Devil Dash results

Devil Dash was last Saturday, September 1st, in Lyons, CO.

As usual we lined up towards the front in the first heat. It was hot out, but not too hot.

Ready to rock.

We chatted a bit with some people up front. One girl who came in 2nd last year and was determined to come in first this year. Much of the course is hidden from view from the fair grounds, so we only had a vague idea of what to expect.

We jumped out in front but were passed when we hit the tire pile known as "Hell's Rubble". It's just a pile of random tires and looks like a good way to tweak a knee or ankle. Amazingly this one kid flat out sprinted over the thing.

In awe of the kid sprinting over the tires.

Past this we run into another tire obstacle, some creek running and a flat cargo net that I would've made record time on, but I had been passed by a few people and got stuck behind one of them here.

Easily the hardest part was the incline known as Hell's Hill Climb. Very steep and very long. I stopped to catch my breath about 3/4s of the way up and it really affected my finish. More people passed me and I got stuck behind them on the downhill where I was moving faster than most.

Powering through this makes all the difference.

After the incline it was relatively smooth sailing. It's a steep downhill that you can kill if you're comfortable running downwards, then a nice gradual mile or so through the last couple obstacles and into the mud pit.

I seem particularly angry at this mud pit.

Watch your hair in the barbed wire ladies.



Billy emerges from the pit.

A short sprint after the mud pits to the Ring of Fire and you're at the finish.

Nadia crossing the finish line.

Then you can revel in your glory with another race under your belt.


After the race we get some beers, cheered on other racers and chatted with some new friends.

The girl in the pink shorts and the guy at right in the grey shirt
were in first place after the first heat.



These hard chargers ran in pants, boots and full plate carriers.

And of course some hanging out with old friends too.

When all was said and done I came in at 117 overall (out of 1,105 finishers) putting me just outside the 90th percentile, which puts me lower than the last few races percentile wise. Billy finished nearly a full minute ahead of me, putting him at 93rd overall and finishing in the top 8.5%. Nice work Billy!
I'm a little disappointed with my finish, as I know I could have pushed harder, especially on the incline.

Before we left, I ran into a guy I had met at the Spartan getting ready to race his heat. After his start we talked with his wife a bit, who just happens to be the venerable April Luu, winner of this years Devil Dash, Warrior Dash and the Spartan Military Sprint in the women's overall class. This girl is no joke and since I didn't get a picture of her, I'll leave you with a shot of who she reminded us of.

That's Vasquez in Aliens, n00b.

As always, good times, great people and a fun racing experience!

Some photos (the better ones of course) courtesy of http://www.photo-paragon.com/