Detroit Free Press

DETROIT – Michelle Clark stood at the starting line, next to her husband, Keith, getting ready for their version of a romantic getaway – a cross between a triathlon, a scavenger hunt and the TV show “The Amazing Race.”

“We have about another minute,” yelled an organizer of the 3rd annual Salomon/Moosejaw Spring Fury, an adventure race held this spring at Bald Mountain Recreation Area in Lake Orion, Mich.

“OK,” Michelle said to Keith. “I love you.”

“Love you, too,” he said.

They gave each other a good-luck kiss before heading out on a race that would include biking about 20 miles, mostly on dirt roads and muddy trails; paddling 5 miles in a canoe; climbing a 35-foot wall; and trekking about 8 miles through the woods, navigating the course with only a compass and maps, hoping to stay dry and avoid the snakes-all in the name of spending some quality time together.

“Ready!” the organizer screamed. “Go!”

And they were off, running side by side, wearing bicycle helmets and carrying backpacks filled with energy bars and dry clothing.

Adventure racing is a growing sport for people of all ages and fitness levels. This particular race, a beginner-level event compared to other multiple-day races, featured 225 competitors, ranging in age from 16 to 70, including a second-year medical student and a group of off-duty firefighters from Bloomfield Township. Many said this type of race is more challenging and rewarding than running a 10-kilometer race or doing a triathlon.

Michelle and Keith Clark met in a country-western bar, got married eight years ago and live in Royal Oak, Mich. They competed in the coed division and took the name Romantic Getaway because it sounded more positive than Yes Dear.

While Keith has competed in several adventure races, this was Michelle’s first.

They decided to try racing as a team as a way to spend time together. Since they started having children -Grace is 3 fingers old, while Will is 1 – the one thing Michelle and Keith have missed is spending time working out together. They trained for this race by getting baby-sitters, so they could go for a bike ride or long run.

“I want to have fun,” Michelle said, before the race. “I don’t want to disappoint him.”

Keith, 33, is an advertising executive-calm and organized. He is tall and strong, 6 foot 4 and 225 pounds, a natural on the bike.

Michelle, 33, is a part-time pediatric physical therapist – outgoing and fiercely competitive, a former all-state soccer player who hates to lose. She is short and thin, 5 -foot 4, a natural long-distance runner who has completed four marathons. “I haven’t been on a mountain bike consistently for three years because I was either pregnant or nursing or pregnant or nursing,” Michelle said. “This has given us a chance to get back on the bikes and work together.”

The race started smoothly for Romantic Getaway, a quick run to their mountain bikes.

“The first run was fine,” Keith said. “We had a nice chat. We did the bike transition pretty well. We zoomed right by people who were stopped looking at their map. The first bike leg went well.”

“Better than I thought it would,” Michelle said. “There was a lot of mud.”

Then they reached the climbing wall.

Michelle stepped into a climbing harness, her face covered with sweat and dirt.

About 8 feet off the ground, she couldn’t get a grip with her feet because she was wearing hard-soled bike shoes, a strategic mistake. She slipped, her legs shaking with exhaustion.

“Push with your feet,” Keith said. “Take your time.”

About 10 feet off the ground, she slipped again.

“It’s pretty hard,” Keith said. “With those shoes, it’s going to be really hard.”

Their other shoes were at the canoe transition area. They tried a different wall, but she couldn’t do it and he persuaded her to stop climbing. Michelle was frustrated. “If he wouldn’t have pulled me down,” Michelle said, “I’d probably still be there.”

They got on their bikes for a short trip down a hill to the canoe transition area. On the way, a van nearly backed into Michelle. She swerved off the road and got caught in some soft gravel, crashing to the ground, but she wasn’t injured.

Her frustration increased. Rushing to get going again, her handlebars were twisted around.

“Stop!” Keith said.

Tired and stressed, she didn’t like his tone. She was afraid he was going to coddle her. He turned the handlebars around and they rode the last few feet to the transition area. They grabbed their life jackets and paddles but forgot to eat.

Everything started to click again during the canoe portion of the race.

“It was really windy when we were going across the water,” Keith said.

They hunkered down in the canoe, sitting on their knees to cut through the wind.

“We got every checkpoint we could,” Keith said. “We were real happy with that.”

After the canoe race, they returned to the climbing wall – it didn’t matter what order each stage was finished – and this time, wearing the proper shoes, they both climbed it with ease.

“Yeah!” Keith screamed, pumping his arms after coming down.

They changed into bike shoes, hopped on their bikes and took off again.

They went to the orienteering portion of the race, where they had to find several points in the woods. They found five, including one that was diabolically placed. Keith had to wade through a mucky marsh that was about 4 feet deep. Michelle stood on shore and cheered him.

“I would have been fine, if I hadn’t seen two snakes,” she said. “I was imagining “Anaconda.’ “

The ride back to the finish line was quick and efficient. They crossed the finish line in 7 hours, 39 minutes and 59 seconds-more than 20 minutes to spare.

Romantic Getaway finished in 14th place out of 18 coed teams. They earned 13 out of 21 possible points. Rankings are based on points; ties are broken by time.

They looked tired and beat up – Michelle’s legs were cut and scraped – but not exhausted.

“It’s been more fun than I thought,” Michelle said.

Sitting on camp chairs, in the parking lot, they each drank a beer and toasted a great race.

“It was phenomenal,” Michelle said. “I was never nervous. I had a great time. I felt like we had a great time together.”

After eight years of marriage, they didn’t really learn anything new about each other.

“Unfortunately, I think things about me are confirmed,” she said, making a face and thinking about her competitive fire. “That I get all-not pretty.”

He laughed.

“He confirmed what I know about him,” Michelle continued. “He’s a hard worker and, I mean, we were doing this. It didn’t matter what happened. We were going to get through it. … I never felt pressure and I felt supported the whole way out there. It’s nice to have you as a partner.”

“I had a great time,” Keith said, giving her a kiss.

Days later, he still had the same opinion, despite the sore muscles and a case of poison ivy.

Halfway through the race, Michelle came to a conclusion.

“I said, “I’m hooked.’ I’ll do this again.”

They’ll do it together.