About a year ago, I wrote a column on Checkpoint Zero LLC and its promise to “turn a page” in the sport of adventure racing with a new national ranking system and a new/alternative National Championship race. In many ways, Checkpoint Zero pulled off some significant “page turning” in 2010. The organization has worked to make the sport more cohesive and more visible, and for the 2010 season the Checkpoint Tracker ranking system was a buzz in the world of AR.

We reported earlier this month on the competing (and traditional) national championship race, the USARA Adventure Race National Championship, in Hidden Valley, Penn. Now, this week it’s time for the Checkpoint Tracker National Championship. This week in Moab, Utah, the sport’s new “National Championship” race kicks off, and it will include a multisport course that will stretch approximately 100 miles through the desert in and around Moab. Race cut-off time is 28 hours.

Two of Gear Junkie’s favorite teams, WEDALI and YogaSlackers, are in the event, along with 60 other teams and solo racers. The venue promises a $10,000 cash prize purse, and disciplines including kayaking, riverboarding, trekking, mountain biking, and navigation throughout. There’s a 350-foot Tyrolean traverse on the ropes section.

The race starts this Friday, October 29th, and runs through Saturday at noon. The venue looks exciting, and Checkpoint Tracker has drawn a large and significant field for the event. Good luck to all the teams!

Live coverage of the 2010 Checkpoint Tracker National Championship race begins at 5:00 pm MDT on Thursday, October 28th, at www.checkpointtracker.com.

—Stephen Regenold is founder and editor of www.gearjunkie.com. He wrote recently on the state of adventure racing in the article “An Open Letter To: Adventure Race Directors.”