World's Toughest Race: Eco-Challenge Fiji - General Discussion

[ClareWalks]

11 hours ago, Cotypubby said:

What I want to know is how much did the cameramen actually do!? There were parts where the embedded camerapeople definitely did the course with them, like going through that canyon with the rushing river, but were they also swimming in the freezing pools? Did they have extra gear to keep them warm or something or what if a cameraman got hypothermia?

If the cameraman was in the water I'm sure he had a wetsuit or something.

[BulaKitty]

Hi, just wondering if anyone can let me know if Team Aussie Rescue with Samantha Gash and Mark gets much if any coverage? I'd love to watch but don't have amazon prime so would like to know whether they get shown at all before paying for it. The race looks awesome!

[RunningMarket]

5 hours ago, BulaKitty said:

Hi, just wondering if anyone can let me know if Team Aussie Rescue with Samantha Gash and Mark gets much if any coverage? I'd love to watch but don't have amazon prime so would like to know whether they get shown at all before paying for it. The race looks awesome!

I don't recall the name, so unfortunately I don't believe they get much, if any, coverage. Out of the 66 teams, they focus on just a handful. (Which is understandable for a 10 episode series.)

[tljgator]

27 minutes ago, RunningMarket said:

I don't recall the name, so unfortunately I don't believe they get much, if any, coverage.

I don't either. That said, there are a couple of Australian teams that are referenced most often by the country, rather than team name, and are sporadically followed (but without much depth, as I recall -- and most often as a foil to the Kiwis, who get tons of coverage).

Edited August 21, 2020 by tljgator

[Quilt Fairy]

Can anyone familiar with the original show explain what the "eco" part of "eco-challenge" means?  I would generally think of that as referring to ecology or conservation of the planet in some way, but other than the fact that the race is outside and in a natural environment, I didn't see anything "eco" about it. 

[threebluestars]

I remember they were required to pack out everything they packed in - food wrappers, equipment, etc. There was a big "leave no trace" element to it. Aside from that I always assumed it meant the ecology was the challenging part of the race lol,

[HerkyJerky]

Totally random observation:  Did anyone else notice that almost all of the people that were interviewed extensively, all had blindingly white, straight teeth? Even all the people on the over 60 group and especially the guy with Alzheimer's?  Who are their dentists and orthodontists?  Because I want to go to them!  LOL!

[Fireball]

Just finished watching this the other night and I really enjoyed it! 

Like a lot of people I enjoyed watching the slower teams, but it was interesting to see how much faster the lead racers were to the slow teams. I also don't see how in the world these people could survive on basically no sleep for days and days!

I was disappointed Team Curl just quit. It didn't seem like the guy was badly injured, but what do I know. I'd die on the first day if I tried this. lol

Regarding the show not featuring all the teams I kept thinking I wonder if one could race and not agree to be filmed? I wouldn't want to be filmed.

I wish Amazon had the other seasons to watch!!

Edited August 22, 2020 by Fireball

[enoughcats]

Here is the registration application for next year's competition in Patagonia.  Lots of answers on it (must have a co-ed team), Filming and stuff.

There is a resort hotel in Patagonia with a view out to the vertical mountain faces of the Andes that is on my bucket list.

On 8/15/2020 at 4:29 AM, Door County Cherry said:

Navigation is a skill.  And I wonder what kind of clues they give them

At one point in one of the latter episodes, a team thought they were lost.  In the front right foreground was a weathered, deeply carved mark on a tree that (IMO) has to have been a trail mark.  It was at least ten inches high and sort of looked like Prince's created name.   They may have been following marked trails, without noticing that the trails were marked. 

[Door County Cherry]

16 hours ago, HerkyJerky said:

Totally random observation:  Did anyone else notice that almost all of the people that were interviewed extensively, all had blindingly white, straight teeth? Even all the people on the over 60 group and especially the guy with Alzheimer's?  Who are their dentists and orthodontists?  Because I want to go to them!  LOL!

Ha.  Well I do suspect people who do this kind of racing are more likely to have access to money whether it's family money or they make good livings.  I imagine it costs some money to get the equipment they need and train on some of the activities they do in this. This might not apply to all of the racers but it'd certainly explain what appears to be good dental care. 

In the past, I know they used to get sponsors; although I guess with this new version, they got a stipend. 

