In this Issue:
• Quote for the Day
• Get the new 2008 AdventureCORPS gear!
• Celebrating 25 years of The 508
• New Classic Bike Division at The 508
• Furnace Creek 508 Application Available Next Week
• Are you a Rough Rider?
• Forum kaput; use the new blog to find crew and uch
• A Badwater Poem
• New 24 Hour Relay Ultrarunning Race in Philly
• The Best Lights and Reflective Gear
QUOTE FOR THE DAY
"Progress is born of agitation. It is agitation or stagnation." - Eugene V. Debs
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GET THE NEW 2008 ADVENTURECORPS GEAR
We are very excited about the new 2008 gear we've designed and which will be produced by our new garment supplier, Hincapie Sports. All of the new AdventureCORPS gear may be ordered when registering for the Fall Death Valley Century and Double Century via Active.com on June 2, as well as when 508 applicants confirm their entry in the 2008 Furnace Creek 508 in early May. The gear may also be ordered by anybody else with an order form which is available on the website. All orders must be received by June 2 to insure delivery in October.
Check out, and order, our new Death Valley jersey, Rough Riders jersey, Furnace Creek 508 jersey, Furnace Creek 508 vest, and AdventureCORPS arm warmers here:
http://www.adventurecorps.com/store/2008/index.html
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25TH ANNIVERSARY FURNACE CREEK 508 PLANS2008 marks the 25th anniversary of the event and we plan to do a lot to celebrate that, including:
- Having the race founder, John Marino, along with Michael Shermer, on hand.
- Having the original winners, Michael Secrest and Kitty Goursolle, on hand (maybe even competing if I can convince them to do so).
- Encourage former champions, from 1983 through 2007, to compete.
- Classic Rendezvous Division: See below.
- Publish a book about the history of the race instead of a Race Magazine.
- Scholarships for solo entrants 20 years old or younger: Riders 20 or younger will pay just $100 to enter, perhaps even receiving even more support if we can round up the sponsors.
- Extra special jersey, medal, and other commemoratives.
- More sponsors to support the race, the athletes, and the goodie bag (Do you own or work at a company which might benefit from involvement with The 508? Please get in touch!)
- Post-Race Event: We hope and plan to have a really nice event at the conclusion of the race on Monday morning which many, it not most, of the racers and crews will attend. If you have any ideas, or contacts in the 29 Palms area, let me know! More about The 508:
http://www.the508.com
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NEW 508 DIVISION FOR CLASSIC, or CLASSIC STYLE, BIKES!New for 2008 and beyond, The 508 will feature the Classic Rendezvous Division. The requirements to enter this division - which will be a sub-category of ANY 508 division, whether solo, tandem, or 2x / 4x relay, will be to race on technology from 1983 or older. Specifically, this means:
- The frame and fork must be lugged steel (but built in ANY year, including brand new).
- No more than six cogs on the rear wheel.
- 32 or more spokes per wheel.
- Friction shifting on the down-tube (or bar-cons).
- Toe clips and straps.
Just to be clear, the frame and parts don't have to actually be 25 or more years old - just the technology has to be 1983 or older. Of course "style points" will be awarded to those whose entire bike, other than the obvious - tyres, cables, chain, brake pads, etc - are from 1983 or older!
This new division is supported and endorsed by Classic Rendezvous, a website and email group dedicated to celebrating classic bicycles and history. More info here:
http://www.classicrendezvous.com/
Photo above: 1983 FC508 (AKA John Marino Open) champions Michael Secrest and Kitty Goursolle.
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FURNACE CREEK 508 2008 ENTRY PLANS
The 25th Anniversary Furnace Creek 508 will be held the first weekend of October: October 4-6, 2008. All the info about how applications will be handled is now on the website.
Although the application is a little more detailed, and we are using a selection process to determine the race field, this probably won't change things too much for most applicants. In 2008 the vast majority of applicants will get in.
