The turnout for the Arctic Orienteering Club’s annual Mountain O event is usually low (45 people this year, only 8 on the long course).  I think this is because people don’t really understand the Mountain O.    Orienteering itself confuses a lot of people.  Mix in some mountains as well, and people figure it best to avoid the whole thing.    But in my opinion, the Mountain O is the most fun race of the summer.  It’s basically a big treasure hunt in the mountains.  Plus, it only costs $6.  You can’t beat that exercise/price ratio!  Anyone who loves to run or hike in the mountains should give it a try.  There are usually short and long course options, to fit your fitness, navigation, and motivation levels.

As I sat at home last night feeling battered, bruised and exhausted from this year’s event, I started thinking that this little-known event can hold its own when compared to some of the most infamous mountain running races in Alaska.

Crow Pass Crossing: 24 miles, 3890′ elevation gain,
Powerline Pass race: 13 miles, ~4000′ elevation gain,
Matanuska Peak Challenge: 14 miles, 9000′ elevation gain
2009 Mountain O Long Course: 16.8 miles (mostly off-trail), 5600′ elevation gain

More than anything, I was just trying to justify the fact that the race had left me pretty wasted.

The start and finish were at the Glen Alps trailhead of Chugach State Park.   You know its going to be a big day when, twenty-five minutes into the race, you are standing on top of Flattop and you’ve only covered 1/10th of the race distance and found two of the 19 controls.  I ran most of the way with Ian Moore, who is both a faster runner and a better navigator.  There were a bunch of controls early on that were “tricky” at best, and “misplaced” at worst.  One by one, we’d all get to the spot where the control should be, then wander until someone stumbled on it.  That allowed me to stay within sight of Ian while we completed most of the climbing.  Then we ran together for a couple hours after that.  Ian and I have both been battling ankle injuries recently, so we ran a bit gingerly on our feet in the rocky terrain, wondering how long our legs would hold.

After three hours of racing, we had traversed the Flattop Ridge to Ptarmigan Pass, descended into Rabbit Creek valley, started up the base of McHugh Ridge, then crossed back through Ptarmigan Pass to Powerline valley.  As Ian and I crossed Powerline valley, we took slightly different routes.  I was sure we’d reconnect in a matter of seconds, like we had many times before.  But all of a sudden, I was alone.  I never saw Ian again.  I suspected that he had ankle problems and dropped back.  But I also knew Ian’s skills as an orienteer, and it was completely possible that he was ahead of me and I simply couldn’t see him.   As I approached the finish at Glen Alps, it would not have surprised me a bit to see Ian standing there, already done.   But, as I suspected, he had experienced a shooting pain through his leg and then dialed it back after that.   My legs, for their part, were sore but feeling as good as I could have hoped for at the finish.

I completed the course in four hours.  Times on the long course varied up to six and a half hours, possibly even longer for those who didn’t finish.  A long day for everyone!  Congrats to Lindsey for being the only woman to complete the long course (3rd place overall) and Jen for winning the short course.

2009 Mountain Orienteering Results

All the participants deserve congratulations for surviving a challenging course that was made even more difficult by fog and tricky controls.  But it was still a lot of fun.  Come join us next year!