Stage 6-7 Bike the Notch and Split Team O

After pancakes at TA 5, the teams finally climbed to the infamous Smugglers’ Notch. The reward was bombing down the backside to the Ranch Brook orienteering section.

The Ranch Brook Team O-Challenge had special directions. The course featured three separate orienteering sections. The teams had the option of splitting their team as they saw fit to complete the sections. The fastest teams each took an individual section and met back at the transition. These teams are in contentions for the Best O-Team Award. Others kept part of the team together to find at least one CP in each section.

Such was the case with And Loving It (a reference to Get Smart). Two teammates stuck together and found a point in two sections. The third teammate was on his own for his section and took a lot longer to get back due to a missed turn. Therein lies the rub of this unique challenge. Without the team working together, mistakes can be made. A racer is on their own. The third teammate from And Loving It eventually realized his mistake, easy to do after 20 plus hours of racing, and found the TA.

The result was more heartbreaking for Adventure Enablers/Enabled Tracking. Two of the teammates had finished their sections, were waiting at the TA, and watching the clock. Teams had to leave the TA by 7am to continue on the full course. At 7:02 am, their teammate returned. He had lost the passport used to punch the CPs. He spent some time looking for it, but by the time he made it back, the team was relegated to the short course. In a true display of a strong and experienced team, they were supportive of their teammate. They regrouped and rode back over the Notch to the finish.