6 hours ago, Fireball said:

I was disappointed Team Curl just quit. It didn't seem like the guy was badly injured, but what do I know. I'd die on the first day if I tried this. lol

Regarding the show not featuring all the teams I kept thinking I wonder if one could race and not agree to be filmed? I wouldn't want to be filmed.

I think Team Curl might have been running up against a time deadline as well since it was light when he fell and dark when he was pulled from the trail. 

And I would imagine that you couldn't opt completely out of filming but I do wonder if you could say that you preferred not to have a cameraman or camerawoman embedded with your team.  I know not all teams had that level of camera following.  

Variety has a new article that goes into a bit more "how they did it."  Some teams had a cameraman/woman embedded with them but not all of them which would explain why we got more footage from certain teams than we did of other teams.  

[enoughcats]

From Door County Cherry's Variety link

Quote

One of the major things that we were able to do in 2019 that we weren’t able to do the past, is that each team and each camera crew and every safety boat has a tracking device on it.

Inserted under their skin, or is that too Hunger Games-ish?

[Unraveled]

Every team had a walkie talkie, so perhaps the GPS is attached on them.

This was my first time viewing this kind of race. I was actually interested in the whole logistics of it all so that article posted above was very interesting! Since there was a huge gap between all of the teams after the first day, it was very interesting to see what choices the team made when they went through each portion during certain times of the day. The team that had to wait on the rocks in the water overnight, while every team was at a checkpoint waiting for the rain to clear up was scary as hell!

For those that finished, they showed a fifth person that was waiting for the team to row up and walk the path. Was it the team's "assistant?" I'm not sure what the official term is, but the mother was that role in the American father/two daughter team and waited at some of the checkpoints.

11 hours ago, Fireball said:

Regarding the show not featuring all the teams I kept thinking I wonder if one could race and not agree to be filmed? I wouldn't want to be filmed.

I would imagine that it's not an option for those teams in the top that were in contention to medal.

[Lovecat]

On 8/22/2020 at 8:38 PM, enoughcats said:

Quote

One of the major things that we were able to do in 2019 that we weren’t able to do the past, is that each team and each camera crew and every safety boat has a tracking device on it.

 

I thought the "big board" at HQ, where they were able to see where every team was, was super-cool, and I'm sure the GPS technology, which has come a hell of a long way since the last televised outing, had a lot to do with the wow factor.

On 8/23/2020 at 1:18 AM, Unraveled said:

Quote

One of the major things that we were able to do in 2019 that we weren’t able to do the past, is that each team and each camera crew and every safety boat has a tracking device on it.

 

On 8/22/2020 at 3:11 AM, HerkyJerky said:

Totally random observation:  Did anyone else notice that almost all of the people that were interviewed extensively, all had blindingly white, straight teeth? Even all the people on the over 60 group and especially the guy with Alzheimer's?  Who are their dentists and orthodontists?  Because I want to go to them!  LOL!

I noticed the teeth, too, but as a melanoma survivor I was also very cognizant of how leathery a lot of these folks were, and assumed it was just an optical illusion caused by the contrast between teeth and skin.  I mean, we did see them slathering on the sunscreen repeatedly, but holy sun damage, Batman!  I hope they all see their dermatologists yearly for a full-body check.

Quote

For those that finished, they showed a fifth person that was waiting for the team to row up and walk the path. Was it the team's "assistant?" I'm not sure what the official term is, but the mother was that role in the American father/two daughter team and waited at some of the checkpoints.

Yes, the 5th person was their (I believe they called it) Assistant Crew Support.  I noticed there were five people at the finish line, and all five got finish medals, which I thought was nice for the support people to be included.  It can't be easy to organize and schlep around all the gear needed for this race.

Edited to try to fix the boogered up quotes...

Edited August 24, 2020 by Lovecat

[xfuse]

On 8/21/2020 at 8:31 AM, BulaKitty said:

Hi, just wondering if anyone can let me know if Team Aussie Rescue with Samantha Gash and Mark gets much if any coverage?

I believed they were shown once but that was less than a minute type of thing and crossing the finish line.

Is it just me or was this challenge not as tough as the previous ones. So many teams finished.

Edited August 26, 2020 by xfuse

[HerkyJerky]

8 hours ago, Lovecat said:

as a melanoma survivor I was also very cognizant of how leathery a lot of these folks were

Lovecat, I'm a melanoma survivor myself and my friends love to tease me about applying my SPF100 when we go on bike rides and they're putting on SPF8.  I just smile and say, "You'll be sorrryyyy..."

