The Loneliness of The Long Distance Runner...

... is a terrible title for this post, because I wouldn't have gotten through this event if it wasn't for the amazing support of my team.  I'll get the emotional and inspirational stuff out of the way before getting into the details of the actual race.  I spent the last eight months reading every possible thing I could about the Ragnar Relay, and kept seeing constant references to how supportive and encouraging everybody was.  I am by nature a cynical person, and tend to do things by myself and in my own way, and so I assumed "Oh, maybe that was the case for those people, but I'm a stoic loner, and HAVE NO NEED OF SUCH THINGS".  I was OVERWHELMED by how positive and motivating complete strangers were; constant cheers, high fives, and shouts of "GOOD JOB RUNNER!" And let's not forget the support of the second van, who took on half of this adventure and who I got to meet only briefly, but were out there putting on miles in the dark while I was sleeping on a high school gym floor. As for my team... I mean really, no words can do it justice.  Aside from all of the PMA, encouragement, jokes, and laughter,  there was the logistical support; running tips, stretching tips, reminding me to eat and drink, and a very timely reminder to put body glide on my nipples.  I would gladly repeat this INSANE challenge again with them, no questions asked.  Thanks, van family.  Sorry my sweat smells like cat piss.  

AND NOW FOR THE SWASSY DETAILS.

On Thursday, after a frantic morning packing and organizing gear, then deciding i was bringing way too much shit with and eliminating a bunch of it, then freaking about not knowing what to bring for food, I decided on a final load out and had my wife drive me to Oakdale to meet up with the van.  I met half of my van mates for the first time, and we made the drive to Stillwater to get checked in and go through the safety video.  After that, it was off to St. Paul, where we ate all of the carbs at Cosetta's (amusingly, I had a beer there and looked around the table and saw everyone else was drinking water).  We then decorated the van, checked into our hotel, and I prepared for a good night's sleep before the race.  This, of course, failed horribly, as nerves kept me awake and woke me up at 3am, so I got a solid three hours of sleep.  Oh well!  After a quick breakfast of a granola bar and some coffee, we headed off to the starting line to see off runner #1 (who was actually runner #5, but because of a last minute mileage change we flipped that runner for the first leg).  It was then off to the first exchange, and the start of my first leg.  It was a 3.6 mile leg, which is a relatively easy run at this point for me.  As a result of the last minute changes to the course, i was a bit concerned as the map of my run and the written directions were completely different. Also... no port-a-potties.  I convinced myself I didn't need to take a leak, and waited for our first runner to appear.  Before I knew it, I was off!  I had a great first run, knocking a minute off of my mile time, and had lovely views of Lake Phalen.  I was also surprised to pass nine other runners on the course, racking up nine "roadkills" or "kills".  I made it to the exchange, passed over the slap bracelet to runner #3 (who yelled "OWWW!" when I passed it over maybe too aggressively), and was greeted by a cheering team and a surprise full water bottle from one of my teammates.  I chomped down some food, then got settled in to cheer on the rest of my team while we finished up our leg.

We finished up our first leg in Stillwater (where we started the night before for check in), and then drove up the road to our next exchange.  I got changed into my 2nd set of running gear (conveniently, in the air conditioned bathroom of the bowling alley we were parked at), and then... we waited.  It was getting rather warm out there, and we were in a parking lot in full sun.  There wasn't much space left in the shade, so i grabbed a quick nap in the van.   Then it was time for the second leg.  There was a traffic jam leaving the exchange, so I wound up having to get fully ready for my next run in the moving van.  I swapped out shirts as it was 82 degrees and full sun, and we got to the exchange with enough time for me to use the increasingly ripe port-a-potties and get my game face on.  Then I was off on my longest run, 4.6 miles.  I took it easy, racked up 5 kills, and enjoyed a lovely paved trail run that was thankfully at least somewhat shaded.  I got to the exchange, and for some reason got confused and didn't think I was in the right place, so I just kept running another 100 meters or so.  I got up to a road crossing, which didn't seem right, and asked the volunteer where the exchange was, and he pointed... ahead.  Which seemed wrong.  So I doubled back to the group of people I had seen and recognized our co-captain, and then noticed the runner I was supposed to hand off to leaving the port-a-potty.  I shouted her name, ran to the runner chute, handed off the bracelet, and then was briefed as to what had happened.  Apparently, they had also overshot the exchange... by like 5 miles.  I also ran faster than my expected pace again, but in the long run (no pun intended), no big deal.  I rehydrated (or so i thought), and then we headed to the next series of exchanges.  After picking up our last runner, we were able to head off to the start of our last legs, which conveniently had SHOWERS, and INDOOR SLEEPING.  So previously, I had mentioned that I thought I had rehydrated.  I drank 20oz of water during and immediately after the run, another 16oz in the van, and then a 16oz Gatorade.  I didn't have to pee for 5 hours.  I apparently sweat a lot.  Also, my sweat has cat pheromones in it.  MRRRRREOW.  (sorry, van joke)

