Topo Adventure Sports to Present Adventure Race Clinics in Cincinnati

Greg Yetter / 11.08.2007

Topo Adventure Sports has put together a fantastic set of clinics for adventure sports athletes. The first clinic in the series is Intro to AR and will be held on Wednesday August 22, 2007 from 1930 to 2100 (7:30pm to 9:00pm). The clinic is being hosted by Smitty’s Cyclery located at 6000 Wooster Rd, Cincinnati, Ohio. Topics to be covered during the clinic include the following. What is Adventure Racing? Topo Adventure Sports has a great description on their website, “Adventure racing is a sport in which teams must navigate a course of checkpoints using various non-motorized means. Races are usually held in wilderness settings and the traditional events include mountain biking, canoeing, and trekking.” Types of Races, areas of possible discussion could be stage race vs. continuous, supported vs. unsupported, urban vs. wilderness and of course 4 hour all the way to multi day expedition races. Disciplines, this section will deal with the skill sets needed to compete in an adventure race. Clothing & Equipment, this pretty much speaks for itself. And Building a Team rounds out the subjects to be discussed. Organizers request participants bring a chair to sit on.

The second clinic will deal with training/nutrition and will be held on Wednesday September 19, 2007 from 1930 to 2100 (7:30pm to 9:00pm). This clinic is hosted by Nature Outfitters located at 118 Main St, Milford, Ohio. Topics that will be covered during this clinic include Race Specific Training, Individual/Team Training and Nutrition for Training/Racing. Participants are asked to bring a chair.

The final clinic on the schedule is Intro to AR Navigation, it is being held on Sunday September 30th and will begin at 0930 (9:30am). Clinic location is Mt. Airy Forrest 5083 Colerain Ave, Cincinnati, Ohio. Just follow the orienteering signs to the check in. As Topo Adventure Sports says on its website, “Navigation is accomplished through the use of a compass and topographic maps and the route choice between checkpoints is usually not specified, meaning that teams are generally free choose their path from one checkpoint to another. Because of this navigational aspect, successful adventure racers aren\'t always the fastest and fittest teams, but the teams that minimize mistakes, navigate efficiently, and make good decisions out on the course.” This clinic is being held in conjunction with an Orienteering Cincinnati event so participants can put their new knowledge to the test. There is a small charge for utilizing the Orienteering Cincinnati course. Those wishing to attend are asked to bring their compass and hydration system. Be prepared to spend several hours outdoors.

Both Smitty’s Cyclery and Nature Outfitters will be offering a 10% discount on selected merchandise to clinic participants. For more information please check out Topo Adventure Sports website, www.topoadventuresports.org or email Mimi Ruwe at mruwe@topoadventuresports.org. For more information about Orienteering Cincinnati go to www.ocin.org.