TEAMS FIND ADVENTURE : COMPETITION FEATURES BIKING, KAYAKING, MYSTERY.Byline: Bhavna Mistry Daily News Staff Writer Theresa Uhrig and her two teammates took a break from a strenuous physical competition Sunday to complete a mystery test during the Hi-Tech Adventure Races. The mystery test - assembling a bumper sticker bumper sticker n. A sticker bearing a printed message for display on a vehicle's bumper. bumper sticker n → Aufkleber m reading ``Hi-Tech'' - was one of several brain teasers that race officials put into the multi-event competition at Castaic Lake Castaic Lake is a lake on Castaic Creek formed by Castaic Dam, in northwestern Los Angeles County, California, near the town of Castaic. The 323,700 acre foot lake (399,000,000 m³) is the terminus of the West Branch of the California Aqueduct, though some comes from the 154 mi² Recreation Area. ``We're having a blast,'' said Uhrig, a little out of breath after just finishing a 12-mile bike course. ``This is really hard.'' Uhrig, a 29-year-old Brentwood resident who has competed in other sporting events and has been the first to finish the annual tower climb of the First Interstate building two years in a row, was one of 237 participants who took part in the event. ``I came for the challenge,'' she added. ``This is great.'' The event held for the first time in Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. County involved mountain bike racing The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) recognised the sport of mountain bike racing relatively late in 1990, when it sanctioned the world championships in Purgatory, Colorado. The first mountain biking world cup series took place in 1991. , kayaking, trail running and rock climbing rock climbing Sports medicine An 'extreme sport' in which the participant climbs rock formations, with or without ropes Injury risk Fractures, abrasions, death. See Extreme sports. , as well as little mystery tests along the way. ``This is the only event of its kind,'' said Dawn Younani, spokeswoman for the event. ``We wanted to add a little fun to the regular races.'' Participants had to bike a 6.6-mile mountain bike course twice. After finishing the bicycle portion, the team assembled a bumper sticker puzzle before heading off to an hourlong kayak ride. Another mystery game was next as participants were given a bow and arrow bow and arrow, weapon consisting of two parts; the bow is made of a strip of flexible material, such as wood, with a cord linking the two ends of the strip to form a tension from which is propelled the arrow; the arrow is a straight shaft with a sharp point on one and asked to hit a target about 25 feet away. Following the archery, there was rock climbing up a 24-foot face. ``It's going great,'' said Michael Epstein, event coordinator. ``People are really having a good time.'' Epstein, who runs his own company called Michael Epstein Sport Productions, came up with the idea of producing the event. ``I wanted something that an average person could do,'' he said. ``The other competitions take up to three days to complete.'' Although a relatively new sport, Epstein believes that this event will become very popular. ``This is a brand new sport, but it's going to be huge in the next couple of years,'' he said. Registration for the event was limited and eventually sold out, said Epstein. ``We were pleasantly surprised,'' he said. ``We knew it would be popular.'' According to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. officials, nine teams competed in the race, all with three members each and including at least one female. The youngest team featured three 17-year-olds. There were also teams from the Ventura County Fire Department Not to be confused with Ventura Fire Department. The Ventura County Fire Department (VCFD) provides fire protection and emergency response services for the unincorporated areas of Ventura County, California, and for six other cities within the county. , the Huntington Beach Huntington Beach, city (1990 pop. 181,519), Orange co., S Calif., on the Pacific coast, across from Santa Catalina Island, in an oil-producing area; inc. 1909. It manufactures aerospace vehicles, aircraft parts, optical instruments, and heat transfer equipment. Police Department and three all-woman teams. CAPTION(S): 5 Photos Photo: (1--color in SAC only) Mountain bikers tackle the first hill during the Hi-Tech Adventure Races. Participants had to complete the bike course twice before moving on to the kayaking event. (2-3--color in SAC only) The three-person crew of Team Chicken - made up of family members, right, won the kayaking event after one lap around Castaic Lake. Members included Jill Ballantyne, front, Joe Ballantyne and Matt Benco at the rear. More than 200 runners, bottom, take off to begin the trail running portion of the Hi-Tech Adventure Races. (4-5--ran in SAC edition only) Alma Bennett of the all-female team Hard Candy leads her group, bottom, through the mud pit during the 12-mile mountain biking mountain biking Sports medicine A sport in which participants use specialized bicycles to navigate rough, steep trails covered with unforgiving rocks Injury risk Concussions, fractures, death. See Extreme sport, Novelty seeking behavior. ride. There were 76 separate teams racing in the event which included running, kayaking and archery. Left, members of Hard Candy feel the chill from the water before starting the race. John Lazar/Special to the Daily News |
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