So... sleeping.  In my head, I had this notion that the runners would be more staggered at the major exchanges.  I had thought there'd be a few dozen people at a time, and we'd be able to put all of our team in the same rough area, get some food, clean up, and then get some good sleep.  What we walked into was complete chaos.  I wish I had thought to take video or pictures of the scene; full parking lot, people spread out or every available space outside, people in hammocks, people in tents, people just sleeping face down in the grass.  I was directed into the gym, where at first glance there was simply no space left.  I wandered around, gingerly stepping over people's heads, and found a roughly 6x3 space to set up my camping pad and sleeping bad.  I then found my way out, paid $2 for a shower, and took a FRIGID shower.  I somehow found my way back to my bedroll about 1am, told myself I would just eat in the morning, and set alarms for 4:00am, 4:01am, 4:02am, and so on up to 4:05am, and fell asleep.  I woke up to the sound of... someone else's alarm.  I grabbed my phone and looked at the time. 4:45am.  OHSHITWE'REEXPECTINGARUNNERRIGHTNOW.  I then saw another text from our Captain, saying that we weren't expecting a runner in until roughly 6am.  I then looked around the gym and 3/4 of the people there were now gone.  I packed up my gear (i have zero memory of this part) and made it to the van to start getting geared up for my final leg.

I had a goal, pre-Ragnar, to try and PR my last leg, as it was 3.1 miles.  I set out with that goal in mind... and then promptly forgot to start my Garmin until a few blocks in.  So I don't ACTUALLY know if I PR'd that.... but it was close.  According to my Garmin, I ran 3.08 miles at a 10:25 average pace, for a time of 32:07.  My 5K PR is 32:13.  If I did the math correctly (which it is highly likely I didn't).... I was close.  Maybe 6 seconds slower? Had I not taken the second water walk, I would have made it.  Had I pushed a little harder.... I would have made it.  Regardless, I finished my last leg fast (well, for me) and feeling great.  And then.... I was done.

After our last runner came in (Ben, as it turns out) we wished Van 2 the best and headed into Duluth for some ice cream and checked into our hotel.  I took a very long, very amazing shower, and settled down for a 45 minute nap.  I woke up EXTREMELY confused.  I had forgotten, once again, to eat and rehydrate before I went to sleep, and our drive into Duluth from our hotel in Superior was a little rough; i was shaky and still waking up.  When we made it to Leif Erickson Park to wait for our last runner to come in, I had regained some energy and adrenalin got me going again.  We anxiously checked Find My Friends to see where our runner was, and soon enough, she rounded the corner and we joined her in running the last 1/8 mile across the finish line.  We got our medals, and I'm not gonna lie, I teared up.  We took the obligatory team photo with our medals on the ground with our feet, I got the BEST TASTING BEER I can remember drinking in a long time, I got a free hot dog and chips and actually drank an entire can of pop for the first time in probably two years, and then I got ANOTHER beer and bought a whole bunch of Ragnar swag.  We went out for a dinner with the van, where I enjoyed MORE WELL EARNED BEERS.  We made it back to the hotel, and slept the sleep of tired runners.

The next day, we made our way back home, and my team dropped me off for my family to pick me up.  It was strange, leaving the people I had been living with for the last 48 hours.  As soon as it had started... it was over.

While it wasn't the best van tag I saw over the weekend, this one seems appropriate: "Ragnar: it's like fun... but different".  That really sums it up.  Did I have fun?  Yes!  Did it suck?  Yes!  I wasn't prepared for the sleep deprivation, and I'm stuck with the feeling that I could have run faster.  Those were minor complaints for me in what was an amazing weekend.  My team were all rockstars, and I'm proud of every single one of them.

Since this was my first Ragnar, I didn't really know how my body and brain would react to the weekend, and I think I'll be better prepared for next year.  First off, I need to eat and hydrate better.  I survived on granola bars and peanut butter, and I should have worked an actual meal or at least a sandwich into the equation.  As for the hydration part, I should have drank smaller amounts of water more frequently.  There's also some organizational bits; packing better, packing less, using a different gear bag.  Finally, sleep.  I should have tried to get more frequent naps in during the day.  I was counting on 4 hours during the evening and that was just silly.

So what's next?  Keep running.  I have a terrible habit of finishing a big event and then not running for the rest of the year.  I've got two 5K's scheduled for this fall, and then after that.... i start training for a half marathon.  As for next year's Ragnars (why not Road and Trail?), i'm anxiously awaiting a New Year's Eve text from Ben.  I'm in.