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The rain turned a normally passable dirt trail into a clay trap.

The clay coated Carcross adventure racing couple, Greg and Denise McHale鈥檚 tires, making it impossible even to roll.

Partway through a 300-mile adventure race in Iowa, the McHales, along with their Tecnu teammates, Alex Provost and Brian Mayer, hiked their bikes onto their backs and kept on trekking.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 just typical adventure racing stuff, dealing with adversity鈥� said Denise McHale from her home in Carcross this morning.

In the moment the racers take comfort in knowing everyone else is facing the same challenges.

McHale and her teammates would go on to win the 500-kilometre Happy Mutant race, the McHales鈥� first real race in six years.

Before entering into their semi-retirement to start a family and open a business, the McHale鈥檚 raced under Supplier Pipeline.

Their decision to return to racing took root during a family vacation in the U.S. last year. They made a few phone calls and Team Tecnu was shuffling up their line-up. The McHales joined the mix and were joined by American Mayer and fellow Canadian Provost.

The McHales went to New Zealand earlier this year, which McHale calls the 鈥渉ome of adventure racing鈥� for a training camp of sorts.鈥圱hey competed in three fun races: a six-hour adventure race, a 24-hour adventure race and a bush marathon.

鈥淭hat was a really great training camp for us,鈥� said McHale.

When they got home, they were able to keep up the momentum, exploring the trails and water around their Carcross home.

The Iowa edition of the Happy Mutant Adventure Race was the first race the McHales got to do with their new teammates. It was an important test for the team that hopes to chase a world championship title together later this year.

Each teammate plays a role.

Provost and Mayer, who come from an orienteering background, are the navigators.

鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 matter how fast you鈥檙e going if you鈥檙e going in the wrong direction,鈥� said McHale.

Her husband Greg is the team motivator.

鈥淎nd my role, I don鈥檛 know, I keep up,鈥� said McHale. 鈥淚t can be challenging just keeping up with three men.鈥�

The teams of four must have at least one person of the opposite sex. The most common configuration is three men, one woman.

A lot of adventure racing is just dealing with the unknowns as they come up, while competing and running on very little sleep.

鈥淚t can be challenging when you鈥檙e dealing with sleep deprivation and things not going right,鈥� said McHale. 鈥淧eople鈥檚 personalities can come out. You get used to having to roll with things.鈥�

The race itself started Friday at 7 p.m., with teams chasing checkpoints in town before heading down the Des Moines River in aluminum canoes.

Team Tecnu got off to an early lead, but a thunderstorm an hour in to the stage had teams pulling off for safety.

After the canoeing stage, they had to hike and bike and hike and bike, gathering more checkpoints before the race finished Monday afternoon.

After more than two days of racing, Team Tecnu crossed the finish line, with a large lead.

As she finished, McHale thought that they had made the right decision to get back to racing. With two kids and a business, it鈥檚 a big commitment to race and to be away from their families.

鈥淚 feel grateful really that we can still get out there and do this,鈥� she said.

The McHales are now preparing for their next race, Wyoming鈥檚 Cameco Cowboy Tough, in mid-July. The sold-out adventure race is an Adventuring World Series Event and a qualifier for the Australia鈥檚 World Championships in November.