Great course, guys - thanks to Jim, Sam, Denise and all of the volunteers for putting together another awesome NYARA event! Challenging NAV (liked that there was no clear-cut route choice, blend of OP's and MP's)...epic mountain bike...a torturous kayak (if only we realized our running shoes were at the transition - it would have made the portaging much more palatable!)...and a swim!?! Sammy you'll pay for that some day. Thanks again for another classic!

- Ed H, NYARA Male

Shag-a-liscious! Thank you Sam, Jim, and Denise. A very fun day, and you guys seemed so relaxed and comfortable. Challenging to combine the race maps and the suggested 09 NYNJTC map - nice twist to the navigation. Some great views out there in the woods, we always try to take a moment to enjoy those highpoints. (But only little short moments - it is a race after all!) I loved M5 on the overpass over 287, what a blast! It seemed like a good race for beginners and advanced alike - straightforward but plenty of optional points, plenty of nav choices. I hope you get some feedback from some of the new kids out there, see if they enjoyed it as much as us old dogs. NYARA is doing a great job putting on some spectacularly fun, challenging (sometimes grueling), but always memorable races - the kind of races that racers remember and talk about. That's the hook. Well done!! Thanks.

- Ann Marie Hunt, Antiguan Monkey Dogs

Another great NYARA event. I thought the course was well designed and gave us the flexibility to choose many different plans of attack for each section. The great things about Ringwood are that there are so many trails both mapped and not mapped and it provides some very technical terrain to keep you on your toes. Several times we modified our game plan mid race when careful review of our maps revealed shortcuts (like the pipelines) that saved us time. My favorite section was the bike and B6 was so much fun to climb to and descend from. We even stopped to snap photos of the great view from B6. And to top it all off all of the teams we encountered along the course were a lot of fun to chat and race with. PS: I love the 12 hour events.... can NYARA add 1 or 2 more 12 hour events to the 2010 calendar??

- Mark Gaines, Shocker

Once again, NYARA did a great job this weekend with the Shag. It was nice to have a course that was more manageable for a change (I love the other kind too, but it felt good to go out knowing the whole course was doable for once). We absolutely loved the biking, and I for one had a blast with the O section. While I can't say I loved being glued to our kayaks, I really did enjoy the paddling and off-the-beaten path CPs you threw at us. A great time as always, with great teams and people. Thank you once again for putting on one of the best races in the Northeast, and congrats to everyone out there for a great day in the woods. Brent-GOALS ARA

- Brent Freedland, GOALS ARA

Thanks Jim, Sam and Denise for another great Shag. And a huge thank you to all of you and the volunteers (I saw Kate and Amy out there, along with some others) for schlepping our stuff for us too! Team Nan had a lot of fun out there on the course and an overall great day. I'm probably in a minority of one, but I actually enjoyed the swim--and we needed another one planned for after the kayak to wash away all the swamp muck! Gorgeous day and views, nice teams and a great course that was doable, yet challenging. I echo the above request for more of the same next year! : --Catherine

- CC-S, Team Nan

NYARA-er!!! Thank you very much for the great opportunity of taking part in my first AR event in US! Though I was only spectacular with my daughter:) the atmosphere was fantastic and participants were impressive!

- Marina Iskhakova, Calleva/Red Fox Russia