Orienteers in Seattle sent me an email with this claim in it...

In the coming months we will be putting on two urban Rogaines, or Metrogaines, in Seattle. As far as we know, these will be the first Metrogaines in the U.S.,

Here in Kansas, we know that Eric Saggars set up a "metrogaine" almost two years ago.

I suppose I should email them to straighten them out.

-- Michael (meglin@juno.com), January 29, 2003

Answers

Eric scheduled that 6 hour rogaine in the heat of a July(?) summer - brutal weather, but he had about a dozen takers about half going the entire 6 hours. I wsn't able to attend, but ran it a year later on a much cooler 4th of July using a 3 hour limit. His controls were the fountains of KC. There are a gazillon fountains and the control system was to answer a multiple choice questions at each location. You got into the nicer Plaza areas and some rougher neighborhoods where speedwork might be required. I did have a firecracker thrown at me. If anyone else wants to run the course, I have copies of the map and the control sheet questions. Eric put in a lot of work for this fun event.

-- mean gene (gmw@ku.edu), January 31, 2003.

For the record, I called it an Urban Rogaine and there was a 6 hour time limit. It started at 6 AM on Sunday, July 22, 2001. 6 people showed up and ran it, 3 others were scared off by the hot and humid temperatures. I think they had fun and got to see many of the fountains Kansas City is known for. There were 59 "controls" and it would have been about a 36 mile run to get them all. No one did.

-- Eric Saggars (esaggars@planetkc.com), February 09, 2003.