Solo: Female Division

Jun 1

Adventure Racing is traditionally a team sport. Typically mixed gender teams of 3 to 4 people compete together as a group to tackle the long and arduous courses. In recent years there has been an increasing demand however for the sport to be open to soloists. Most expedition races and AR World Championships will not include this division but it is gaining popularity in events in the shorter range of 12 to 36 hours. Although growing, the solo division is still very sparse among adventure racers. Most racers rely on a team structure to help them navigate not only the course but their gear, race plans and so forth. Moving as a team has the potential to be faster than moving as a soloist in an adventure race but not always. Being part of a team also means that you can rely on each others’ strengths to compensate for things like lack of experience or biking ability for example (anybody need a tow?)

*On the way to Transition Area 2, during the coldest part of the race*

Still, some experienced athletes look to push themselves and their abilities further by completing adventure races in the solo division and striving for total self-reliance.

In order to compete in the solo division at many races, you must have proven yourself as an experienced adventure athlete and responsible racer. You must possess all the skills and abilities needed for adventure racing. Perhaps more importantly you also must be able to motivate yourself to keep moving and stay awake through the entire race. It’s not an something to be taken lightly and it’s not for the faint of heart. Solo racers will regularly find themselves alone in the pitch dark woods, off trail and many miles from any kind of assistance. Racing alone means you have to fight sleep monsters alone too.

Meet adventure racer and AR Insider contributor, Anna Stewart.

“I’ve been racing since 2021, and Tug Hill was actually my 50th adventure race! I have raced one expedition race which was Expedition Ozarks last year, and am looking forward to Endless Mountains next month as my second. […] I was never an athlete previous to this, and it took adventure racing to draw me in enough to become one!”

Strategy and Execution

This was her first attempt at a 24 hour race as a solo and her plan was simple: don’t go too fast - resist the urge to race hard. The plan seems to have paid off too. Despite absolutely punishing weather conditions of persistent rain and wind chills in the high 30s, Stewart stuck to her race plan. Each time we crossed paths I checked in on that race strategy and each time she gave the same answer that she was still on track and still managing her pace.

“I skipped the embedded trek leg in favor of staying very conservative. Because I knew that the hardest part of going solo is the mental resiliency, I committed to racing at 80% physical capacity so that if I panicked a bit in my head, at least I wouldn't also be dealing with a super fatigued body on top of it. This worked REALLY well. It was hard to not push the pace sometimes, or rush in and out of TA's, but it was the right choice in the end especially because of the wet and cold environment. I was in super good spirits for the entire race.” (From Stewart’s Race Report)

Racing at night is another thing entirely when you’re alone. It’s just you and the little bubble of light from your headlamp in an unforgiving wilderness. Here’s what Anna had too say about that:

“As soon as night hit I had a voice in my head go, “this was a dumb idea and I don’t like being out here on my own one bit”. Luckily, I have raced long enough that I know my brain is going to throw those types of thoughts at me every once in awhile, so it’s gotten easier to talk myself through it. When it happens, my strategy was to slow my pace a bit so that I can relax and reconnect with enjoying the experience, and then when I feel less stressed then I pick up the pace again. This worked very well as a strategy for staying mentally happy and focused. “

And then there was the cold. And the rain. And the wind. Punishing conditions for anyone:

“Cold has always been an issue for me, and so I intentionally overpack if I even THINK it will be a problem. For this race I had what I call my emotional support puffy with me, and it definitely lived up to its name. I also always have nitrile gloves in my med kit as they are light, compact, and surprisingly effective at keeping fingers from freezing. I also use bike pogies for cold races, but I forgot to bring them for this race. Lastly, I am a huge fan of disposable rain ponchos that are made out of space blanket material. They are much more user friendly than a regular space blanket, although I always carry a standard space blanket with me as well if it’s on the mandatory gear list. The poncho is also more useful as an extra rain layer, and I have not found that I overheat or struggle with condensation when I wear one unless I am already wearing too many layers.”

Even as other teams experienced hypothermia, exhaustion, sprained ankles and muddy bike crashes, she was able to remain steady and strong enough to win the Solo Female division - a division that often doesn’t see any entrants.

*At the start in Lyons Falls, NY. Stewart paddles an Epic V5 surfski*

When asked if she would ever consider racing solo again, she had this to say:

“I would absolutely do another 24 hour solo! I think it’s a great way to test my organization and resiliency without other teammates to act as training wheels for any racing weaknesses that I have. I can’t turn to them and say can you take the lead here, I HAVE to do it myself. When I’m out on course at Endless, I want to know that if for some reason my teammates are struggling mid race that they can turn to me and ask me to handle it if that’s what’s needed. In AR we talk a lot about the importance of teamwork, and a part of that is being able to be the leader and make decisions independent of of the team if that’s what the situation calls for. Hopefully, this race will help me rise to that challenge if I am ever faced with it. “

Congratulations again to Anna Stewart, winner of the Solo Female division at the 2025 Tug Hill 24 Hour Adventure Race!