ESG Results!

How many gold medals can one person possible want? Apparently 5 is enough, because that is what Eileen won in a fabulous performance over the weekend at the Empire State Games snowshoe races. Her sprint races on Saturday, over a track that was similar to snowshoeing on quicksand, were all quite competitive, but Eileen prevailed in all four of them (100m, 200m, 400m and 1500m). She came back on Sunday to take another gold medal in the cross-country 5kish race (long course, more like 3.35 miles).

Lou and I battled it out in the 1500m race with 5 other guys in our age group and the race ended up with me earning the bronze and Lou finishing fourth. Overall in the masters groups (ages 30+) I was fourth and Lou fifth out of 13 competitors.

The cross-country race is in a beautiful setting at Mt. Van Hoevenburg just outside of Lake Placid. I managed to grab the silver medal and Lou ran well, with 4-6 places finishing within 9 seconds of each other!

We couldn't have raced so well without the marvelous support crew of Mike, Jan and Joanne. A big thanks to all three of you!

More photos to be posted soon!

How to Win an ESG medal?

ESG (Empire State Games)-are held annually in the Lake Placid and Saranac Lakes region of New York in mid-to-late February. Competition is held in many events, but so far Sal's has stuck with snowshoe racing. In the future the executive committee may make us try bobsledding or the luge, but so far we have been able to avoid such extreme sports. No, we just strap $200 oversized shoes to our $70 running shoes and enjoy all that wilderness has to offer.
It wasn't until my third year of attending the games, and Jan's second, that we won a medal. We were happy, shocked and proud of ourselves. This year, though, with the state instituting a $40 entry fee (used to be free) and a convoluted on-line entry form, registration has dropped by about 50%.
Without further ado, here are secret race strategies:
1. Pick an age group that has no one else entered, or no more than three so you are assured a podium position.
2. Snowshoes are large, the track is small, is it really your fault the shoes collided and the person in front went down?
3. The woods are deep in the 5k xc race, a little elbow here and there may send a competitor flying off course and no one will be the wiser.
4. Wear racing flats to save weight. Better yet, just strap your bare foot into the snowshoe, a little frostbite won't kill you.
5. If your wife is injured and can't race (Jan), or has too much common sense for this nonsense (Joanne), position them around the track. They can throw snowballs at your competition and yell mean things, like, "my husband has more snotcicles than you!".
6. Don't name yourself the Flower City Friendlies. This is not an intimidating sounding group of snowshoers from western New York.

Other Empire State Game tips:
1.The vaseline you bathe in to stay warm in the 5 degree weather should be removed before going out to dinner after the race.
2. Those silly hats given out to participants may be okay in the frozen tundra of Lake Placid, but really are quite ridiculous to wear around Rochester. Ah, I'm so old what difference does it make, I'm wearing mine everywhere.
3."80 percent of success is just showing up" — Woody Allen

Snow Cheap Racing

Per usual I arrived early to Cobb's Hill and snowshoed the course before the race began. It's a great way to become familiar with the course, which changes for each race, as well as get in more miles on my snowshoes. The Snow Cheap series is every other Wednesday, with races beginning at 6:30pm, so headlamps are required for each racer. People choose to enter as a trail runner or snowshoe runner.

There are methods to making your race more successful. The following are a few things NOT to do.
1. While on the course alone and going down a ridiculously steep, thirty yard, slightly snow-covered ice hill, don't go slow. Just let it rip and hope to hang on or slide down on your butt like you are riding a sled. There is no in-between. Somehow I never fully learn this lesson, or, more likely, I'm scared.
I was frantically grabbing branches, trying to maintain control, not able to dig in with the snowshoes and going faster and faster. I finally got hold of a large branch, which promptly came loose and was, in fact, about 6-8 feet long! When I hit the bottom of the slope my momentum carried me towards Monroe Avenue, which had normal traffic and runners on it. As I was screaming FUUUUUUUDDDDDGGGGGEEEE!, except it wasn't really Fudge, several onlookers looked petrified. Here was a madman, dressed all in black thrusting a large branch back and forth, screaming at the top of his lungs. Do not try this at home.
2. As you finish the warmup run ("shoe") don't take off your hat and shake it, since the headlamp is on there and may accidentally hit the pavement and break, with 8 minutes to go before the race!
Frantically I put it together, only for the lamp to fall apart at the 1 minute to go announcement. A kind soul assisted, but with 20 seconds go we couldn't make my lamp work. I ran to the YellowJacket trailer and Boots came through with one of their lamps. Of course this will forever be held against me and I will be the butt of their jokes. I joined the back of the pack as the horn sounded the start.
3. Beginning one of these races in the back is not good strategy if you are trying to be competitive in your age group. The line gets long quickly and with lots of single track through woods, making up ground becomes impossible. Snaking up hills you are at the mercy of the pace of the people ahead of you.

Despite my troubles these races can be fun and an interesting method to get a good workout midweek for low cost. 130 people can't be wrong and the view from the top of Cobb's Hill is always amazing.

Two races left in the series, but I will be in rest mode for the ESG and USSSA races.