The upcoming intramural Adventure Race offers students an out-of-the-ordinary intramural experience.

The Adventure Race will take place at Peterson Pits on April 15. Peterson Pits is located on the west side of Peterson Park, north of Ames. Check-in will begin at 9:15 a.m. and the race will start at 10 a.m.

In this event, teams of two compete in three different physical activities.

Teams are required to canoe a half-mile, ride bikes for three miles and jog another mile. The team with the fastest time through all three events wins.

Last year was the first year the Adventure Race took place. Outdoor Recreation Program employees created the race, which was successful in its inaugural year, said Linda Marticke, intramural coordinator.

“Even though it was raining and cool last year, they enjoyed it,” she said.

Marticke said she believes the Adventure Race is among the most difficult intramural events offered, particularly the canoe portion of the event.

“It involves different skills, and stamina is important,” Marticke said. “I think the cross-country race is difficult, but this is more than that.”

The race begins with the canoeing portion. The event is done in timed heats, because there are only 10 canoes available to be used at a time.

Students must also provide their own bike and helmet for the second portion of the event. If students cannot provide these items, they can be rented from the Outdoor Recreation Program in the lower level of State Gym.

Last year, 18 teams competed in the event. This year’s entries are up with 25 teams set to compete in either the men’s, women’s or co-ed divisions.

Marticke said the event takes a different amount of time depending on a particular team’s abilities. The quickest time recorded last year was 35 minutes, 20 seconds, and the slowest time was 58 minutes, 31 seconds.

Lee Beck, sophomore in horticulture, won the men’s division last year with Wesley Meier, junior in mechanical engineering.

“It was a blast and it’s too bad I can’t do it this year,” Beck said. “Last year I went with my best friend and we planned to do it again this year, but he’s studying abroad this semester.”

Beck said he learned about the race on a Spring Break trip with the Outdoor Recreation Program last year and decided to sign up. Beck said he particularly enjoyed the biking part because he hadn’t done any mountain biking before and thought it was fun.

“What should have been easiest was the running because the guy I did it with and I are both runners,” Beck said.

“But it was the hardest part because it was at the end and I was completely dead.”

Annette Poduska, junior in health and human performance, and Karin Brandt, senior in political science, won the women’s division last year.

“It was something out of the ordinary list of intramurals and it was also something my partner was interested in, so she talked me into it,” Poduska said.

Everything was dirty and muddy last year because of the rain, which made the event memorable, Poduska said.

“It was basically a lot of fun, like any intramural sport should be,” Poduska said. “It was a pretty relaxed race due to the fact that they have canoeing thrown in there and not many races make you canoe.”

Poduska said Peterson Pits was a great location for the race, and the bike portion was on trails instead of roads, which made the race more enjoyable.

“There were a lot of sharp turns and a lot of things you had to watch out for,” she said. “We had a couple spills, but we just laughed it off.”

Application deadline for the Adventure Race closed April 6. However, students who are still interested in participating can contact Linda Marticke in the intramural offices to see if there is still a spot open to compete.