[Lovecat]

On 8/24/2020 at 6:12 PM, HerkyJerky said:

Lovecat, I'm a melanoma survivor myself and my friends love to tease me about applying my SPF100 when we go on bike rides and they're putting on SPF8.  I just smile and say, "You'll be sorrryyyy..."

I was Stage IIIC, considered advanced disease.  My friends know about my 2 surgeries, skin graft, months of immunotherapy and even more months to get over the side effects from immunotherapy, so they know better than to tease me.  Anyone who gives me grief is forced to look at gnarly pictures of my healing skin graft 😉 That'll learn them, as we say here in PA Dutch country!

More on topic, I seem to have become totally re-obsessed with Eco-Challenge...British Columbia (1996) and Argentina (1999, narrated by none other than the divine Alan Rickman) are on YouTube.  I've finished BC and am enjoying Argentina now.  A US team made up of search-and-rescue personnel got lost in a snowstorm and had to be found and led out.  Ouch!

[xfuse]

41 minutes ago, Lovecat said:

More on topic, I seem to have become totally re-obsessed with Eco-Challenge...British Columbia (1996) and Argentina (1999, narrated by none other than the divine Alan Rickman) are on YouTube.

I've rewatching the BC on and decided to do them in order so i'm on the Australian one. That is the first year they cut it down to four people. I'm watching and trying to catch all the people that I know (remember). So far the Australian one seems boring compared to the BC one. 

[threebluestars]

Apparently the BC one had the lowest amount of teams actually finish the race ever.

I really liked Borneo and Argentina (I live in BC, so it's a bit too familiar to me lol)

[RedbirdNelly]

I enjoyed this but had 2 complaints

1) what was up with the subtitles? they were teeny tiny on my screen as if subtitles were a new thing and there was no knowledge on how they work or how to make them easily readable. I ended up just not reading most of them and assuming I had the gist. Was it just my tv? I can normally read subtitles no problem

2) the rules. I did not understand why they did not explain the rules better, at least where they impacted what we saw. I understand from reading here that the boat malfunction was the reason Kiwi got help as opposed to being pulled from the race like the early back of the pack teams did when they were on the water and struggling. But, that should have been clearly addressed. 

[Lovecat]

23 hours ago, RedbirdNelly said:

1) what was up with the subtitles? they were teeny tiny on my screen as if subtitles were a new thing and there was no knowledge on how they work or how to make them easily readable. I ended up just not reading most of them and assuming I had the gist. Was it just my tv? I can normally read subtitles no problem

I think it depended on how you were watching, and maybe the settings on your teevee or app.  On our teevee, we had no subtitles at all, but when I watched on my computer, they were fine.

[xfuse]

5 hours ago, Lovecat said:

I think it depended on how you were watching, and maybe the settings on your teevee or app.  On our teevee, we had no subtitles at all, but when I watched on my computer, they were fine.

I watched on tv and it was fine.

I'm rewatching Morocco now and so far it's better than Australia. I'm just surprised that there is no mention of Ian Adamson or John Howard.

[Shoguncdn]

Was this race rigged? Early in the race a team was told if they needed help on the water they were done. Then at the end Team New Zealand had to be rescued out of the water. Not only were they allowed to continue the race the organizers brought them a boat to do so. Why the difference in how the two teams were treated?

[Lola82]

I’m missing Amazing Race this summer so this was a very nice surprise to see pop up on Prime. I’ve never hear of Eco Racing before. The whole race reminded me of The Long Walk by Stephen King with teams dropping out constantly due to injuries. The book is about a “walk” that only ends when there’s one survivor.

Emma from the Spanish team had my full attention. She’s a mother of 3, fire fighter, with a PhD in biochemistry?! That’s 3 people’s worth of lives to live! I was so impressed by her.

[marinw]

20 minutes ago, Lola82 said:

I’m missing Amazing Race this summer

This show makes TAR look like a trip to Walmart. (Not that a trip to Walmart isn't also filled with peril, but it's a whole different kind of peril)

I admit to being very biased when I say that I am glad one of the Canadian teams did so well. And I got a little teary when the two Fiji teams crossed at the same time, arm in arm. It would have truly sucked if they missed the cutoff. 

