Saturday Bob and I had a good day in the woods practicing some land navigation.  Also, since we anticipate that during the race we will bump into the occasional vending machine, we kicked off the training with ring dings and an energy drink.  On a separate note, we got the 2nd Captains communication with updated information on the race.  You can click HERE to read it.

We’re getting close now and the pressure is on.  Yesterday Bob and I did some rope work in the warehouse of Simplygreen, our headline sponsor.  They have been awesome to us and we can’t thank them enough.  Today we are off for some navigation training in the woods.

Another local company helping out.  Located in North Hampton, Cocoon, Inc., was founded over 30 years ago to provide equipment protection solutions for clients around the world. Today, Cocoon partners with industry leaders in technology and manufacturing to design, develop, produce and install solutions in three separate, but related, categories: Protective Cover Systems, Hangars, and Mothballing and Corrosion Free Parts Storage. 

 ”Our goal is to protect mission-critical assets from the devastating effects of the environment. No matter what kind of elements you and your equipment are exposed to, you need a solution that’s built right. Because Mother Nature doesn’t allow for compromise.”

Check out their link HERE

Bitter End Trading is a privately owned Limited Liability Corporation specializing in asset and investment recovery. They sell new and used surplus products and instrumentation from brands such as Rosemount, Micromotion, Allen Bradley, Ashcroft, Honeywell and more…With new inventory added daily and affordable prices, Bitter End Trading is your one stop shop for industrial supplies.  Check them out their website at www.bitterendtrading.com or see the products they are selling on e-bay at http://stores.ebay.com/Bitter-End-Trading-Asset-Recovery.

Thanks for checking them out.

I want to thank the Portsmouth Police Ranking Officers Association for making a corporate sponsor donation to our efforts.  The ranking officers of the Portsmouth Police Department lead the personnel throughout the day-to-day operations of the agency and make sure the services we provide to you are superb.

Here is a promo video from Northern Outdoors who is the host for this years race.  One of the sections of the race includes white water rafting.  The good news is that if I pee my pants out of fear, I don’t think anyone will notice.

This past Saturday Bob and I decided to load up our packs with weight and hike out some mileage.  Fortunately for me I live in an area where there are a lot of trail options so we decided to leave the house around 6am and see what we could get in.  Unfortunately for Bob, right before the end of his shift the night before, a drunk driver, who had a warrant for his arrest, decided to crash his car.  That translated into a lot of paperwork and him not getting home until 2:30 in the morning.  For Bob this provided a training opportunity of doing the trek with two hours of sleep under his belt.

When it was all said and done we were able to tick out over 12 miles in just over 4 hours and provided us a snapshot of some of the challenges ahead.  In 2010 the trekking component of the race was approximately 40 miles and certainly 12 miles is only a fraction of that.  We both realized that we need to do more of this type of training to get the mileage on our feet and legs with heavy packs in order to condition our bodies.  While not debilitating, we both reported how the hike affected our feet.  The strength and conditioning of your feet is very important in these types of events and just for reference, noted adventure racer Ian Adamson went from a size 9 shoe to a size 11 in the course of 10 years of adventure racing.  This is mostly due to how his feet developed over time to adapt to the extremes of adventure racing.

I am pleased to report that Bob and I had good synergy during the time on the trail and we are already planning on more long distance training with heavy loads to condition our bodies and to test out some of the other aspects of these races such as food and hydration management.

Oh, and surprisingly, neither of us brought any ticks home with us.

We want to thank our newest contributor, New England Weathervane Shop, which is located in Seabrook New Hampshire.

New England Weathervane Shop specializes in Handcrafted Copper Weathervanes. Each one is crafted by hand the old fashioned way: first hammered into the molds, then hand trimmed and soldered. Each vane is constructed to last using 100% pure copper. The vane ages to a fine patina color, or if you prefer it shiny, you can have it finished in 23K Gold Leaf.

New England Weathervane Shop is privileged to be the stewards of the largest collection of working original antique weathervane molds and bronze patterns in the country. These molds and patterns are a combined collection from E.G.Washburne, New England Weathervane & Lantern Co., and Golden Eagle Coppersmiths. The majority of these molds and patterns are original E.G. Washburnes and date back to 1853.

I’ve actually been over to the shop and seen the craftsmanship and the extensive collection they offer…it is quite impressive and the quality of the final product is superb.  Click HERE to visit their website.

It’s hard to believe that it wasn’t that long ago we were training in the snow.  While Bob and I pack away the snow gear I though I’d share a video of our last winter training session, just click HERE

We received our first Captains Communication from the race director.  This is the first in a series of updates about the race to keep us updated on what we are going to face in June.  If you are interested in reading it just click on this link: http://www.untamedne.com/Media/2012_1.pdf  Meanwhile, while Bob was sunning himself in 89 degree Florida I headed up to the Rangeley Lakes region of Maine and did, what I’m claiming is, the first winter ascent of Bald Mountain on mountain bike.  Well that may be a strong claim considering I only made it halfway up the snowmobile trail before I had to dismount and carry the bike the rest of the way.  The good news is that I think I found a sweet spot for carrying my bike with the frame across the top of my pack with one hand on the seat post and the other on the handlebar stem. This will come in handy during the race when there will no doubt a “hike-a-bike” section or two.  The trip down was fast and sweet, although I wish I mounted my camera to my helmet to get you some cool video…maybe I’ll try that on my next excursion.  Bob continues with his crossfit workouts and is up to 50 pounds in his training pack.  He’s been working out with some guys from work before his shift and as of last week made one of them puke during a particularly strenuous session.  I hope he doesn’t do that to me during the race….I need to stay hydrated.  Well thanks for keeping up with our posts and feel free to share with your friends.