Ragnar Cape Cod Recap

Trying to sum up this relay is a really big undertaking!  There was just so many moments that made it the relay that it was that I am certain I will either forget something or bore you with silly inside jokes!  This was my second year doing Ragnar Cape Cod and at first I was not going to be part of it.  It was a lot on my family last year and we had decided that I sit this one out.  However about a month before the race, my coworker and friend Christy asked me if there was any way I could run and bing bang boom...I was in!! 

Ready to roll with my Feetures! socks and compression socks...Ziplock bags galore!

Christy and her husband Ryan were our fearless team leaders and to say they were beyond organized would be an understatement...however I guess after doing 11 relay races you get that way!

A bonus about having them as captains...we were able to crash at their house while our team was off and sleep on real beds and eat real food!!!...oh yes and showers!!!

I was again in van 2 this year

and Christy, Eva and I went to Hull to cheer on our first van as they made their way to Duxbury to meet us.

Our team at the start

With hours to spare we hit up some shopping to replace a poor, archaic ipod and some Lululemon therapy!  We grabbed food at Whole Foods (I'm was cautious about eating because I was first up in our van and didn't want any belly issues!).

The wind on the beach was FREEZING!

Before we knew it, it was time to head to Duxbury and meet up with our van!  I was runner 7 which meant that I was the first person heading out!  We hung out a bit...got our safety briefing...fought the wind...and then it was my turn!  9.8 (But really 10 according to my Garmin) miles into Plymouth. 

My favorite part of my leg...crossing the bridge!

This was the leg where I developed what our team later called "hill Tourettes"!  I mean seriously could there be more hills?!

Seriously who trusted me with the clipboard???

After our van was done we headed back to Christy's house for some food and sleep before we were at it again! 

Can I please just keep my eyes closed?!

Leg #2 for me was at 2am and near my house!  The fog was so thick as it rolled in off the water that I could only see directly in front of me most of the time...good for focusing on running...bad for a spooked mama!  Add to that the fact that the air was so filled with humidity that the water was falling off the trees making it sound like someone in the woods, and you have a pretty quick pace for 2am!  My van was awesome and stopped every mile or so to make sure I was still around!

safety first

Again back to "homebase" and a shower to make life seem doable after we were all done!  We then headed out to Nauset High School for our last push to P-town!  My last leg was a 6.3 miler along the bike path in Wellfleet which really was beautiful...

I however started counting bugs in my mouth instead of kills (6) and those HILLS!!!  I could see the end in sight and was SOOO excited to pass off the slap bracelet and be done!

Our team quickly (we had one runner that ran the last 10 mile leg in a pace of 6min/mile...seriously!) made their way to P-town and got ready to run across the finish together...even though we had trouble keeping up with our lightening fast last runner!! 

Team CC/DC Back in Black

The back of our medals fit together like a puzzle!

A little celebrating and then home we went!  Honestly I had such a great time and met so many interesting people as a part of this race!  I also learned a lot about me as a runner...like how Red Bull as much as it gives me wings it also gives me terrible stomach pains midrun...or how I just need to run faster!!  I kept such an even pace that really only varied by a second or two on all of my legs, that now I know I can do that pace and need to push it more.  I discovered I can live on pb&js and magical gluten free Ragnar cookies!  I've explained it to several people that have asked me how it was and looked horrified when I blurted out how little sleep and how many miles I ran followed by "It was AWESOME!", that runners are a little bit like the Island of Misfit Toys.  We all have our quirks and such...well Ragnar is like our Christmas or perhaps Carnival...all those quirks are out there to celebrate...tutus, funny costumes, and randomness and all!!