“…for it is in giving, that we receive…” Yogi St. Francis. i received SOOOOO much more than the admittedly high effort i put in to produce Durango’s first annual snowshoe race, the Winter Warrior 10k which took place today under the most unbelievably, jaw-dropping, sattvic conditions any new Race Director could have dreamed. Though our turn out was small, it was mighty, drawing snowshoe warriors from New Mexico, Arizona, and Boulder, Colorado to contest my ‘brutal-ful’ course at nearly 9,000′. Next year, plan for a Wholistic Fitness™ Winter Training Camp to dovetail right into this event, which will be a USSSA National Qualifier, i promise! We gave away nearly $600 in raffle prizes for a mere $15 Entry Fee, proceeds going to support one of my most important chi-ldhood Sangha’s: the Durango Youth Nordic Ski Team. as i have attempted to teach thee since 1982; “Ripples make waves…” Today, yet another Seed has been planted.
Oh, and Dewachen Ilg (3) tied for 1st Place in the Kids Race with Baily Noonan (4)…
…who, exemplifying the yogic meaning of the word, “competitor”…stopped short of the Finish Line to help and then hold hands with Dewachen across the Finish Line…we can ALL learn from these two guru’s! May all our Podiums guide us the Way Higher! and…call it my ‘trained eye’ or whatever, however, i DEFINITELY see a few more podiums in many ways across the years ahead for Dewachen and Bailey!
Track Conditions: World-class. Firm, transitional on downhillls/singletrack.
Weather Conditions: World-class. Start temps in mid-forties, flawless blue skies.
Overall Men 10k Champion and Course Record Holder: Andrew Ferguson, age 49, Durango, CO. Course Record in the 10K; 1:02:38. Post race quote; “Dude, that was hard.” photo by steve ilg as this multi-sport champion burrows his fierce warrior mentality into the final lung-busting, leg-searing climb called, “Last Gasp.”
Overall Women 5k Champion and Course Record Holder: Tammy Tiong, age 35, Dulce, NM. Course Record in the 5K; 42:04. Post race quote; “That was beautiful, thank you!” photo by steve ilg as Tammy cranks up the infamous climb of ‘Powerline’ approximately 2k into the 5k loop.
10k Men Master (45+) Champion: Andrew Ferguson (49), Durango, CO. 1:02:38. photo by steve ilg…So fast is Mountain Yogi Andrew, who practices HP Yoga™ with me at The Hub, that i really wanted to capture his Noble Effort on video, yet it was all i could do to race around the Course and get snapshots of his snot-flying, rooster-tailing amazing podium-topping effort! This ol’ boy packs the CHI! My only regret of the whole Blessed Day is not to have been able to Toe The Start Line next to Andrew and the other 10k Winter Warrriors! Andrew promises to defend his title next year if, “You loan me those killer Kahtoola™ racing snowshoes again!”
5k Men Master (45+) Champion: John ‘Asoka’ Van Sant (57), Durango, CO. 41:43. photo by Ananda…yup! this is my 2010 HP Yogi Warrior Of The Year, John “Asoka” Van Sant, sportin’ a pair of evidently working WF Blessed Training Mala beneath his 1st Place Medal. i am so yogically ‘proud’ of my HP Yoga™ students who literally covered the podiums of my event! Hey, we might not be ‘studio yogis’ however, HP Yogi’s are sOMething far more Higher; we are physiologically, mentally, and spiritually CAPABLE and DURABLE across the physiologic spectrum. Asoka said to me the other night after another Sacred Sweat Like No Other in HP Prop Workout™: “How are you ever gonna See, if the Light doesn’t come on?” Go(o)d point, Asoka!
5K Women Master (45+) Champion: Gayle Guerin (50), Tierra Amarilla, NM. 43:35. photo by steve ilg as Gayle, who WF.com Members will recall from my Moonlight Chama Ski Classic entry, faces her own Inner Dragons during the seemingly endless ascent of “Powerline.” Gayle is one of those laid-back southwestern beautiful outdoor athletes that will just drop you to your knees at how versatile and smooth such Goddesses of the prana can express across any given outdoor sport. God Bless Outdoor Athletes; the Warrior Tribe which has soooo much to contribute to human spirituality…if you could ever get us inside long enough to pin down our love of sacred outdoor sweat! GREAT JOB, PRECIOUS GAYLE!
“Okay, you got me…Race Directing is waaaaaay more harder than merely Toeing The Start Line!” Race Director ilg scrambling with his skis up the Last Gasp section of his world-class Snowshoe Race Course Loop as he attempts to capture video’s and photos for you…photo by Ananda. i am determined to turn this new event into a USSSA National Championship event…i’ll have a YouTube™ video released soon on today’s ripple plus all photos and videos will be uploaded to the Durango Snowshoe Racing Facebook™ page as soon as possible!
General Classification
5k Men
1) John ‘Asoka’ Van Sant
2) Walt ‘OTD’ Axthelm
5k Women
1) Tammy Tiong
2) Gayle Guerin
3) Jennifer Noonan
4) Carol Miller
5) shanna Noonan
10k Men
1) Andrew Ferguson
2) Garret Ford
3) John ‘Diné’ Leaf
These teachings are the "Rasas" or "sap" of Wholistic Fitness. You’ll find insights to ponder, student chi to keep your own chi topped off, and plenty of proven training techniques to test on your own body, mind, and spirit! Also, you’ll find my very popular Race Reports, and news of our Sangha’s (community’s) latest transpersonal fitness adventures!