A beyond-human race

Newport Beach police team triumphs in grueling 120-mile Baker to Vegas relay

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 definitively 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 that 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."

O'Neil, Marisa. "A beyond-human race." The Daily Pilot.