TEAM JERSEY SORE!
So all these months of pain, tears, frustration and anxiousness brought us FINALLY to the event I had been waiting for. Ragnar has come....and Ragnar has gone. I don't know if I have the words to fully express how I felt about it. It wasn't a life changing event......but oh my God, it was (for me) challenging, pushed me beyond my ability, painful to the point of tears streaming down my cheeks on my last leg, exhausting, fun! Our team name was Jersey Sore: the guys dressed like The Situation and the girls all had Snookie wigs & glasses on. Very cute! ;)
Leg 1:
Our race started at 7:15 on Friday morning. The guys were in Van #1 so they had to be at Valley of Fire by 6:15am. They got there late because there was a line of traffic waiting to get into the park for this event.
But soon enough they started their run. Van #2 (the girls) didn't have to get to Lake Mead to meet up with the boys until sometime about 1pm so we could get check in and start our leg of the race. Time flew by and before I knew it, our first girl runner (Super star Hollie) was on her way. The boys were done for about 6 hours, so they were free to go to the next exchange @ Lake Las Vegas and hang around the pool to wait for us to be done so that they could go again. My stomach was in knots and I wanted to throw up. Knowing that Hollie would knock out her run in no time had me anxious because Melissa would go next, and I didn't know what kind of runner she was since this was only the 2nd time I had met her, but previously I think we had only exchanged 50 words ;)....Melissa was awesome. Amy next, and I knew without a doubt she would not have any problems. Ummmm...then came me . Wow...wish I could say I was so awesome too. I wasn't. BUT I trudged trough it, silently cussing in my head as I jogged/shuffled/sometimes walked through 3.5 of my "EASY" uphill leg. What was I doing out there? What in the hell kind of crazy people PAY hard earned money to endure such torture? I made it through (barely), handed my slap bracelet to Michelle and praised sweet baby Jesus that I was done for a handful of hours! Woot woot!! Michelle was done, Amanda flew through her leg and it was getting colder and darker by the minute.
Leg 2:
We met up with the boys again (at Lake Las Vegas) for their turn. Sweet. We had time to kill, but inside knowing they would be done quickly (i,e: too soon for me to be ready again!). Trying to catch some zzz's in the minivan was unsuccessful for the most part. I think I was able to doze off for a little bit, but put 6 girls in a small confined space and we had a whole lot of interesting things to chit-chat about!! LOL!! So fun! But in no time, I felt like the guys were finishing up and we had meet them at the exchange to start our second leg. I honestly don't think I have any concept of time at this point. I just knew it was dark & cold...and the lucky guys were heading to our warm hotel that Amy or Michelle smartly booked for us to be able to shower & sleep for an hour or 2. So jealous! I felt like I blinked and it was again my turn....these bitches are too fast!! haha! 5 miles on a slight gradual incline @ 1am(ish). This was my favorite run. I was slow & steady but didn't stop once, which made me so happy! Michelle hauled ass for her 7 mile run then our last girl, Amanda, would finish up. Her run was the worst...she got stuck with a "trail" run. Rather, it was loose gravel with tons of rocks & boulders...it was pitch black outside and freezing. She's such a trooper! Once she finally made her way to the end, we got to go to the hotel while the guys did their final run. A hot shower and an hour & a half of sleep was so spectacular! I felt like a million bucks, but my stomach was in knots again cause I knew I had to run again soon.
Leg 3 (finally!!!):
We got up and went downstairs to get some breakfast. I didn't have much of an appetite, I just wanted to get this run over with but knew if I didn't eat now, I'd regret it later. I had a little bit of oatmeal and half a banana; that was all I could stomach. We left the hotel to gray skies and breezy cold wind. Booooo! So not expecting that! I was so badly hoping for no wind with just the slightest chill, so that I didn't combust when I had to run :) My face and lips were so chapped and wind-burned that they were painful. We must have applied 87 tubes of chap-stick between the 6 of us!! Once we got on the road, we headed up toward Red Rock where we would meet the guys and finish our race. We got to the exchange point, basically in the middle of the desert. I could smell pancakes being cooked up and I suddenly wanted to grub, but managed to contain myself ;) The guys showed up just as their last runner, Adam, was finishing his run. Hollie took off to do her final leg....a 10 miler! She is truly inspiring. I don't know how she does it, but she makes it look so dang easy! And she looks amazingly beautiful all the while (I hate her! LOL!). Melissa & Amy did their thang, like the bad-asses they are, then I was on my way. Oh brother! This was unbearable. About a mile & a half into it, my knee started to hurt so badly. It was all I could do to go on. I felt like it needed to pop or something, but I couldn't get it to move. I took the ITB strap I had on my left leg and moved it to the right leg just above my knee in hopes that it would help. I had to walk. Michelle asked if I wanted someone to run the rest for me, but I would have been beyond disappointed in myself if I stopped, so as soon as I got to the top of the hill, I had a little over a mile to go, so I just went for it. It wasn't fast, and it wasn't pretty, but I finished. I was so happy to be DONE!! If it were physically possible for me, I would have done a cartwheel, I was so thrilled!!!!! Michelle was awesome on her run then Amanda went on her merry way, never stopped smiling. The 5 of us went to the Red Rock Hotel to meet up with the boys and run in with Amanda at the finish line. It was great! We all had our costumes on and finished together. I don't think I accurately put into words what this race did for my confidence. I was pretty convinced that when this was done, I was hanging up my running shoes for good. I don't think I can do that now. What I would have missed had I decided NOT to do Ragnar. It was more than pushing myself to do something I didn't really think I'd be able to do, but the bonding between the people that was on the team with me was something I will cherish forever. The guys all got along so great and the girls were so supportive & fun to be with. You learn a lot about someone when you have nothing but time on your hand...and since I was the oldest chick there, I taught these young little missy's a thing or 2 (HJ, anyone...???) LOL!!!!
I really hope we do another Ragnar next year...Napa??!!! And with the same exact team. For as little of a time I've known most of my team-mates, I would not have wanted to do this with anyone else.
