The Relay: Race Recap

The Friday before this race, I was not sure what to expect. What I got was an experience very similar to traveling alone. You are by yourself, but you meet fellow travelers who are on the same path as you, and you become friends in minutes. Often, your paths only cross for minutes, or days, but you feel as if you have known the people forever.

My van was like that. A bunch of travelers, all going down the same path, with stories about our craft. Everyone is different; the level of experience varies, but you are all united by a common goal/love. Age range: 20 - 45. Ability range: Once a week runner (1) / Once a month runner (1) / Second race ever (1) / Marathoners (3). Quickly, I will go over the players. Names have been changed to protect the innocent.

MYL: The Organizer. Has run a couple marathons and some smaller races, but is currently not training for anything. She is also the one who got walking pneumonia and therefore was not sure if she was going to be able to run. Texas: A jokester. Has only run one other race before, which was 6 miles long. He ran that race in cross trainers. Backseat B: Fitness Guru. Not a frequent runner, but has buns of steel. The 6 Minute Man: This guy put down a 6 minute mile as his pace. We were all in awe. Young R: At 20 years old, was by far the youngest of the crowd. But he was still picking up what we were putting down.

All 12 of us got together for dinner on Friday night, for a little meet and greet. I am glad we did, because after the first 2 minutes, we already knew that our group was going to have fun. Do you know how I knew? First thing 6 Minute Man says to me is, "I read your blog". I was thinking, "oh crap; I hope I didn't say anything incriminating about this race!" Anyway, I learned that he had Googled everyone after he found out who was in our van. Creepy, right? But funny. You know what, if you put it out there, someone can find it! So beware. At least 6MM was honest about it (cough, cough, stalker!) Everyone was really nice, even the Van 1 people! But I didn't spend as much time with them, so you won't hear about them as much.

On Saturday morning, Van 2 (that's us) met up with Van 1 in Calistoga, CA (in case you are not familiar, that is in Napa County in the wine region) at the start line to see them off. The way our relay was set up was on a wave start. The first teams left at 7 a.m. and every half hour, about a half a dozen teams left the start line. The last teams (the fast people) left at 3 p.m. There were about 200 teams. We went over the start line at 9 a.m.

Doing "team stretches" before the big race

Our van then had to wait, since our first leg was not until about 1 pm. So we went and had some pancakes and coffee at the Hydro Bar and Grill. To be honest, I wasn't sure what to eat. Usually I run in the morning, so I have a simple breakfast (must have cereal!) and I hit the road. But this time, the time of day and the waiting, and the HEAT...I did not know how to play it. About an hour before my first leg, I had a bagel with peanut butter. You know how they say that certain things work for some and not for others? Peanut Butter? Does NOT work for me. Urp.

Leg 1: 5 pm Saturday. Finally, it was time for my first leg. It was about 85 degrees and very, VERY windy. The wind was not a nice, cooling breeze. It dried out your eyes, and your lips and your tongue. It pushed you backwards. It was hard. The beginning of my leg was through Petaluma, which is pretty flat, but that meant navigating the streets, which are not shut down. Around mile 3, there was a steady (and HOT) uphill until around mile 5, when it finally went down to the end. I saw cows (this area used to be known for it's dairies), sheep (I yelled MMAAA at them and the one other runner, who I didn't realize was behind me, laughed at me) and lots of green rolling hills.

TOTALS, Leg 1: 6.9 miles / 54:23 / 7:56 pace

Much of leg one looked like this

After our van was done, we headed to San Francisco, where we had a chance to rest at a friend's house. Unfortunately, we went the wrong way and ended up taking the coastal road instead of the freeway. This gave us the chance to have dinner in Stinson Beach, which is lovely, but made it so we did not arrive to San Francisco until about 9:30 and we were needing to leave by 11. I got about 1 hour of sleep.

Getting ready for the night run. Photo Credit: Texas.

Leg 2: 12:05 a.m. Sunday. Since MYL had gotten sick, I agreed to run this leg for her. I am so glad I did. This leg started at the foot of the Golden Gate Bridge and wound it's way around the coast, past Baker Beach, the Legion of Honor and the Cliff House and then down the Great Highway for the last 3 miles. It was the easiest 7 mile run I have ever done. It was cool, about 50 degrees, there was a nice cool sea breeze coming off the water, the city was quiet and dark (which I thought I wouldn't like, but I LOVED) and it was nice to just run along, without music (I know! Me? No music!) through the city I love so much. It was a little hilly as well, but they didn't even phase me this time.

