It started off like any other day but it was race day for the Ragnar Relay Wasatch Back.
What can I say about running the Wasatch Back? It was an experience. Would I do it again? I really don’t know. My problem is when I see my other friends expressing interest in doing it again next year, I start thinking maybe I should sign up too. Before I get to far ahead of myself let me back up and start at the beginning of June 18, 2010.
The six of us in Van 2 met up and loaded all of our stuff in a Chevy Trailblazer (note to self: must get a real van next time.) We headed towards Eden, Utah, in search of what we thought was exchange 6. None of us had ever raced before and had no idea what a major exchange looked like. We hung out in this area for nearly 4 hours. About 45 minutes before we were to meet up with the next van, we were looking for our safety meeting. Finally one of the Ragnar organizers at this exchange told us we were in the wrong spot.
We raced back to the car and back tracked our way to the major exchange. After getting lost once again, we make it to the exchange and realized it should have been obvious that we were in the wrong spot for the past several hours. By the time I make it to the hand off position at 7:30 p.m. Shane was running up to me with the slap bracelet.
Fortunately, I had been stretching for the past hour because I took off. All that standing around and waiting made me so nervous and sick to my stomach, which is why for the first mile I felt like I ran as if my life depended on it. Then I slowed down into a normal pace. Running through towns and down roads I didn’t know was a bit nerve wracking. As I came around a final bend of my 4 mile run, I could see the hand off where we had been earlier in the day. I took off the slap bracelet and threw it on Nicole’s wrist. Finally I was done with my first leg. I should have felt relieved but I wasn’t.
Our group loaded up into the car and on we went. Each runner got his or her fair share of applause and rabble rousing shouts. Cheering on my team mates was the highlight of each leg for me. Finally our turn was over and we were handing the bracelet back to Van 1. We headed to Morgan High School to try and get some sleep. Unfortunately if felt like it was nap time at a preschool, laying out our blankies on the floor of some band room. My friends next to me whispering and giggling. A constant stream of people coming and going, and of course there was that one man snoring like a freight train. I got 45 minutes of sleep before we had to hustle to the next exchange.
There at East canyon, I stood in the cold darkness of 4:30 in the morning, wanting to puke, waiting for Shane. Having just driven his route, I knew he was going to be dead tired by the time he got to me. As he came around the bend, I turned on my head lamp, and off I went. Running in the dark with my little headphone speakers attached to my shirt, I could hear the beginning of sunrise. Birds were starting to chirp, frogs were being noisy, and the sky started to turn from black to blue. It was beautiful. As for the damn hill I had to climb, I was cursing in my head so loud, I swore someone could hear me. The alleged “moderate” run, was turning into a nightmare, a never ending hill that progressively got steeper and steeper. I reverted to my “mall walk,” swinging arms, wide strides, and the mouth of a sailor to get to the exchange. Once I reached the top of the hill, I took off running again. I slapped the bracelet on Nicole’s arm and headed to the car to try and make some sense of what just happened.
After that each of my fellow runners finished their second legs and we headed to Rocky Mountain Middle School for a shower and to rest up for our final legs. There is nothing quite as refreshing as a shower when you’re exhausted. Since we hadn’t had any real sleep in 24 hours by this time, our brains were starting to slow. Laying in the shade of a tree outside the school, we had about 3 hours until we met up with Van 1. There my husband, Jared, and friend, Arikka met up with us to photograph our final part of the journey. At my final hand off with Shane, I felt a small tremor of relief knowing these were the last 4.2 miles I had to go. By this time it was close to 4 in the afternoon. The road was hot, and the headwinds were making it difficult to run. About half way through I could feel a blister forming on the bottom of my foot. Every step was painful, but all I could think about was, “where is the end to this final leg?” As I shuffled my way to the end and handed off the bracelet for the final time, I was filled with relief. The stomach ache that had plagued me for the past week finally disappeared. My husband said he was proud of me for finishing. All I could think was, no more running.
As each of my teammates finished their final legs, I was overjoyed, and cheered for them as loudly as possible. I knew what an accomplishment if was for each of us to finish this race. About 50 yards out from the finish line we met up with Jake and ran across it with him. Team Chafing Tail finished in 32:04:03.3, not bad for a bunch of Wasatch Back rookies.
I know I promised myself I would never run again, but now after a day and a half worth of sleep, I’m not so sure. Once the memory of training starts to fade, I may find myself in a race once again, repeating this love hate cycle.
For more information, visit the Ragnar Relay online.
Read also:
Ice THIS, Ragnar Wasatch Back!
Sick and tired of training for the Ragnar Wasatch Back Relay
Training for the Ragnar Relay Wasatch Back
Volunteering for the Ragnar Wasatch Back