Ragnar Recap

Of course for the week leading up to the race I had a niggling pain in my right ankle. I've had pain there before, diagnosed as tendinitis. I tried to stay off it as much as possible and wear good supportive shoes when I had to be up and around. I really think it was just a case of too much time in flip flops with no arch support. Thursday night I slept well enough but once I got Andy up at 5am I couldn't go back to sleep. I got up and got ready and decided that since Leg 1 was passing by about a mile or so from my house I made a sign and went out to the course to cheer on my team captain and any other runner who happened to go by.

Please pardon my spelling error, it was 6:45am and I hadn't had my coffee. Hahaha I'm not sure anyone else even noticed until I pointed it out. I went straight home after my captain went by, got my gear good and ready, and killed time (fb'd and sweated thru my deodorant 3x) until it was time to meet my van.

My mom came a bit earlier than we had planned (thank goodness!!!) and we hit the road to town. Just a few miles down the freeway I realized I had forgotten my lunch box. Holy crap, not good! We zipped back, grabbed it, and headed back towards town. I ended up being 15 mins late but we had a couple of hours before the actual race exchange so it was all good. We headed down to Bellingham High School which was the first major exchange where Van 2 took over the running. They also had the van 2 safety checks, sponsor booths, music, & gear for sale. The atmosphere was energetic to say the least.

I was Runner 12, the last to get started. I got my first leg (Leg 12) underway at about 5:30pm. It was supposed to be 4.1 miles on flat terrain. It was *hot* and the only breeze I got was from passing vehicles which there were quite a few of. My Garmin picked up 4.22 miles in 45:46. Just a bit faster than projected but I was amped and couldn't slow down. It wasn't until I was done and took off my shoes that I discovered a blister forming just under my left big toe. We moved on to the next major exchange, showered (silly me didn't bring a towel so I dried off with my sweaty shorts) went to dinner, then tried to sleep for the next 2 hours. Our next stretch started back up around midnight.

Finishing leg 12, handover van 2 to van 1

My next leg (Leg 24) got underway at 5:30am. Keep in mind I have now been awake for 24 hours. I have "rested" with my eyes closed but not actually slept at all. This leg was supposed to be 8.9 miles, the longest leg of the race. The first 5 miles of which were not van supported, in other words my team mates could not stop to offer encouragement, food, or water. Besides the other runners passing me by I was alone out there until I got into town. This was a hilly route, not steep hills but lots of gradual rises and drops. I had mole skinned my blister and it didn't bother me until about mile 7 when the path sloped a bit and put sideways pressure on it. Thankfully it stayed intact I know it would have been 10x worse had it popped and exposed the raw skin underneath. My Garmin picked up 8.96 miles in 1:45. We headed on up to the next major exchange, showered (used my sweaty shirt this time after what could not even be considered a shower since there was so little water misty out of the shower head), and went out for breakfast.

My last leg (Leg 36, advertised as 4.7 miles) kicked off at 4:30pm. At this point we were way ahead of schedule and I was fretting about Andy & the kids making it to the finish line before me. They were still on the road the last time we texted, just before I started to run. I made the decision not to sand bag just so they could make it and was just running what felt comfortable. Somewhere around mile 2 I was hitting a wall. The elevation was peaking and I was slowing waaay down. Suddenly I heard honking behind me, I turned my head just a little expecting to see my team van but instead I saw my own truck with Andy & the kids cheering me on. It was the just what I needed, I started to tear up and sniffle but I pulled it together knowing that crying was going to mess up my breathing and cause me trouble. I then clocked my fastest 2 downhill miles. The last uphill push was hard and at one point I thought I was off course. There was a slight lack of signage and there were no other runners in sight. I nearly cried from relief when the "one mile to go" marker showed up, too bad it was placed about a 1/4 mile to early. ha As you can see from my previous post we my whole team was waiting for me and we all crossed together. Andy, Wyatt, Averill & Lydia were there waiting for me. It was awesome. Garmin picked up 4.83 miles in 55:34.

Of course on all the legs there was cheering, eating, and shenanigans that just can't be described. It maybe a once in a lifetime experience for me but one I will cherish forever.