As near as can be scientifically measured and determined, at exactly 10:00 a.m. RMT at a desolate spot in the Laramie Range and somewhat arbitrarily deemed to lie between Cheyenne and Laramie, well over 128 teams (of one) took off at the outset of the 2008 Laramie Daze One Man Relay, making it the largest relay start in US orienteering history.
4 loops of deceptively difficult and incredibly challenging orienteering were prepared and waiting for the relay teams, no doubt reflecting valient, extensive efforts by the massive course setting/vetting crew.
And, somewhat amazingly, all teams finished for a 0% DNF rate--although some teams took a little longer than others. Perhaps they missed the shortcuts.
Expressed in more positive terms, there was a 100% completion rate, which compares well with almost anything you can possibly imagine!
Anecdotally, it appears that the teams that had Coal Creek Coffee coffee fueling their racing legs had some measurable advantage. But no matter. Almost all is fair in relays and coffee.
Top 25 results (the race was about 6.2 kms long, or something like that), guaranteed to be approximately accurate, but not any more accurate than that:
1. Fredrik Eliasson 34:59
2. Eric Bone 35:49
3. Leif Anderson 36:58
4. Boris Granovski 37:27
5. John Goodwin 37:58
6. Carl Underwood 42:01
7. Gabe Svobodny 42:10
8. Tom Tex Carr 42:27
9. Francois Leonard 42:31
10. Hillary Saeger 42:35
11. Craig Murray 42:36
12. Mark Everett 44:33
13. Alex Bora 44:55
14. Steve Gregg 45:24
15. John Beard 45:43
16. Mattias Eliasson 45:49
17. Samantha Saeger 45:59
18. Andy Strat 46:45
19. Rex Winterbottom 47:08
20. John H. Williams 47:45
20: Ross Burnett 47:45
22. Jeff Saeger 48:26
23. Malcom Wyatt-Maier 48:29
24. Charlie Shahbazian 48:30
25. Holly Kuestner 49.04
All in all, it was fairly scandalous race, and no doubt the tales will grow as they are recounted through the years.
Thanks for the excellent recap, swampfox. Any results from the champs?
My guess is that they will have to wait until the webmaster gets home Sunday night or Monday, unless J-J can upload them to a temporary page in the meantime. This is just a guess, though.
Not really sure what coordination might have been done between J-J (Results/Finish Chief) and Brooke (webmistress for this US Champs). Keep looking though, and I'm sure they will appear.
Despite my crappy internet connection this week, Day 1 results have just been posted:
link
Many thanks to J-J for compiling the results so quickly.