Race Overview

Okay....I lied below. I have no idea if TMMAR is 'still going strong' but I am going to assume they are still going strong. I know they made it through CP 8. Here is a recap of the race (still going on) as provided by USARA:


Course Description Friday 11:07 PM
As requested by a race follower in Philadelphia (some may know him as Dr. Evil), here is a brief overview of the race:
The teams began with a quick two-mile prologue before setting off on the water for a 15-mile paddle leg. All teams were in canoes; third seats were expressly prohibited (including beach balls).

Following the paddle, teams trekked from checkpoint 3 to 4, where they picked up their bikes and headed on an extended mountain bike leg, grabbing checkpoints 5, 6, and 7 before reaching checkpoint 8 and the first major orienteering section.

Racers dropped their bikes at checkpoint 8 and embarked on a seven-mile foot loop, where they could get checkpoints 9, 10, 11, and 12 in any order. Checkpoint 13 was located mere feet from checkpoint 8, and after they punched in there, they picked up their bikes again for a short ride to checkpoint 14.

Teams followed another orienteering loop, estimated at 8 miles, to checkpoints 15-17 (again, in whatever order they chose). At 18, they picked up their bikes and headed off on their final leg, a bike-o section whereby teams could get 19-23 in any order, then 24, then 25-28 in any order, and finally 29 before coasting into the finish at the Blue Ridge Mountain Arts Center on Main Street in downtown Blue Ridge.

Because the race was a ROGAINE format, several checkpoints were optional and a number of teams elected to short-course themselves after checkpoint 13, biking directly back to the finish. It's unclear to us at race central whether this will result in a DNF or an official finish with fewer points.