I haven't run on a "relay team" since high school.
I forgot how much fun running can be when it's a team sport!
Here's a quick idea of how this race works from a
teammate's blog, she describes it perfectly!
If I had to describe this event in one word, I'd try and choose from: amazing, adventerous, grueling, ridiculous, exhausting, exhilarating, crazy fun. Any one of those words would work. In case you're not familiar with the Ragnar Race I'll give you a brief run down: Basically its a super long relay race that goes non-stop for a day a night and a day. Each team has 12 members (unless you're a crazy ultra runner team, then you have only 6) and the Del Sol race started in Prescott AZ and ended at Tempe Market Place--204 miles later--the next day. You divide up into two vans and pass your "baton" (think 80's slap bracelet) all along the route from runner # 1 down to runner # 12, repeated 3 times until you finally arrive at the finish line. Did you catch that each runner runs 3 legs? Or that you run through the night without sleeping? Or that you're crammed into a mini van for two days? All this is true, and yet its an awesome bonding experience!
And here's the rundown from my end . . .
Right when I found out I was pregnant this cute girl Christy:
called me and asked me to join her Ragnar relay team. At the time I was thinking . . .
a) I don't get sick when I'm pregnant
b) I'll only be like 12 weeks when we're racing
c) I REALLY want to do a Ragnar
d) All of the above
You guessed it!
All of the above.
And my super supportive husband was like - go for it!
So, I signed up.
Little did I know, I actually can get sick when I'm pregnant.
Like TWENTY-FOUR hours a day nausea.
Thank heavens I wasn't puking (most of the time).
I had read on some mommy-blog that exercise can help with pregnancy nausea, and so I kept running.
Lo and behold - it does help with the nausea.
When I was running I would feel fine and I'd feel good for about 1/2 hour - 1 hour afterwards.
Now, if only nausea had been the only thing I had to contend with!
I had two stomach-flu's, strep-throat, a sinus infection, and my first-ever migraine in those 12 weeks.
It was really fun.
And one of the stomach-flu's came 5 days before the race, and the migraine lasted for a day and a half and ended only one day before the race.
So, I'm really starting to sound like a whiner here, but I'm just documenting so I don't forget how crazy my first 12 weeks of pregnancy was with this third baby!
So many times I wanted to quit, but I haven't been on a team forever and I REALLY, REALLY, REALLY didn't want to let my teammates down!
Miracle of all miracles I woke up early Friday morning to meet the girls to head up to our starting point and I was feeling fine.
I was so happy, and so grateful!
Here is a picture of me running my first leg, a 7-miler along some dirt road near Kirkland, AZ.
During the whole run I just kept saying thank-you prayers.
I was just so elated to be feeling good and doing what I love!
All of the team vans were decorated so fun.
We had our leg numbers on the back of our van and we would cross off each leg once we finished it.
Here I am crossing off my first leg!
Courtney, our team-captain had stocked our van up with great running treats/food to keep us going over the two-day event.
My favorite was the amazing pasta-salad she made.
A perfect pick-me-up.
Since we were van #2 we were the ones running through the middle of the night.
We started our second set of legs at about midnight.
I was scheduled to run 6.2 miles along the Carefree Highway at about 3:00 am.
At about 1:30 our second runner was out on at 8+ mile leg and there was a bad accident on the highway.
A participant (who wasn't running at the time) was crossing the highway to give water to one of his runners and he was hit by a car.
With all the chaos, ambulances, lifeflight, etc. they ended up cancelling four legs of the race, and picking back up in the morning with the 24th leg of the race.
So, I didn't get to run my middle of the night leg.
I was kind of disappointed because I feel like I didn't truly do "ragnar".
Unfortunately the guy who was hit by the car passed away today. So sad.
My third and final leg was an easy three-miler through Mesa (which is flat as a pancake).
Here are a few of my "van-mates" during our last stretch.*
And finally, here is a picture of our entire team at the finish line at Tempe Marketplace!
So much fun and I'd do it again in a heartbeat, and next time I'll hopefully run all three legs!
The best part of the whole weekend was getting to know the fun girls in my van.
The only one I knew previous to race-day was Christy.
The girls were amazing, and I can't wait to stay in touch with them!
And, a BIG thanks to my BIGGEST fan.
He knows how much running means to me and he lets me do these crazy things.
Thanks to Mimi too, for watching the kiddos on Friday morning!
*these are the first pictures I have taken since I got braces (for the second time in my life).
Not loving the look, but I'm sure I'll love the end result.
