Primal Quest
reporting presented by Inov-8

The question of who will win the battle for third place at Primal Quest Montana may have been decided last night on the orienteering course above Storm Castle. Visiting the O-course control points is not mandatory. Instead, teams who visit the points earn time bonuses. Some control points are worth one hour. Others are worth two. Teams can earn up to 12 hours of bonus time, to be subtracted from their overall finish time, by spending some time on the O-course.

So here's what happened with Bones (that's them in the photo) and DART/nuun. Both teams told me when they returned from the orienteering course that Bones earned more bonus time up there than DART/nuun. Two hours more.

So on paper at least, Bones now has a full two hour lead over DART/nuun. Even if DART/nuun turns on the afterburners and beats Bones to the finish line, DART/nuun would have to come in at least two full hours ahead of Bones to steal third place. I'm not sure DART/nuun has it in them to pull that far ahead.

DART/nuun team members Cyril Jay-Rayon, Mari Chandler, Aaron Rinn and Aaron Matzke all seemed in fair shape when I saw them in transition. Bones team members Roy Mallone, Jason Quinn, and Walter Brumniach all looked well, too. Ann Hall was clearly suffering with foot issues, but her spirits were undeniably high. She joked and giggled through much of the transition. She's suffering, but she's far from beaten.

Will DART/nuun try to make up those two hours? I bet they will try. For me, this has been the most interesting battle to watch at PQ Montana. Great work, teams!

Labels: aaron matzke, aaron rinn, ann hall, bones, cyril jay-rayon, Dart, jason quinn, mari chandler, nuun, orienteering, roy mallone, storm castle, walter brumniach

At times like this, when there's an obvious battle for third place, I like to refer to a baseball skit performed long ago by comedians Abbott and Costello. It's called, "Who's on First." Worth a read considering we're all wondering who's gonna take third place when Primal Quest wraps up over the next few days.

Teams Bones and DART/nuun have basically traveled together for the past two days. When not literally together, they've been less than 20 minutes apart. The teams are together right now, up above Storm Castle, hammering out an orienteering course that could earn them up to 12 bonus hours when they cross the finish line.

As the athletes punished themselves in the peaks above us, I chatted with support crew member Ryan Flemming of DART/nuun, who said he thinks his team will pull ahead in the end. "DART and Bones both have amazing athletes," Flemming said. "But I think DART is just a little bit stronger. I think we'll beat Bones."

Right next door in the Bones camp, support crew were a little concerned about team member Ann Hall, whose body understandably is deteriorating under the stress of overuse. But the Bones crew was confident that DART/nuun will cross the finish line fourth, not third. Third is Bones' place.

I'd kinda like to see a sprint to the finish, wouldn't you? Oh, wait, they bike to the finish. They'll be coming in hot off the upper elevations of Big Sky Resort's grassy ski slopes. Maybe we'll get to witness a little jostling. Bring it on!

Labels: abbott and costello, adventure race, bones, Dart, montana, nuun, orienteering, primal quest, who's on first

Dave Boyd, captain of team MOAT, arrives at Storm Castle and signs in for TA Boss Vernon Winter. Dave came back a few minutes later to ask Vernon some specific questions about the orienteering section of the course. Seems there are no penalties for SKIPPING the orienteering course! Instead, there are time bonuses, kinda like that extra credit work you used to to in school right before report card time. There are up to 12 hours of bonus time available to teams who hit all the orienteering control points. I think Dave and his MOAT teammates may take a bold strategy move and opt out of the O-course. I expect we'll see how that decision affects the team's final placement in a couple of days.

Labels: adventure race, dave boyd, Gallatin River, moat, montana, orienteering, primal quest, storm castle, vernon winter