Nike Run Hit Wonder

Photo by Ashton Bitton (my daughter)

Here I am lined up with the "back of the pack" in Portland, Ore., for the Nike Run Hit Wonder.

I ran my first 5-K race today in downtown Portland, Ore. It was more fun (and a whole lot easier) than I thought it would be. My goal was to finish in less than an hour by walking most or all of the race. Instead, I ran/jogged the entire course, because the energy level was so high! My finish time was under 45 minutes. I'm generally no fan of running, but if the race comes back next year, I'll do it again.

TRIOBA 12-Hour Adventure Race, Snoqualmie Pass, Wash.

Nelson Yu of team Dozer scrambles over a deadfall between checkpoints 14 and 15 during the TRIOBA 12-hour adventure race July 23 at Snoqualmie Pass, Wash.

I spent all day at Snoqualmie Pass, Wash., photographing the TRIOBA 12-hour adventure race. Even though I've only been around adventure racing for one year, I already have many friends in this tight-knit community. When Eric and Karyn Abraham, members of team PureFit/MissingLink, learned I intended to spend Friday night cramped in the back of my Explorer in the Hayak Lodge parking lot, they insisted I return to their home in the Seattle suburbs for a comfortable night in a real bed. How awesome! Early Saturday, we went back to the lodge, which served as the start and finish line for the race. I spent the hour before the start scouting nearby locations and decided access was easy. I skipped the start and instead picked out a spot on the lakeshore to photograph teams carrying their inflatable boats to the water. I got some great shots! Next I drove to a transition area to shoot some mountain biking, but the light wasn't much good. I hiked over half-a-mile in search of open shade, but never found what I was looking for. Hoping for thicker trees higher up, I drove to checkpoint 11/14 (both at the same spot), where I found what I was looking for. The leg from 14 to 15 was on a mountain bike trail in thick woods. The trail was barely passable on foot, let alone on a bike. Racers call this a "hike-a-bike," or a "bikewhack." I made many great pictures where a large pine had fallen across the so-called trail. Athletes had suffered mightliy to get to that point, and to see a 3-foot-tall obstacle in front of them was not pretty. Some teams scrambled right over the tree, but others looked at it and shook their heads, probably questioning their sanity. I felt honored to be there to witness people at what had to be the low point of their race day. They were spent, but they had to give a little more. I am most proud of those photos.

Wicked Gorge Adventure Race, Beacon Rock State Park, Washington

Teams come ashore after completing the kayak section of the Wicked Gorge adventure race. Photo by my brother, David Bitton, who flew in from Colorado Springs to help me cover the event.

Teams that competed in the Wicked Gorge adventure race July 16 were assaulted by stunning Pacific Northwest scenery as they navigated a course in and around Beacon Rock State Park. As the director of photography for the Wicked Adventure Racing series, I was allowed to drive to several points along the course. It's not possible to be everywhere at once, so at the end of the day, some teams get more coverage than others. Athletes experienced more than 3,000 feet of vertical gain from the banks of the Columbia River to Three Points Rock due north of Beacon Rock State Park. My brother, David, a staff photographer at The Gazette newspaper in Colorado Springs, Colo., came out to help me provide more complete coverage. To see our photos, visit www.bittonphoto.com. For race results, go to www.wickedar.com.

Team DART Invites Bitton to X-Adventure Raid

DART at the X-Adventure Raid race included (from left) Cyril Jay-Rayon, Matt Hart, Jennifer Segger and Ryan VanGorder.

Seattle adventure racing team DART invited me to document its participation in the X-Adventure Raid race in Bend, Ore., June 24-26. DART dominates the adventure racing scene in Oregon and Washington, where I normally photograph adventure sports. Even though DART has won many of the races I've covered, I rarely captured them in action. I'd see them at the start, and after the race. The rest of the time, DART was so far ahead of the field, I had to let them go so I could photograph other teams. The prospect of covering DART for two or three days straight appealed to me. I'd certainly have a chance to make great photos of the team. I believe such photos will be in demand in coming years, as DART is an up-and-coming elite adventure racing team. I'd be the proud owner of the finest DART photo gallery, the go-to photographer if a magazine editor needed shots of the them.

I had a delightful time with DART and its support crew during the X-Adventure Raid. The photos I made are among the best of my career. Best of all, I now count DART as friends. No one witnesses what they went through during that two-day adventure race without growing fond of the team's ability to cope with difficulty and strive for excellence. I am proud to say I know these athletes, which I predict will be among the world's best adventure racers in years to come.

An Adidas NW team member is reflected in the windows of the KOIN Center tower in downtown Portland, Ore., as she rappells from the roof of a nine-story parking garage.

Wicked Urban Race Takes Athletes on Radical Rose City Tour

PORTLAND, Ore. (June 4, 2005) – Athletes who competed in the Wicked Urban adventure race got an insider’s look at the Rose City as they ran, pedaled, paddled and rappelled through Portland.

Fast teams completed the pro course in about six hours, while slower teams raced for about 10. Twenty-five teams entered the pro division, while a dozen teams entered the shorter, sport course, category.

Race Director Shane Gibson designed the pro course knowing he’d have to challenge top Pacific Northwest teams like NW Nike ACG, D.A.R.T. and Mergeo.com. Yet he also provided a gentler alternative in the sport course, which many first-time adventure racers completed successfully. Results are available at the Wicked AR website (www.WickedAR.com).

Next Adventure (www.nextadventure.net), Portland’s Alternative Sporting Goods Store, sponsored a massive gear giveaway for those in attendance. Packs from GoLite, LaFuma, Granite Gear and Mountainsmith were among the most coveted prizes.

I was recently named the director of photography for Wicked AR, and I put the best photos on my website (www.bittonphoto.com). At the request of several athletes, I posted the images in team galleries. Now, participants and fans can quickly navigate to the images they want to see.

The 2005 Wicked Adventure Sprint Series began March 26 with Wicked Mountain on Mt. Hood, Ore. Wicked Urban, held June 4, was the second race in the series. Wicked Gorge will take place in the Columbia River Gorge July 16, and will be covered by the Adventure Sports Magazine Mobile Tour. http://www.adventuresportsmagazine.com/mobile/index.html
The 2005 series finale, Wicked Ocean, will take place at Nehalem Bay State Park, Ore., Oct. 1.

Competitors in the Boater-X head-to-head whitewater kayak race battle for position at Carter Falls on the Upper Clackamas River, Ore.