TOTALS, Leg 2: 7 miles / 59:11 / 8:22 pace

This is where I ran for leg 2. It was dark, but still beautiful!

Leg 3: 3:30 a.m. Sunday. This leg was quick and easy, and although not as great as the last one, it was still nice to run quietly along in the dark.

TOTALS, Leg 3: 1.8 miles / 13:33 / 7:44 pace

After our last runner was done, we went to the resting place, which was a college gym, with showers and where you could stretch out in your sleeping bag and rest. We chose rest over sleep, but still by the time we got in, it was about 5:30 a.m. We got up at 7, making the grand sleep total about 2.5 hours. 

Van 2

Leg 4: 12:34 pm Sunday. Holy hills batman. This one was a doozy. It went up and down and up and down and up and up and up. From mile 4.5 to 6, there was a 700 ft elevation change. I thought I was tough. I have run hills before. I run trail races. But these hills, running on no sleep, in 80 degree weather, up and up and up...they killed me. I was hurting. On the plus side, I passed 6 people. Hey, sorry dudes, but that made me feel good. I'll admit it.

TOTALS, Leg 4: 6.3 miles / 55:23 / 8:46 pace

Over the hills and through the Redwoods

After I went, the next runner was our last runner. Her leg was 6 miles total, and we all jumped in at the end to run the last mile with her so we could all (including Van 1) cross the finish line together as a team.

Finishing Leg: 1.2 miles / 15:56 / 13:07 pace

Team TOTALS:  194 miles / 29:32:56 / 9:08 pace

The finish line. The guy in orange is who we were running/raising money for.

*Just a side note, the Google team usually wins, at least they did for several years. This year, they got lost and came in 2nd. However, this did not stop them from maintaining UNDER a 6 minute mile the entire time! (their total was: 19:49) Results HERE.

Afterward, there was BEER. And burritos. I was in heaven. Actually I ordered a burrito AND a plate of nachos, which I did not even come close to finishing. Then we had to drive back home (about two hours), get gas for the van and drop me off at my car where I had a 30 minute drive to get home. Then I took a shower and went straight to bed. I think it was about 9 p.m. I slept for 11 hours. Phew.

The Verdict?  If you are not from California, or even if you are, you should do this race. The scenery is amazing and it varies, showing off many of our best places. This is a great way to get introduced to some of the smaller towns and roads and off the beaten path areas.

Would I Do it Again? Yes. It was hard and I don't know how some people, who weren't regular runners, did it, because I think I am in pretty good shape and I had a hard time on some of the legs. It was challenging to have to run several times in one day, without proper food or sleep, up hills, in the heat. But I have to say, I loved every minute of it. Also, I made a bunch of new friends, and that is invaluable.

Van 2. Photo credit: 6MM.

Who is ready to run with me next year? Have you ever conquered a fear and found it better than you imagined? Have you ever been to any of the towns we ran through? 

Don't forget to check out other Fitness Friday posts over at Jills. Have a Happy Mother's Day on Sunday all you MOMS!

What I Learned (2): The Relay

The Relay is over. I am tired. Sore. Dehydrated. And Happy. I am glad I did it. I will go over the recap in a few days, but for now, I want to say that I learned a lot from doing this. I have to admit, I was a bit hesitant going in, mostly because it was going to be a new experience for me, but also because I was going to spend the weekend with strangers, doing a strange thing. I was a bit scared.

But now? I am not scared anymore. I had a good time and it was an experience I will never forget. And I learned a  lot too! Here are a few of the things I learned. 

Jonnycat's Dirty Dozen

- You run by yourself but you are not alone. Most of the race was spent running alone, since the teams all started at different times, the race tended to be a bit spread out. Sometimes you pass a few people on your run (or sometimes they pass you, but we tried not to let that happen**!) but many times you are running a pretty quiet road all by yourself. However, the van goes on the same route and stops along the way to make sure everything is going well. So you never feel like you are alone. The team is always there.

- Inside the van, everything goes. Yup, you eat in the van. You sleep in the van. Your dirty feet and socks are in the van. You laugh in the van. You sweat in the van. Everything happens in the van. And this leads to...