[Lola82]

32 minutes ago, marinw said:

This show makes TAR look like a trip to Walmart. 

Oh for sure the actual challenge of the race doesn’t compare but I miss feeling a connection to some teams and the guaranteed gorgeous scenery. This race filled that hole for me.

[Bastet]

2 hours ago, Lola82 said:

Emma from the Spanish team had my full attention. She’s a mother of 3, fire fighter, with a PhD in biochemistry?! That’s 3 people’s worth of lives to live! I was so impressed by her.

Same here; there more I learned about her, I started thinking, "She's the Most Interesting Woman in the World."  She was one of my favorite racers to watch, and, especially, to listen to.

[xfuse]

5 hours ago, Bastet said:

Same here; there more I learned about her, I started thinking, "She's the Most Interesting Woman in the World."  She was one of my favorite racers to watch, and, especially, to listen to.

I'm rewatching EcoChallenge Argentina and I think that is the first time she is shown on a challenge. Even back then she was such a go getting telling her team to hurry up.

[Lovecat]

On 8/26/2020 at 4:05 PM, xfuse said:

I've rewatching the BC on and decided to do them in order so i'm on the Australian one. That is the first year they cut it down to four people. I'm watching and trying to catch all the people that I know (remember). So far the Australian one seems boring compared to the BC one. 

If the race itself didn't grab you, here's some tea that might...  I was curious to see what happened to the woman on the Finnish team who was racing after 2 bouts of bone cancer.  WELL.  Check this shit out:

[from Wikipedia]  

Dominick Arduin (1961–2004) was a Frenchwoman who disappeared in her attempt to ski to the North Pole.  [What?  WOW!]

In 1988 Arduin moved to Finland. For 15 years she worked as a guide in Finnish Lapland and received dual citizenship. She said that she had grown up in the Alps, that she had been orphaned at an early age, had recovered from cancer and had been the only child aside from a dead sister. This backstory of hers was discovered to be lies after her disappearance.  [SAY WHAAAAAA???]

Arduin reached the Magnetic North Pole in the spring 2001. She was rescued after the first failed attempt to reach the geographic North Pole in 2003. Most of her toes had to be amputated due to frostbite.

On 5 March 2004 Arduin began her second attempt to become the first woman to ski alone to the North Pole. She set out from Cape Arctichesky in Siberia. She lost contact after one day of travel. A helicopter search failed to find any trace of her though they recovered another traveler, Frédéric Chamard-Boudet. The search ended on 21 March.

After her disappearance the Finnish author Sven Pahajoki decided to write a book about her life and while researching her background, realized she'd been lying all along about her accomplishments and life. Her sister and uncle were found and it was found out she'd done disappearances earlier as well and that they did not believe she had died, but just done another disappearance to start anew yet another time due to financial reasons and getting caught of lying. [INTRIGUE!!]  She was born and grew up in Paris, she never had cancer, her sister never died. Her father died when she was 19, her mother a few years later.

Talk about your "Most Interesting Woman in the World"!  I mean, not in a good way but still...

Edited August 31, 2020 by Lovecat

[xfuse]

2 hours ago, Lovecat said:

If the race itself didn't grab you, here's some tea that might...  I was curious to see what happened to the woman on the Finnish team who was racing after 2 bouts of bone cancer.  WELL.  Check this shit out:

She was shown in the Argentina race (I just finished rewatching it)not the Australian one but thank you very much because that was some serious interesting info. I wonder where she disappeared too if she did not die. 

[Lovecat]

4 hours ago, xfuse said:

She was shown in the Argentina race (I just finished rewatching it)not the Australian one but thank you very much because that was some serious interesting info. I wonder where she disappeared too if she did not die. 

Oh, derp!  Reading is fundamental... But yes, that is some crazy ish right there!

[curbcrusher]

I found 2 race reports that I found interesting by teams that really weren't featured in the show:

Bones Adventure Racing - https://bonesadventure.com/team-blog/2019/9/25/2019-eco-challenge-fiji

and

Team Canyoneros - https://adventure-coder.tumblr.com/post/626803944905211904/eco-challenge-fiji-2019-part-one-lets-begin-at#notes

 

 

[marinw]

56 minutes ago, curbcrusher said:

I found 2 race reports that I found interesting by teams that really weren't featured in the show:

I'd like to know more about the Japenese Team. Where they even  mrentioned before the final episode?

