REACH Hi-Liters' Route

770 points, 16.7 miles... but we were 10 minutes late. 645 points instead.

Here's the GPS tracklog:
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/114297
(The Garmin 405 just came out, so the online software is still a bit glitchy. The distance and tracklog are correct, but the elevation gain and pace-per-duration chart are not. I also forgot to turn off the stopwatch for a few minutes, so the time recorded is longer than actual.)

It'd been almost two years since the original REACH Hi-Liters teamed up, and it led to a rather successful event. Nick and I logged 16.7 miles, one mile longer than any previous Street Scramble I've done, including ones I've run solo. We had an efficient route, and we executed well. In general, we paced well. But... we just ran out of gas in the last 50 minutes. 1st place overall was in our grasp... but we missed it.

In route-planning, the only obvious skips were the NE-most (37, 41, 51). #33 and #36 were trap checkpoints, behind the highway and without good access. #56 was tempting but just too far out of the way, especially with that tiny out of bounds area. In fact, that out of bounds really impeded efficiency. We ended up getting #36 because the out of bounds forced us to a more northern route. #38 was going to be our bonus near the end if we had more time... and obviously we didn't. We cleared everything else, in two loops: a northern and a southern.

#11 was first, and we made sure to get out ahead to avoid crowds. Then over to #26, and then #25, #24, and #12. Basically, we were just laddering our way up the hill, from checkpoint to checkpoint. Team Mergeo Swiss Miss pulled ahead from us after #12, as I had to stop and stretch a bit. After #54 and #13, we caught ended up passing Swiss Miss at #23 as Nick was able to snag the answer super-quick!

Ran with Swiss Miss to #45 and then toward #22. I tricked Roger a bit by spying the answer to #22 from the street corner. He thought I saw the answer on the light pole on the corner, when I was actually looking right past the light pole and to the light post! We picked up 90 seconds on them here. We also cut some distance by running through the strip mall parking lot on the way to the freeway overpass.

While waiting for several lights to get to #55, Swiss Miss once again caught up, but headed north to #36. We wouldn't see them again. After snagging #55, we went across the street and ducked inside a medical building, found a water fountain, and downed some ClifShots.

After #21, we tried to find a way through to the west, but we didn't. The out of bounds forced us north, so we picked up #36, which was a bit tricky, as one hydrant was hiding behind the other! We hit #36 at the one hour mark, 5.3 miles in.

Then off into suburbia and picked up #44, #31, and #42. Some people sitting out on their back deck saw us and surmised that we must be doing a scavenger hunt thing. The downhill shady stretches of running were especially nice. Ran into Teriyaki Donut at #42.

#34 was the long leg, and we intermixed some running and walking. Probably could have used a bit more running here, but we didn't think that we'd be late yet. Saw Ambiguously Disgruntled right before #34. More downhill running to #53. We were approaching the two hour mark, so we were looking for water. Just past #53, there was a service station with a water spigot outside. We scooped up some water and more ClifShots. We had an hour to go before embarking on our second, but shorter loop. At two hours, we'd gone 10.6 miles.

Took a leisurely pace up to #32, waiting for our ClifShots to kick in. However, on the way to #16, we weren't feeling the extra jolt yet. #16 was a rough leg, and then we had problems at #52, as there was no apparent answer on the north side of the building. We ran all over the outside of the YMCA, before decided to run inside and ask. We did, and they told us the answer, but not after losing 2:25. We had similar issues with #46. From the map, it was obvious that it was the Costco, but there's wasn't a tent anywhere. We hesitated a lot, trying to determine whether we should head to the entrance without there being a tent, or look for tents elsewhere. Turns out, the answer was exactly where it was supposed to be, but without a tent there!

From the lost time, it was now certain that we were going to be late, but we were bonking, so it was hard to make up the time. At least it was downhill to #43, #28, and #15. And then flat to finish up with #27, #35, and #14. We finished 12:57 late, but we got 3 minutes back due to the lost time at the YMCA and Costco checkpoints.

The second loop was a tough strategy, as it was hard to just cut your losses and head back. Once we got to the YMCA, we needed to go all the way around.

Studying the map, a better option might have been cutting out 22-55-21-36, and adding 33 and maybe 38. Net loss is 60 or 90 points, but it saves at least a mile.

It's funny that three of the most experienced teams bungled away the overall win. We came in 10 minutes late. The Nerds missed a question and came in 2 minutes late. And Swiss Miss missed a question, too! Turns out that none of us get the win!

Still, it was a fun day and awesome weather! Thanks to everyone for putting on the event!