I also raced the Desert Classic this past weekend, and definitely feel for the pro's (& some amateurs). I'm a good age grouper, but certainly not one of the fastest, and was really looking forward to matching up with some top talent in my AG.

Concerning the 2nd run course... As others noted, very poorly marked, if there was a sign on the uphill before that right hander, I didn't see it either since I was more worried about breaking an ankle than looking up for signs at that point. But since I'm a a lot slower, there was someone there directing traffic (kind of)... after I went by the turn, I heard him yell out,.... "hey you need to go this way". So luckily it only cost me like 5-10 seconds... because had I needed to run as many miles as the pro's did, I'd likely still be in the desert.

Also, just having moved to the Arizona area from the Midwest last year, I was stunned at all the trails crossing on the course, that is not a problem we have in the Midwest, so for me I was constantly wondering if I was going the right way on the 2nd course... especially since I was kind of in a no-man's land on time, not nearly as fast as the top amateurs, but ahead of many others. I've always wondered how anyone could really get lost on trails in the desert.... okay... NOW I KNOW!... the trail system in that park is amazing and completely confusing.

QUESTION for everyone: I was a bit shocked at how technical the 2nd run course was (1st was completely fine), but had I known it was that technical, I may not have even run this, the risk of injury out there seemed to be really high and not worth the entire winter of hard training. There were times where it just felt dangerous, and from some of the blood I saw on people afterwards, I guess I was fortunate in not falling. Were others expecting this kind of course? I know the course was changed this year, but in the research of previous year courses, it sounded like it was very much like the 1st course.... trails, but yet, still where you could run at a good fast clip.

--Mike

While I didn't do this year's edition I did do last years and many of the previous years. Last years runs were more technical in nature then the previous years. In the way past there was 1 technical section on the second run.
Last year there were several technical sections on both runs. My understanding from this thread, and from several conversations I've had with several racers, is that the 2nd run was rather technical especially compared to last year and previous years.

As a racer, and this is my own preference, I prefer courses that test how fast I can go not how well I can run technical trails.

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Brian Stover USAT LII
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I don't have much experience with XTerra, but I have run tons of trail races, as well as run (and won) cross country races since I was 13 years old.

More importantly, I have won the Desert Duathlon twice before from the gun. Both times the courses were different, but it wouldn't matter as it is a maze out there anyway. To anyone who thinks the other pros and I were being careless, I think I have more experience running this race from the front than literally anyone else in the world. I wasn't any more careless this time than I have been in the 17 years of my off-road running career.

-Chris

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Chris:
Thanks for the reply. I hope a) next year's race course is better marked and b) you come back in 2013 and win.

On the technical nature of the run:

Compared to some of the local trail run series' I would say this was about average in technical difficulty. There was no deep sand which is common around here. There was one steep uphill but the downhills were not nearly as steep or rocky as I have seen.

Compared to Arizona Xterra style races - run 2 was more technical.

x2 on all of the above. I was fortunate in that I was able to see ahead of me a line of AG'ers (Tells you how my race went right there), and even though I could see them in a few spots there was question in my mind as to which of the three trails I should take to get there.

This is my first year doing the race, and I was surprised at how rough the road was for the "new" extra 8 mile bike section within the park. It's on me for not pre-riding the course, otherwise I'd have run 10-15 psi less in my tires.

And yeah, the 2nd run was technical (and the 20% grades in a couple spots were kind of brutal), I got very lucky coming down one section. Last second saw two rocks pinching the trail with just barely enough room to get my foot in between them. A couple inches one way or the other and I was a statistic.

Pretty much across the board the 2nd run splits were anywhere from 1:20ish to 2:00 slower than the first.

John

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Try not to be a bigger idiot than you have to be.

John

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I didn't have anyone in sight in either direction when I hit that turn, as it sounds like the case was for everyone else. I got an e-mail back from DCB saying that the turn was supposed to be flagged off, it just never happened. Too bad, really.

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speedySTATES

Problem is, the run segments took place on the Competitive Loop(s) of McDowell Mountain Park, which are only open to mountain biking--with the exception of special events like this. Unless they set aside a time for course preview, there aren't any chances to pre-run the courses.. they're not open to running.. you'd have to mountain bike them, which might be difficult for some who aren't into mountain biking, or came from out of town, etc. Tough situation either way.

The rough 8 mile section in the park has been part of the race since it started in 1998. The new 8 miles was the road to Fountain Hills and back. In years past it was always a left turn out of the park to a turnaround and then back into the park.

The rough 8 mile section in the park has been part of the race since it started in 1998.

And it is time the RDs recognize it is practically unrideable anymore. It was really bad in the rain two years ago and Saturday was just ridiculous, if not downright unsafe. And those extra loops, that was just assine work on the part of the RD. What was their purpose? The new section was really good and smooth. This should be a really easy fix. Keep the new section and eliminate the park section from the top of the hill. That will be my suggestion when I get around to comments.

x2