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