Untamed Virginia - After Action Review

After Action Review:
Author: Jason Smith

What went right:

Physically strong – again we ran a race that our physical strength and abilities were on par with the top teams.

Portage wheels – unbelievable physical and mental assist thanks to this purchase….and something we will have in the long run. Remember to deduct the cost from what you owe me for the race.

Positive Attitude – the team remained strong mentally in what was by far our most mentally challenging race.

Jesse's guidance of the canoe – this strength for our team was ever more evident after allowing another to helm the back seat for a brief moment. We were able to stay close to teams with better equipment buy good decisions and hard work.

Biking in a line – this formation allowed us to move quickly while on the bike

Finished in good health – close call but this is our 4th healthy team finish!

What went wrong:

Nutrition – food and water consumption, or lack there of, limited the ability of our team to function at optimal performance. This is a basic need of life and must be a focus during the race. There is no excuse not to eat and drink constantly.

Transitions – Too much time was spent at every transition. Our physical abilities allow us to run with the best but time lost at transitions keep us in the middle pack. One suggestion I have is to limit the amount of gear carried by Jesse. Not only does he have nav duties but he also tends to carry the majority of team gear. This causes him to spend time fumbling through his pack looking for what he needs. In the next race I will carry and organize a majority of the gear, slimming Jesse down to the essentials and nav material.

Use of maps – poor job of utilizing supplemental maps provided. I am thinking a resolution for this in the future will be to assign a team member to match supplemental maps with the course while others are plotting points and hold them responsible for utilizing those maps at the right time.

No map or compass – These two tools are the core of Adventure racing and will for now on be with us at all times.

Not achieving our goal of remaining on the pro course – not hitting the goal was bad but the effect it had on our attitudes was worse. The fact that it only killed us for about 40 minutes and we came back around is a very good sign.

Double bladed paddles on the canoe – again we used more energy and moved slower than teams with these paddles.

Jason's gear – again the guy lost mandatory gear (whistle) during the race and could not get his rear bike light working (wrong battery type). This causes unneeded stress for the team during the race that can easily be avoided.

Next step:

Winter race – perhaps February if not a spring race. One that can include team member Bethany.

On a very positive note my company has offered to pay for our next race fees. They may also want to have a story of us on the website or in our global magazine.

-Jason