PORT ANGELES — Despite being postponed for six weeks, the Frosty Moss Relay Race managed to remain pretty frosty.
Running in a rare April cold snap Saturday with temperatures in the 40s and 30s, Peninsula Adventure Sports’ Frosty Moss, its first event of the year, went off without a hitch, with 48 teams and four individuals running the full 80-mile race, the 30-mile Mini Moss and the 50K individual race.
“It was so cold. But everyone loved having the full Pacific Northwest experience,” said race organizer Lorrie Mittmann. “They got the full gamut of snow, sunshine, rain and wind.”
The race is normally run in February, but was delayed a few weeks because a February snowstorm would have made travel hazardous for the competitors and their support teams.
The full Frosty Moss is a 15-leg relay event from the Sol Duc Valley to Blyn along the paved Olympic Discovery Trail and dirt track ODT Adventure Route through the mountains north of Lake Crescent. The Mini Moss is an eight-leg, 30-mile race from Ediz Hook to Blyn and the 50K solo route is the same as the Mini Moss. Teams consisted of two to five members for the 80-mile relay and two to four for the Mini Moss.
The teams feature not only runners in creative costumes, but support vehicles are often dressed up in team themes. About 200 runners participated.
The winning Frosty Moss two- to three-person team was Root Trip in a time of 11 hours, 11 minutes and 26 seconds. Taking first place as a four- to five-person team was Limax Trax in a time of 10:01:05.
The winner of the Mini Moss was Suitcase Courage Watermelon Wanderers in a time of 3:32:33.
The top 50K solo male was Patrick Morse, who finished in 4:10:12, and the top 50K female was Stacia Givens with a time of 5:06:17.
Other awards include the mediocrity award handed to ME-OW for finishing in the middle of the pack with a time of 12:13:09 and the Last Slug Standing award went to A Team Has No Name. The Best Exchange Zone award went to FM Exchange 4 “Man Cave.”
Full results can be found at www.webscorer.com/race?raceid=310320.
The Frosty Moss is the first outdoors endurance event of the year put on by Peninsula Adventure Sports. The next event, the Olympic Adventure Trail “OAT Run” 50K, half-marathon and 12K that will be held April 15 on Kelly Ridge between the Elwha River and Joyce.
Peninsula Adventure Sports also puts on the Big Hurt, a team mountain biking, kayaking, road cycling and running event in and around Port Angeles on Sept. 23. Registration is open for this event at www.bighurtpa.com.
Frosty Moss, top finishers
Saturday’s Race
Frosty Moss Relay — Limas Trax, first, 10:01:05; Semi-Clean Machine, second, 10:19:07; =N:E= Black Sheep, third, 10:25:13; Bone Slugs in Harmony, fourth, 10:36:14; Een Pleuns Eind, fifth, 10:45:55; Subalpine Trees Race Team, sixth, 10:50:14; Flying A’s, seventh, 10:54:23; Team MCRC, eighth, 11:00:48; The Local Crew, ninth, 11:11:48; Harbor Hustlers, 10th, 11:22:08.
Frosty Moss Two- to Three-Person Team — Root Trip, first, 11:11:26; Mt. Erie Grosty Gals, second, 11:23:02; The OGs + OG, third, 12:32:55.
Mini Moss Relay — Suitcase Courage Watermelon Wanderers, first, 3:32:33; Ding Bats Air Express, second, 3:40:14; Oly Snail Runners, third, 4:17:25; Nacho Sloth, fourth, 4:19:05; Lost in Pestland, fifth, 4:20:47; Four Runners and a Toddler, sixth, 4:28:04; The Perineum Sunners, seventh, 4:32:19; On Demand, eighth, 4:49:28; Choppers & Cutters, ninth, 4:52:02; Between a Walk and a Hard Place, 10th, 5:07:04.
50K solo (All runners) — Patrick Morse, first, 4:10:12; Michah Roberton, second, 4:42:03; Stacia Givens, third, 5:06:17; Mara Horwitz, fourth, 5:14:34.
