Post Ragnar

I finished the Ragnar Relay! I survived at 26.2 miles. We met up at 3AM Friday to head to Mt Charleston. When we started our race at 7am, it was snowing and windy. I was runner number 5, and I started my leg of the race around noon. I ran my first leg which was 8.2 miles, and it felt like it was completely uphill. Not only that, but the wind was miserable. I would pick up my right foot and the wind would fly my foot into my left leg. My joints ached from trying to fight the wind.

We stopped and had lunch at Mimi's cafe, and tried to relax before round 2. One of our runners became too sick to run, so we had to have 2 of our runners cover her 2nd and 3rd legs. My second leg started around midnight. It was 10.6 miles leaving Red Rock. Between the wind and the elevation, it was freezing. Unfortunately my leg was a "No Van Support" leg, meaning my team van couldn't stop to give me water or food. I was starving and dehydrated, and had no idea where I was going. I tried to follow the few people that ran past me, and I ended up finishing around 2am.

Once our van finished, we stopped at a pub and got food to go. One of our team members lived close so we crashed at her placed. We got a whopping 2 hours of sleep before waking up for round 3. We were surprisingly all energized, mostly anxious to finish. I ran my final 3rd leg of 7.4 miles around noon. By this time my knees were buckling under me, and I was physically exhausted. Good thing running is only 30% physical and about 70% mental. I was extremely excited to run my leg, and go home to a warm shower and a comfy bed. I wasn't sure if they simply hated runner 5 or if it was just ill planned, but not only were our first 2 legs mark as No Van Support, but leg 3 ended with a staircase. I don't know if any of you have run a marathon and then tried walking up stairs, but it was the last thing I wanted to do.

Overall, I had an amazing experience. We all had a ton of fun, and really got to know each other. I would love to do it again soon, and definitely suggest it to anyone from novice to expert.