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Think your mom is tough on you? Master of the Mountains September 14, 2013
32 photos of the race in all four stages -- 6-mile mountain run, 3-mile lake paddle, 20-mile bike race, and timed 6-stage shotgun course -- with an effort at storytelling by showing some of the same contestants in various stages of the race. Click any image to see it enlarged.
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Competitor's meeting the night before the race.
The first group to leave the lake behind them included Sugarite State Park Superintendent Robert McIvor (10), John Winkley of Aztec (13), and Santiago Gamboa of Roswell (6).
Elise Bow (1) of Golden, Colorado, by way of Vermejo Park Ranch, led the next bunch close on the heels of the leaders. Elise trailed her cousin, Cole Schindler of Seattle (12), through a high-mountain meadow four miles into the running race, and as they both set out on the kayak leg. Elise stopped them both along the west shore when she shouted ahead, "Cole! Look, a beaver!" And there it was. Competitors also noted bears and wild turkey along the route.
John Winkley trailed until the kayak leg of the race when his long red kayak passed The Jorts Crew Team (Jorts = jean shorts: they all wore cut-offs!) and Santiago Gamboa. He held the lead the rest of the morning, but just barely!
Santiago Gamboa charged hard all morning; I could tell he was having a ball. He was in the lead in my first pictures (above), and held that lead all the way through the grueling six-mile mountain run, barely holding off Lucio Plancarte of the Jorts Crew as they came down the mountain (lower left). At the shotgun range, Santiago had the second best performance of the day. His total race time of 2 hours 45 minutes missed winning the coveted winner-take-all Master of the Mountain prize by just 2 minutes! I'm glad he'll be back next year.
Raton's Ted Kamp finished fourth, six minutes behind Cole:
Next finisher after Ted was Robert McIvor, who looked strong all morning:
Below are two Jorts Crew relay team members -- Lucio Plancarte running and Sepp Fuierer paddling across Lake Maloya -- and then Team Paradox Beer Company's Dave Grove taking the big plunge.
Race director Jared Chatterley accepted well-earned applause from the gathered crowd at the awards ceremony in downtown Raton Saturday afternoon. Complete results are posted at the race website. Next year's contest is set for September 13, 2014. See more of Tim's 2013 race coverage in The Chronicle-News.
After the awards, Santiago Gamboa -- who finished the long grueling race within sight the winner -- congratulated Master of the Mountain John Winkley.
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