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There were nine special tests in this race, held at Fort Yargo State Park, about an hour northeast of Atlanta. The most grueling of which, making its debut here, was "The Meat Grinder," a large wooden cable spool, strung between trees over 6' in the air. The spool moves freely which makes the challenge of tossing all team members over the top of it unpredictable.

"Rules require a team member be on each side of the apparatus, one to boost and one to spot on the other side, to avoid pile driving somebody's head in the ground...

Rules require a team member be on each side of the apparatus, one to boost and one to spot on the other side, to avoid pile driving somebody's head in the ground.

In this race, 238 teams took to the trail. The Hi-Tec crew's efficiency, organization, and pleasantness was impressive, due in no small part to producer Adam Fell. Fell said park management actually blazed virgin trails just for this event, which only added to the element of the unknown since not even locals had ridden the route.

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Team Balance Bar, with its win here today in 3:26:37, has now secured two out of three Coed Team Championships in this 1999 race series. The team: Louisa Jenkins, 33, the top American female finisher in 1997 Tour de France; Corky Ewing, 42, two-time Hawaii Ironman finisher; and, Bob Schulz, 37, NORBA National champion in 1992, held the lead after the run, slipped to 6th after the kayak event, but rallied to take the title.

After 4th place finishes in both Phoenix and Miami, coed team Hi-Tec produced its best finish in the series, arriving in 2nd in 3:27:50. This team, composed of Paul Romero, 29, Karen Lundgren, 33, and Roger Williams, 26, represent the art and irony of cross-training as they all share extensive and expert ski backgrounds. In sixth after the run, and third after kayaking, the California-based crew remained focused and pulled ahead to claim the silver medal.

Third place coed team finisher BMC Software threatened to take the title throughout the run and kayak segments, arriving 2nd and 1st respectively, but lost time in the special test of orienteering which preceded the bike ride. Julie Dauphine, 32, who finished 11th in the British Columbia Eco Challenge, Mac Brown, 34, and Joshua Allen, 25, completed the course in 3:31:12.

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What are the Boodle Dogs? They are the kickass men's team out of boll weevil country down in Enterprise, Alabama. Andrew Reiter, Scott Harrington, and Jon Shaffner won the men's division in 3:54:08.

The second place men's award, in 3:56:17, went to one of two very impressive teenaged teams from the local area's Oconee High School. The Bushwackers: J.R. Black, 18, Jeff Raymond, 19, and Justin Marable, 18 all race cross country. Black and Raymond were state champions this year and though this was their first adventure race, they felt they did so well due to their rigorous training work in high school cross country.

Team O.R.K.A., Dustin Shinholser, 17, who took 4th in the mile in the Georgia state championships this year, Daniel Windham, 17, and Andrew Krisel, 17, an Eagle Scout, all attend Oconee High School and are accomplished cross country runners as well. These guys had quite a head of steam going until one member became ill during the bike race.

The local coed team winners, in 4:27:55, happened to be the 1st place Masters Division champs. Teem Geez, composed of David Wallace, Betsy Frick, and Mike Smith, chose this as their maiden adventure race. Wallace, the oldest at 46, developed legs cramps during the bike race, but in true team fashion, Frick, (his wife), and Smith pushed him up hills in order to persevere. Wallace said Frick's experience as an employee of the U.S. Geological Survey helped them breeze through the orienteering test. And all have a great deal of kayaking experience.

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The benefit of adventure racing extends beyond the obvious of physical limitations, and provides an environment to bring out the best of human group dynamics, within teams and within each competitor.

— Jane Black, MountainZone.com Correspondent