- A stranger can be your new best friend. You spend a lot of time in the van, talking, laughing, joking, cheering each other on, giving high fives and hugs and pats on the back. You get to know these people in less than 48 hours. A bond is formed pretty quickly. I now have five new friends.

- Support is a multifaceted word. My group was awesome. If one of us was having trouble, the group would meet the runner at each mile with water, cheering and dancing and doing whatever it took to keep the runner's spirits up. Sometimes we even ran with each other for a little while. Also, I learned that the little net inside of your running shorts has a few different, interesting names that I was not aware of.

- Talking about certain body parts is par for the course. All body parts are open for discussion. Body glide goes on these parts in massive amounts. This is normal.

- There are many Hills. This race pretty much went up, then down, then up, then down...the entire time. I ran 4 legs and all of them had hills. There were no flat runs. That is the same for all my van mates. We had a couple of "easy" legs, but they too had hills. If you are not a hill runner, this makes things very hard. Even if you are a hill runner, it is difficult.

-**And many Kills. Kills also are hard. In case you don't know, a kill is when you pass another runner. Some of the other vans had tallies on the side of their van. We did not. We kept that info in our heads. Since the other relay teams are so spread out, on some legs (my 2 a.m. leg for instance) you don't see one other runner the entire time. On others, you see a dozen. So we tried our best to pass who we could, even though we were not running this race competitively. It still brought an element of challenge and competition to our team, between us and the other teams, as well as between the members of our van.

As you can see, I learned a lot. Team sports can be difficult because you have to count on other members of your team. But also, because of this very thing, team sports can be great. You have someone to count on and you have someone counting on you. This creates a bond that can't be broken and an element of fun you just can't get by yourself.

Do you/did you play any team sports and if so, do you like it more or less than individual sports? Do you know an alternate name for the liner that goes inside your shorts (you can privately email me if it's not fit for public view)? Did you learn anything new this weekend?

Pre-Relay Jitters

Tomorrow, I embark on something I have never embarked upon before. A relay race. I am scared.

Vanessa posted this the other day, and it's a funny video where a runner explains to a non-runner what a relay race is all about.



It is pretty funny, because I have been asked many of these same questions. For example: Our relay is raising money for Organs R Us. We raised a few thousand dollars. We also got a sponsor to pay our entry fees. So when I told Mr Lovely that we had to pay to run this race, he didn't understand why. Why do we have to pay? Good question.

We have to rent our own vans. As the video states, we need baby wipes (lots of them apparently). And gas. And snacks. And water. And whatever is left over goes to a good cause! It will be fun (if you haven't already, see above video)! Right? RIGHT?

Sometimes I wonder.

I have to admit, as it's getting closer, I am wondering why the heck I joined a GROUP running effort. I loved playing soccer as a team, but the logistics were fairly easy. 1) put on cleats 2) drive to field 3) play soccer 4) drink beer. It only took a couple of hours. There was no, "who's going to bring the GPS and who can get 5 headlamps and where will we sleep and who is going to drive and what about reflective vests and snacks and iPod chargers and signs and BABY WIPES??" I know we don't need 10 iPod chargers in one van, and there has to be a semblance of order but I don't like relying on other people. I would rather have my own checklist with all the stuff I know I will need on it. I don't want to share my Garmin. I know; I'm mean.

I don't play well with others. I mean, I do, when it's organized and things happen at a certain time. But this has so many unknowns! How fast do people run? This makes a difference. If the first 10 people (I am number 11) run slower or faster than they said they would, we will have to run at a different time of day than we are expecting. I have routines I always follow. I need to eat a certain kind of food a certain amount of time before I run. This usually isn't a problem, but I am not normally dealing with 5 other people. I am going to bring my own Cheerios and hope we can stop for milk (and have a backup granola bar and squirreled away apple just in case we can't).

When asked to choose our slots, I said I would take any one that wasn't between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. (that is basically 7 of the 12 runners). But when my friend asked me to take one of the harder legs, I said "no problem". This leg? Is at 4 a.m. on Sunday morning. I didn't know this, since I didn't know everyone's pace at the time. Not only that, but now that friend is sick so I am going to take one of her legs (and maybe two), adding an additional 7 miles to my total, as well as causing me to run at... 2 a.m.!