Edited September 2, 2020 by marinw

[RunningMarket]

On 8/28/2020 at 4:52 PM, Shoguncdn said:

Was this race rigged? Early in the race a team was told if they needed help on the water they were done. Then at the end Team New Zealand had to be rescued out of the water. Not only were they allowed to continue the race the organizers brought them a boat to do so. Why the difference in how the two teams were treated?

It's been mentioned previously that the difference is that NZ's boat was faulty and therefore they were given a replacement boat. Earlier in the race, the teams had perfectly working boats, but the choice was up to them as to whether or not they wished to continue or receive assistance due to the incoming storm.

[curbcrusher]

On 9/3/2020 at 6:44 PM, RunningMarket said:

It's been mentioned previously that the difference is that NZ's boat was faulty and therefore they were given a replacement boat. Earlier in the race, the teams had perfectly working boats, but the choice was up to them as to whether or not they wished to continue or receive assistance due to the incoming storm.

In the Canyoneros race report, Part 6 The Ocean Leg ( https://adventure-coder.tumblr.com/post/626803601206034432/eco-challenge-fiji-2019-part-six-the-race)  Nate recounts that their boat broke on the way back to the main island in that early leg. They thought the race was over, but the race organizers told them that since the boat was at fault, they could be towed/transported back to the closest land and fix the boat and continue. 

So there was no rigging of the race, but it seems clear that if the problem is with race provided equipment, the race organizers tried to make things right.

 

Another team Georgia AR has announced an adventure race for March of next year (https://www.argeorgia.com/care) that will have a 4 hour option for people that want to try adventure racing. They will also  have a "Worlds Toughest Race Panel" as part of the weekend with the team that you saw on the show.

 

 

[QuinnM]

On 9/7/2020 at 10:36 AM, curbcrusher said:

So there was no rigging of the race, but it seems clear that if the problem is with race provided equipment, the race organizers tried to make things right.

I had a mailer on business during covid from a nice scuba boat in Fiji, NAI’A.  They noted that they had purchased some of the equipment from the eco-challenge, kayaks, paddle boards, and were doing small challenges for locals while they waited for tourism to open up.  So that’s a nice outcome.

[Door County Cherry]

This isn't coming back for a second season on Amazon.  I'm so sad.  

https://www.realityblurred.com/realitytv/2020/10/eco-challenge-cancelled-by-amazon/

 

[xfuse]

17 hours ago, Door County Cherry said:

This isn't coming back for a second season on Amazon.  I'm so sad.  

Me too. It was one of my favourite shows. I do hope they find somewhere else to show it. They don't need a 'name' to host it. The only problem I had with it was all the American teams they featured. 

Edited October 26, 2020 by xfuse
spelling does matter

[marinw]

It must have bean a very expensive show to produce.

[Amarsir]

Just found this when the non-renewal hit the news. I was a huge fan of eco-challenge and getting even one more season was a gift I didn't think we'd get.

I really like that none of the drama seemed fake. IIRC way back in the day there was a temptation to have the race seem closer than it was or act like a team was lost at sea when all that happened was the camera lost sight of them. And I was briefly afraid they were doing that with NZ right at the end, only to learn it was a legitimate mechanical failure. Goes to show that actual competition provides better stories than anything they can manufacture.

[TimothyQ]

I’m really bummed about this being canceled too. I can’t even imagine how expensive it was to film, but I think it could’ve found some audience with better press. I only stumbled upon it. 

[Fireball]

I am very disappointed to hear there won't be another season. I only stumbled on it as well. 

[TimothyQ]

Anyone looking to get their adventure racing fix in after the cancellation of Eco-Challenge: there is another series, also on Amazon Prime, called Wild Racers. Not as polished as Eco, but I like that they tend to highlight local racing teams in each country. 

[threebluestars]

Noooo. I'm so sad this was cancelled. They need to at least stream all the old school episodes.

[Bastet]

I recently re-watched this, which cemented my opinion I would love to take Emma from Team Summit (Spain) out for drinks and just bask in her greatness.

It turns out (per this interview) she had cancer - a somewhat rare vulvar carcinoma that normally occurs in much older women - during the race!  During training and competition, she'd been experiencing discomfort with the skin of her vulvar lips, using corticosteroid creams.  As 2020 got underway, they were no longer relieving the discomfort, and she saw an increasing number of specialists before having a biopsy in May that revealed the cancer.  She had surgery in June and subsequently underwent radiation and chemotherapy, easing back into walking, then biking and running.  

