A beyond-human race

Marisa O’Neil

Running more than 100 miles through the blazing heat and frigid cold

of the desert may not sound like much fun to most people.

But 20 Newport Beach police officers did just that last weekend --

and did it faster than all other teams in their division at a mere 15

hours and 14 minutes -- in the 2005 Challenge Cup Relay Race.

Better known as the Baker to Vegas race, the lengthy run wends its

way over peaks and through valleys between the two cities and

attracts law enforcement personnel from more than 200 agencies.

“We enjoy the team camaraderie and the excitement the team gets

when we compete,” team captain Sgt. Ron Vallercamp said. “Our agency

definitely takes it very seriously. We want to do well and represent

our city well.”

Vallercamp has run in the race nearly every year since 1994, when

it was rerouted along desert roads that go between California and

Nevada, out of view of travelers headed to Las Vegas on Interstate

15.

Before that, the race went through Death Valley. Vallercamp ran

there too.

Officer Andy Halpin has run nearly as many desert races. This

year, he took the third leg of the 20-leg relay, one of the most

difficult.

“It started flat for the first three-and-a-half miles,” he said.

“Then it’s this long, arduous, uphill climb up the grade.”

And from his starting point, he could clearly see his finishing

line eight miles across the desert.

Some of the legs reach altitudes of more than 5,000 feet. The

distances range from about four miles to more than eight.

One of the hardest parts of the race, Halpin said, is the

ever-changing weather of the desert. When he ran, temperatures were

in the 70s with gusty winds. When Vallercamp ran, early in the

morning, the air temperature was in the 30s.

Costa Mesa police Sgt. Brent McKinley, who ran the same leg as

Halpin for his own department, said the logistics of the massive race

make it challenging. Support crews follow the runners in vans and

runners have to make it to their starting lines in plenty of time --

sometimes on very little sleep.

The race started late Saturday afternoon and started trickling

into Las Vegas after 7 a.m. Sunday.

“The hardest part is waiting for it to start, just sitting there

in Baker,” McKinley said. “The runners have to show up at their leg

an hour and a half early.”

Costa Mesa competed in the same category as Newport Beach, one for

agencies with 150 or fewer sworn officers.

Costa Mesa finished sixth.

Newport Beach Police Department’s team, sponsored by a private

donor, has a history of fast finishes. They won their division in

2001 and 2003 and finished second last year.

Their time this year would have beaten the winning team in the

300-officer division, Vallercamp said.

Runners stay in good shape all year round and, once they pass time

trials and make the team, train even harder for the race, he said.

Halpin credited the 25 support volunteers who ride along the

course and have water, extra clothes and other necessities handy for

their success.

“My job is easy,” he said. “They’re doing all the support. They

put me there, hand me the baton and I go.”