So my "schedule" (as we know it) looks like this (V = Very Hard, H = Hard, M = Moderate, E = Easy):

~ 6:30 p.m. Sat -- 11th Leg: 6.9 H
~ 2:00 a.m. Sun -- 19th Leg (sub): 7 H
~ 4:30 a.m. Sun -- 23rd Leg: 1.9 (used to be 3.7, but there is road construction) E
~ 3:00 p.m. Sun -- 35th Leg: 6.2 VH

TOTAL:  22 miles

I have cold feet. I am worrying about everything. I am dreading this race! It's not the 22 miles that scares me; it's the two middle of the night runs, which are not back to back. So I will run 7 miles and then probably try to sleep for an hour and then run again. Or try NOT to sleep for an hour and then wobble along for LUCKILY only 1.9 miles! But that one point nine miles is my blessing and my curse. If I didn't have to run it, I could try to sleep, but I have to stay up for 1.9 measly miles? And yes, right now they are "measly".

I know, I know. I need to get into the spirit of things. It's going to be a new experience and I will get in a few extra miles this week and it will probably all go very smoothly and I will be fine. And most of all... it will be fun! (seriously, watch the video)

Have you ever run a relay? If so, please reassure me... Do you work well in large groups? Are you are morning (2 a.m.) person?

The Very Hard Leg

I mentioned a while back that not only was I planning on doing the 12 in 2012 Running Challenge this year, but I also have another couple of races on the horizon. One of them, I am very excited to say, is The Relay, which is a two day, 199 mile relay run from Calistoga, California to Santa Cruz, California. The very coolest part is that the race is run over the Golden Gate Bridge at midnight on Saturday. 

Here’s some info from the website: CALIFORNIA'S LONGEST PARTY - YOU'RE INVITED! Gather your friends (12-member teams). Decorate your vans. Dress your best (costumes optional). Run (or walk). "It's the most fun 24 feet can have in the best place on earth." From Napa Valley to the Pacific Ocean, 12-member teams run 36 legs (3 legs per runner, 3-8 miles each) through 36 cities and across the Golden Gate Bridge at midnight in support of Organs 'R' Us ("ORU") and 100,000 Americans waiting for organ donors. Contact info.

This run has a special meaning for us, since our team, Jonnycat’s Dirty Dozen, is running for our close friend Jon, who is currently on the donor list for both a kidney and a pancreas. There are twelve runners, who each run three legs each, each ranging from 3 – 8.1 miles and ranging in total from 12.9 to 18.5 miles. You can see on the chart below what I am talking about. As you can see, they rate the legs (on the right column labeled “difficulty”) by harder (#1) to easier (#12). You can also see that the “more data” section below states that legs 34 and 35 are the hardest. 

Now, I am going to give you three guesses as to which runner I am. Nope, it’s not number 1, the easiest runner. Nope, it’s not number 6, the cool runner that gets to run across the Golden Gate Bridge. Did you say that I should probably try one of the harder runners? That’s what I thought you said. Well, I guess you are right. Why don’t I pick number…11?

Actually, I “picked” number 4. I know. What a copout right? Right smack dab in the middle of the difficulty scale. But, I will tell you why I picked that one. I picked it because it was the second highest amount of miles. And I can run a lot of miles. But my friend who is organizing this emailed me a week after I sent her the email saying which leg I wanted and begged me, pleaded with me, told me I was very strong and brave and good looking asked me to switch to number 11. I said yes right away. Then I looked at what I had gotten myself into. This is what it looks like.

It “looks like” a 500 foot elevation gain over 6.2 miles! So it’s a difficult 10k race, which I will run after running two other “races” that day (6.9 miles and 3.7 miles) and probably getting little sleep.  Phew! I am going to be a mess! I guess I should be glad I am not number 10!

I’m actually very excited about this race, even though I am joking around about it right now.  I am, as always, nervous, even more nervous than normal, because I wouldn’t only be letting myself down if I do badly; I will be letting my team down! I am looking forward to a few things. One, Dean Karnazes has won the Ultra portion of this race (yes you can run it by yourself. Maybe next year) several times and will be hosting the Friday night pre-race dinner in Napa County. Two, it’s on my home turf. I have relatives north of the city who will be able to watch as I run leg 11. I have friends south of the city who can watch 23 or 35! The weather is going to be great; the scenery is going to be awesome; I will meet 11 new people! Plus, I get to sleep in a van with five (smelly) other people (down by the river).  How can you beat that?

Have you ever run a relay race? Have you ever been to Napa County? Have you ever walked across the Golden Gate Bridge?