in public. If you can (still) remember your great performance at that particular day and you want to save it for posterity, PLEASE have it framed so that you can keep it on the wall of your den or your “I love me” room, and (at least) out of public view. Better yet, have it sewn into a quilt. You can then sit on your couch and read back-copies of Runner’s World, cuddled up with your “runner’s binky,” with a glass of warm milk.

21. By the way, if you don’t know what terms like DNF, volunteer, or Significant Other are, then you shouldn’t wear any race shirt until you know what they mean, and you shouldn’t have any meaningful relationships, either. You should probably become a hermit and/or New Age “Tantric” runner, sitting at home in the lotus position performing virtual marathons in your mind, while sniffing used GU packets, incense, and patchouli.

-Eoinod-