MORE STORIES FROM INSIDE ADVENTURE RACING

Stories, reviews and race reports written by our contributing authors who are adventure racers themselves. Read on to hear from some of the toughest athletes in sport.

ADVENTURE RACING INSIDER CONTRIBUTING AUTHORS

JS O’Connor

Anna Stewart

Heather Dash Steeves

Gearjunkie.com’s Adventure Racing Recommendations, 15 Years on
JS O'Connor JS O'Connor

Gearjunkie.com’s Adventure Racing Recommendations, 15 Years on

In 2010, Gearjunkie.com founder and editor, Stephen Regenold published an article entitled, “ An Open Letter To: Adventure Race Directors.” In it, he describes his experiences as an avid racer and journalist with a strong desire to grow the sport and makes a call to race directors for improvements. Looking back at his list of 22 suggestions 15 years on I wanted to take a moment to see how we, the adventure racing community, have responded. We’re all trying to grow the sport and there are some really great suggestions in this list. What have we done well? What still needs improvement?

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The Hard Fall 2024: Race Report by Anna Stewart
Anna Stewart Anna Stewart

The Hard Fall 2024: Race Report by Anna Stewart

You know it's going to be a fun time when a race director decides you need an extra 3 hours tacked on to a 24-hour sprint race. The Hard Fall, directed by GMARA out of West Dover, Vermont, absolutely did not disappoint.

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Race Report: The 2024 Maine Summer Adventure Race 8 Hour
Heather Dash Steeves Heather Dash Steeves

Race Report: The 2024 Maine Summer Adventure Race 8 Hour

It was scary to say out loud, "we're trying to win the 8-hour race this year." We've raced for two years, but always at a very comfortable, casual pace, and without physically training much ahead of time. This year we wanted to win; I trained my running, Jessica trained her biking. In adventure racing, we'd never tried trying. This was new.

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Dispatches from Beyond the Mountains: 4 days of NORCHA
JS O'Connor JS O'Connor

Dispatches from Beyond the Mountains: 4 days of NORCHA

Imagine a rolling countryside covered in farms and olive trees, occasionally dotted by mountaintop chapels, medieval castles, Roman bridges and tiny villages tucked into the hillsides and valleys. Terras de Trás-os-Montes (the Lands Beyond the Mountains) seems to stretch on forever in all directions. Separated from the rest of Portugal by the Duoro River valley in the south and Spain in the north and east, this corner of the country offers adventure to all those who travel there. 

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How I Accidentally Became an Adventure Racer (and you can too)
JS O'Connor JS O'Connor

How I Accidentally Became an Adventure Racer (and you can too)

If you haven’t seen the Amazon original series, “Eco Challenge Fiji: The World’s Toughest Race,” do yourself a favor and binge it next weekend to get a feel for what it’s like to be an adventure racer.. If you’re still interested in getting into the game after that, read on. Like many adventure racers, I saw Mark Burnett’s Eco Challenge in the 1990s and was enthralled and inspired by athletes who could cover epic distances over unthinkable times. That series launched a wave of interest into adventure racing that has been renewed thanks to the high production value reboot with outdoor personality Bear Grylls. I started adventure racing almost by mistake in 2016 and I have really come to love the sport and the community. I’m in better shape now at 38 than I have ever been in my life, and I owe it all to adventure racing.

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