MCRD/ERR PARRIS ISLAND, S.C. -- Adventure racing has exploded in popularity in the last 10 years. From eco-challenges to Ironman Triathlons, participation in these extreme sporting event challenges even the most physically fit sports enthusiasts.
Team Parris Island, consisting of Capt. Brian Riordan, series commander, 3rdRTBn.; Capt. Steven Murphy, RTR S-4 officer; 1stSgt. Larry Fineran, 3rdRTBn., Mike Company first sergeant; and GySgt. Troy Black, RTR drill master, competed May 23-25 in the Adventure Concepts Florida Coast to Coast Eco-adventure Race.
The race, which spanned the entire width of the state of Florida, covered approximately 300 miles in two and a half days. Participants were pushed to their physical and mental limits traversing the course by running, biking, kayaking and hiking.
Team Parris Island finished in second place overall in the four-man team division and walked away as the top military team, said Black.
"As far as we know, we are the only Marine team to finish," said Black. "There were teams from the Navy, Coast Guard and Marine Corps, and we came in ahead of all of them."
Team Parris Island completed the 300-mile course in just over 61 hours, said Riordan.
"We only slept a total of about 3 hours while we were on the course," said Riordan. "The first 24 hours, we went non-stop. I think we managed to cover about 130 miles the first day."
During all stages of the competition, Team PI wore packs filled with clothes and food. On a course that took competitors miles from the nearest city, convenience was completely eliminated, said Fineran.
"We would go hours without seeing another team," said Fineran. "We kept everything we needed in our packs."
The Marines were assisted by Capt. Scott Buttz, S-3 officer, 3rdRTBn., who stayed ahead of the team and handled all the team's logistical needs. From staging gear and food to completely rebuilding Riordan's bike between stages, Buttz's knowledge as a triathlete proved invaluable for the first time competitors, said Black.
"It doesn't matter how hard we train, without him we would not have made it through the race," he said. "Some of the professional racing teams had entire crews, and ideally two people would have been good. He did a phenomenal job by himself."
"It was amazing. We'd pull into a transition checkpoint where we switched from one event to the next, and he'd be there waiting with all our gear ready to go," said Fineran.
To prepare for the event, Team PI ran and biked countless miles on Parris Island. Preparing for the kayaking stages was particularly difficult, as none of Team PI had ever been in a kayak before.
Training sessions for the race lasted up to six hours at a time, said Fineran.
"We mostly trained for time," he said. ""We didn't pay much attention to how far we went. We focused more on how long we trained for. After the first day, we were in uncharted territory as far as endurance was concerned."
Despite the success of Team PI's first adventure race, the overall score could have been better, said Murphy.
"We looked at hitting all the checkpoints along the way as a mission objective," he said. "The 'Marine' mentality wouldn't let us skip a checkpoint."
Skipping one of the checkpoints could have saved the team time in the long run, said Murphy.
"It was a two-hour time penalty for missing a checkpoint," he said. "If that leg of the course was going to take four hours to complete, we could have skipped it altogether and saved two hours."
On their way to becoming the top military finishers, Team PI was the only team in the race to find all checkpoints.
With the bulk of the course being off road, the swampy terrain was the hardest thing to overcome, said Black.
"At one point we were walking with our bikes over our heads in waist-deep mud for over two miles," said Black. "That gets old real quick."
Despite the grueling course, Fineran said boredom was a difficult adversary as well.
"We went on a 40-mile bike ride down I-40 in the middle of the day," he said. "We almost got clipped by a passing motorist, and it was so boring it felt like it took twice as long as it actually did."
Team PI agreed that humor kept them going through the long competition.
"We had to laugh to keep from killing each other," said Murphy. "I think the funniest moments were when we fell asleep while we were walking and ran into trees."
"That's how we determined it was time for a break," Fineran added.
Florida's rainy weather gave the Marines of Team PI some headaches as well, said Fineran.
"We were out in the middle of a lake in our kayaks during a thunderstorm.
Lightning within five sirens don't go off out there," Fineran said with a laugh.
Adding insult to injury for the other competitors, Team PI took a break in the middle of the race at a well-placed checkpoint, said Fineran.
"In the middle of the race, we had a checkpoint next to a [convenience store]. We took a few minutes to grab some chow and Gatorade," he said. "We still managed to be the fastest military team."
After the success of their inaugural race, Team PI plans to run another race in July, hoping to improve on their success.
"Now that we've done one, it should be easier to prepare," said Murphy. "The lessons we learned about time management and budgeting our energy will only make us better."
Black agreed, saying that Team PI was in such a hurry to move from one event to the next, they could have improved by taking a little extra time to hydrate and rest between events.
Team PI was sponsored by MCCS, Navy Federal Credit Union, First Command Financial, Lowcountry Bike Shop and The Kayak Farm.
"We would like to thank all our sponsors," said Black. "They made it possible for us to compete."
"We also couldn't have done this without our wives' support," added Fineran.
Look for Team PI to improve on their success as they continue to compete in the future.