Upcoming Events - Ragnar Relay Del Sol (21-22 Feb. 2014)

Upcoming Events - Ragnar Relay Del Sol (21-22 Feb. 2014)

Part of what I wanted to do was to share my adventures in racing and running events.  Definitely a huge part of my race season is the Ragnar Relay series.  If you have never participated in one, I would HIGHLY recommend trying one out (heck, get in contact with me, I am usually captaining at least one team a year, and trying to be on at least three or four more).  This year, I currently have 5 relays on the docket, with the first one coming up in just a week.

Race

Ragnar Relay Del So

Type

Team Relay Road Race

Location

Wickenburg, AZ to Tempe, AZ

Team Name

Breaking Bad

Synopsis

I will be part of a twelve man (and woman) team, running in position two, running a 202.5 mile course over the course of a day and a half.  We will be divided up into two vans (van 1 holding positions 1-6 and van 2 holding positions 7-12).  The vans rotation, van 1 starting and then switching off after the sixth leg with van 2, then switching back after the twelfth leg until each runner has completed 3 legs each.  The legs are of varying distances with runners covering from 10.8 miles to 23.1 miles overall in the course of the race.

The team I am part of, Breaking Bad, is going with a theme based on the popular show.  In fact, I have been picked to be the "Walter White" of the group.  This will include me dressing something like Walter White from the Season 1 poster for the show (green shirt, tighty whities, argyle socks. . .).  The team has custom painted tighty whities (with "Breaking [RunnersName]" on the back in Breaking Bad style, see pics).

(oh, did I mention that the tighty whities glow?  Forgot that part!  The "Let's Cook" one of Walter White's most notable lines, is written on the front of the tighty whities).

Why I Love This Event

Ragnars in general are truly an experience.  Everyone is the same kind of crazy.  We are all out there because we love to run, we love the social aspect of the Ragnar, and we want to be around other people that share our specific type of sickness.  Many of us while running are saying to ourselves "Why am I doing this AGAIN???" but as soon as we cross the finish line, our next thought is "When can we do this again???"  There is a sense of community and family among Ragnarians that I have not quite felt anywhere else.

This specific race I am looking forward to because it is rumored to be one of the pretties night runs of the Ragnar event.  In fact, our team is going on a free pass because the team captain won the Del Sol Starry Night competition (something I will have to try to outdo him on this year. . . . ).  Arizona in February, running through the dark country side, seeing a massive vista of stars.  What's not to love?  It will be my first time running Del Sol, and I am really excited to get out there and do it.

I am running in Position 2, which means that I will run a 5.5 mile leg, then a 5.7 mile leg, and finish with a 7.7 mile leg.  This is just about what I like to do.  3 miles seems too short, and anything over 7 or 8 miles at a stretch gets to be a bit much for me sometimes (though I WILL be doing a 9.8 mile leg in May).  Anyway, the legs are just about right for what I am looking for, though I will end on a pretty nice hill (the 7.7 goes downhill then back up for the last half).  Either way, I will run it, I will finish, I shall overcome, and I shall LOVE it!

Check back the week after the race for my post race overview!  It should be a fun one.  I have not yet exposed myself in Arizona as I shall during the race (Speedo is all I have to say, Speedo and tighty whities).  Hopefully I will have some pictures to share, some stories to share, and many new friends from yet another amazing Ragnar!