Unfortunately, in 2007 we also had about 30 soloists and a few teams withdraw from the field in the few weeks before the race. That was very disappointing and frustrating. ("Waiting lists" don't work for this race - anyone who got in via a waiting list wouldn't be able to get hotel rooms at the start or finish and probably wouldn't really be ready in terms of training or crew organization.)
We want people who get in the race to take it seriously and therefore train, prepare, and organize their crew with a high level of dedication. The bottom line is that we really want as many as 100 soloists and 40 teams, more or less, on the starting line of the race, but we also want that field to be comprised of people who are likely to safely and fairly finish the race.
We are NOT requiring people to "qualify" to enter, nor do we want to turn away, or turn off, any legitimate, enthusiastic would-be 508 racers. If you hope to compete in The 508 this year, PLEASE apply! Info here:
http://www.the508.com/entry/index.html
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ARE YOU A ROUGH RIDER?Are you a Rough Rider? If you ride your bike in search of an epic experience, no matter how you define "epic," then you are a Rough Rider! And certainly ever AdventureCORPS cycling event veteran is a Rough Rider by definition! The new Rough Riders blog is still a work in progress, but is starting to take shape. Be sure to let us know about your Rough Riding experiences and insights. And if you've got a blog about your own epic Rough Riding lifestyle, send us the link! More info:
http://www.xo-1.org/
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BULLETIN BOARD IS GONE: USE THE NEW BLOG INSTEAD
We apologize for the inconvenience, but the previous AdventureCORPS Forum / Bulletin Board is now history and has been replaced by a blog to serve the same purpose. (You're here on it now!) We apologize to those who had posts on the Forum - you will have to place your posts on the new blog instead.
If you would like to work on a support crew at Badwater or The 508, or are looking for teammates for a 508 relay team, please use our new blog and post your comments in the relevant section. In the near future we will add other comment categories to the blog, such as to find carpools or roommates for our events, to discuss training and equipment, and such. Here's the link:
http://adventurecorpsblog.blogspot.com/
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A BADWATER POEM
Courtesy of Bill Andrews, 56, of Reno, NV, a 2008 Badwater Ultramarathon entrant:
This Thing Called Badwater
As I look over yonder,
And, my mind starts to wander,
It's hard not to ponder,
This thing called Badwater.
The desert foreboder,
A fruitless endeavor?
My heart beats of thunder,
Will I cry for my mother?
This thing called Badwater,
Might just do me under,
But, may I always remember,
The breadth of its wonder.
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NEW 24 HOUR RUNNING RELAY IN PHILLY
Those of you who have been reading this newsletter for a while will remember "Back On My Feet," an organization which we featured here in the December 26, 2007 edition. BOMF will host The 20in24 Relay Challenge, Philadelphia's first 24-hour relay race and ultra marathon, on July 19-20, 2008. The event is created for teams of five of any gender, with up to one alternate. Based upon the team registration level, each team member will run a minimum distance of 1 to 5 loops, or 8.4 miles to 33.4 miles respectively. Check out the event here:
http://www.20in24.com
And here's that video link again to the TV story which brought Back On My Feet to our attention. It's a Must-See:
http://abcnews.go.com/WN/PersonOfWeek/Story?id=4003180&page=1
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THE BEST SAFETY LIGHTING, REFLECTIVE GEAR, AND I.D. FOR CYCLING AND RUNNINGThe Firefly Supernova by RoadID.com is the brightest, smallest and most durable safety light of its kind. You'll be amazed that a light this powerful fits in a package this small. Attach the lightweight Supernova to your seat pack or bicycle frame for cycling or your waistband, jacket, shirt collar or hat for running and you'll alert motorists of your presence up to a mile away! The intensity of this safety light will blow your mind. Click this link to learn more and place your order:
http://www.roadid.com/
Get some good identification while you're at it!
Yours in sport,
Chris Kostman
Chief Adventure Officer and Race Director
Copyright 2008 AdventureCORPS, Inc. Copies of this Internet posting may be made and distributed in whole without further permission. Please forward to a friend.
