X-TREME! event saw challenges, changes

Samantha Lane, 15, after swimming, cycling and paddling 39 miles prepares to run 15 miles in the Take the Lake X-TREME! challenge Aug. 24.

This article appeared in the Sept. 11, 2013 edition of The News Reporter.

Leading up to the Labor Day weekend Take the Lake events, a much smaller event Aug. 24 challenged individuals and teams to complete all four Personal Endurance Challenges in a single day.

Starting on the public beach near Dale’s Restaurant, 20 swimmers entered the water shortly after 6:30 a.m., with most beginning a long day covering 54 miles.

Highlights of the solo competition include 17 people who finished the four-mile swim, 21-mile bike ride, 14-mile paddle and 15-mile walk / run. 

Of the 20 who started, two dropped out of the swim and one skipped the walk due to joint issues. Two additional competitors participated the weekend prior.

Tommy Mintz, 55, won the solo competition, completing all four events in 10 hours and 23 minutes. The Ash livestock farmer had won the 2012 X-TREME! and tied with Eric Brandt of Lake Waccamaw in 2011.

Mintz has said he may put an end to his winning streak this year, opting to form an X-TREME! team with his family in 2014.

For the first time, a teenager attempted the X-TREME! challenge. Samantha Lane, 15, of Whiteville brought several years of Take the Lake experience with her, having completed a Grand Slam of all four PECs over Labor Day weekend in 2012.

A snag in her support crew’s logistics that day cost Lane more than an hour downtime, so she is confident she can beat her time of 14 hours and 46 minutes next year. She is entered in the Take the Lake record books as the youngest successful X-TREME! competitor.

The team competition was strong this year, with five team in the field. 

Old Chub out of Wilmington, led by Whiteville native Bill Sessoms, took home the Red Shoe trophy by finishing all four PECs in less than 8 hours.

Only a few minutes apart, the Original Lake Boys, led by Matt Wilson of Hallsboro, clocked in at 11 hours and 4 minutes, stealing second place by only 7 minutes from Stan Carter’s Lake Waccamaw Wrecking Crew. 

Southeastern Community College formed a competition between their two teams, with RAM-page clocking a total time of 12 hours and 6 minutes, and beating RAM-pancy by more than an hour.

The team concept took a big turn this year, with all teams opting for a modified gang start. Swimmers set off with the solo competitors at 6:30, but then all the other participants started at 8 a.m.

The traditional back-to-back relay system works well for events with shorter legs, but some X-TREME! competitors would have to wait for hours to participate, with swimmers finishing in the morning, and some runners not starting until late afternoon. 

All team competitors this year were finished before 1 p.m.

The X-TREME! is different than the Labor Day weekend series of events in several ways: it is a competition; there is an entry fee; and participants must complete all four PECs.

On Labor Day weekend, participation is free, no trophies are awarded, and participants may attempt as many PECs as they like.