Then I watched the British Columbia season and am almost done with the Australia season (on YouTube).  I haven't seen any of the original series since it aired, and it struck me, having recently marinated in the slick modern version, how open the show was back then about the resources required to be an adventure racer - the money shelled out for equipment and travel, the ability to take time away from work for training, etc. - and how many race and production crew were around at any given time.  They also used to explicitly talk about the "eco" part of the challenge, how they had to carry out every single thing - including their own human waste - they brought in so as to not exploit the land they were traversing and how they participated in things like tree-planting in the host country before the race got started.

[Fireball]

Anyone watch The Last Wild Race on Amazon?  If so is it any good? 

[seacliffsal]

I just stumbled across this and watched it.  Overall, I really enjoyed it although the whole time I was just overwhelmed with the challenges the racers faced.  My eyes may have teared up a few time...

I loved how welcoming and helpful the Fijians were towards the racers (and a 15 year old guide for one team that should have been a racer himself he was so good).  The weather presented its own challenges and the beauty of Fiji was amazing.  I did notice some similar camera work to Survivor (which I do watch and love) so wondered if they used some of the same camera people.

I wish they had focused on more teams even if for just brief glimpses of the teams and their dynamics.  I started fast-forwarding the father/two whiny daughters team and I really started fast-forwarding all scenes with Bear who just seemed too fake for me (and every time they showed him he basically said the same things over and over with a lot of hyperbole).  Yes, I know that he is "Mr. Outdoor Daventure"but IMO he really didn't add anything and due to how much he was featured I kind of resented that he took time away from teams that were never or rarely referenced or featured. 

For the contestants who suffered some kind of head injury I felt the only option was to pull them from the race as head injuries may not even appear at first.  Team Onyx discovered that the bikers helmet had a big crack so they were right to pull out.  Team Curly-even though the contestant seemed okay, his face did look like it lost a lot of color after his injury.  Quite frankly, I'm very surprised that there were not more serious injuries.

I do wish that this had been renewed, but will look for earlier seasons based on all of your positive comments about them.

[Bastet]

On 7/9/2021 at 7:25 AM, seacliffsal said:

Yes, I know that he is "Mr. Outdoor Daventure"but IMO he really didn't add anything and due to how much he was featured I kind of resented that he took time away from teams that were never or rarely referenced or featured. 

I'd never seen him before this, so had no idea he was "a name" and just thought it was unfortunate they'd cast such an obnoxious person to tag along and provide repetitive exposition.  I agree he was a waste of time.

Edited July 11, 2021 by Bastet

[jah1986]

On 1/1/2021 at 3:55 PM, Bastet said:

I recently re-watched this, which cemented my opinion I would love to take Emma from Team Summit (Spain) out for drinks and just bask in her greatness.

It turns out (per this interview) she had cancer - a somewhat rare vulvar carcinoma that normally occurs in much older women - during the race!  During training and competition, she'd been experiencing discomfort with the skin of her vulvar lips, using corticosteroid creams.  As 2020 got underway, they were no longer relieving the discomfort, and she saw an increasing number of specialists before having a biopsy in May that revealed the cancer.  She had surgery in June and subsequently underwent radiation and chemotherapy, easing back into walking, then biking and running.  

 

I recently stumbled upon this on Amazon and loved it. Was gutted to see the "Dedicated to the Memory of Emma Roca" at the end of episode 9. She was just fantastic. 

I'm also disappointed there won't be more seasons.  I love the Amazing Race and thought this was awesome!

[Bastet]

44 minutes ago, jah1986 said:

Was gutted to see the "Dedicated to the Memory of Emma Roca" at the end of episode 9. She was just fantastic. 

Oh, no!  I had no idea she'd died (of cancer, back in June).  That's a shame; she was a remarkable woman.  I only "knew" her through documentaries and interviews, but I liked her so much I am truly sad right now.

This interview with her from just six months before she died is really interesting for how she approached competing as a middle-aged woman; she had a wonderfully honest - and safe - mindset.  It's also heartbreaking to read all she had planned for her future and to know she didn't even reach her next birthday. 

[Door County Cherry]

They must have added that dedication later on.  So sad.