Steve Hambling was a student from Northland College (Wisconsin), but came down to Indiana University for one class in 1996.
It was in that one class that a lifelong adventure awaited.
Hambling was in the same class as his future wife Dell, and the rest became history. It kick-started a lifetime of adventures together, and the two of them officially tied the knot in 2006.
The couple started Adventure Racing competitively in 2006 and completed in several races up until 2009 when the economy hit a major recession. The recession impact dried up a lot of race courses, so the Hamblings decided to take a break from racing, and it wasn’t until last year that the couple decided to go back into racing.
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The couple faced their biggest challenge when they both competed in the USARA Adventure Race National Championship from Sept. 26-28 in Boone, North Carolina.
The race began at 8 a.m. on Sept. 27, and teams had 30 hours to complete as much of the course as possible with checkpoints along the way. In all reality, it began when teams where given the maps around 5:30 a.m. if a person studied the lay of the land beforehand. The race began in Boone, North Carolina, and went through other towns in the state, including Blowing Rock and Collettsville.
There are three people to a team, and each team has a self-medical kit, a compass, a container of water, a personal flotation device for each member and a cell phone, which can’t be used during the race and only used for a serious emergency.
There are three phases to the race — biking, running and canoeing.
“The one thing about adventure racing is that it’s not about really how fast you are as much as it is not willing to quit. That’s a big part of it,” Steve said. “We’ll be going very fast and pass a team and nail a bunch of checkpoints, and in a short while later, they’ll be passing us at a walking pace. It’s all about navigation. If you can’t navigate really well, you’re lost.”
There were different classes in the national race — men, women and coed elite. Coed elite teams are made up of two guys and a girl.
Dell’s team, comprised of her and teammates Karen Clark and Kristy Deep with the team name “Chickpoints” came in first place in the women’s division with a time of 27 hours, 59 minutes.
Steve’s team comprised of him and teammates Scott Kanehl and Connor Oren with the team name “Spurious Reasoning” came in fifth place in the men’s open division in 26 hours, 46 minutes, 45 seconds.
Not every team can compete in the national championship. Teams have to qualify to get in.
“I personally didn’t do a whole lot of extra training because I only had three weeks from when I qualified to when the race was,” Dell said.
The couple are co-owners of CrossFit Ripcord, where they stay fit year-round. Both have been teaching for 15 years at Columbus East High School.
“We don’t look like your typical adventure racers because we do a lot of weightlifting and Crossfit,” Steve said. “Most of your adventure racers are endurance athletes. They can run really long distances and bike for really long distances.”
Adventure racing can have races last as long as four hours or as long as the 30 hours in the national race. Ideally, Steve and Dell enjoy the races around a half-day to a full day long.
“The short ones can hurt because you have to go so fast,” Dell said. “Everything is a sprint, and if you mess up, you’re in big trouble.”
Steve and Dell say anyone at any experience level can begin adventure racing, but they recommend having some experience in navigation.
Steve recalls a story back to when he first started racing with his current team. They took a shortcut through a swampy marsh and found themselves in first place.
“I feel like my team is always willing to just go for it. No matter how steep it is or how terrifying it looks, they just plunge in head first,” Steve said. “That’s what makes it fun for me. I don’t like to hesitate. I just go right on it.”
If anyone has a competitive interest in adventure racing, Dell suggests trying an orienteering meet, which is a navigation-based sport in which participants use a map and compass to find a number of pre-placed control points. The events mostly take place in the woods, but occasionally, it can be held on water or in urban environments.
More information for orienteering clubs can be found at indyo.org for the Indianapolis area, orienteeringlouisville.org for the Louisville area and ocin.org/home for the Cincinnati area. Additional information about adventure racing can also be found at dinoseries.com/adventure-racing.
[sc:pullout-title pullout-title=”The Hambling files” ][sc:pullout-text-begin]
Name: Steve Hambling
Age: 44
Hometown: Mishawaka
High School: Mishawaka
College: Northland College with a B.A. in Philosophy and East Asian Religious Studies, Indiana University with a M.A. in Education
Occupation: Science teacher at Columbus East High School
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Name: Dell Hambling
Age: 44
Hometown: Edgewood
High School: Edgewood
College: Indiana University with a B.A. in Biology and M.A. in Education
Occupation: AP Physics teacher at Columbus East High School
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