SoCal Ragnar 2014

 

 

 



At the beginning of the month I ran my second So Cal Ragnar Race.  I decided to run it only about a month prior to the race.  It took me a while to commit due to just taking the time away and the cost of doing it.   But in the end FOMO won over (fear of missing out, that is), especially when I knew so many people running it this year.   Plus I was dying to see the new course that was supposed to be a little bit more coastal, as opposed to the last SoCal Ragnar, which could have easily been called the Inland Empire Ragnar.  And of course I knew there were fun times to be had in the race.

 

I joined Team Ragnizzle Fo' Shizzle once again, with mostly different teammates than 2 years ago. And this time very glad to start out the race sans strep throat and the flu.  It was really fun to be runner one and get the party started. 

 

And of course I loved being with some of my favorite girls for the weekend.  It was also quite a change from 2 years ago when the temps were well over 100 for the weekend.  This time if I wasn't running, I was freezing.

 

 Stats for the race were:
Leg 1:  5.5 miles at a 7:53 pace
Leg 2:  4 miles at a 7:34 pace
Leg 3:  8.1 miles at a 8:01 pace

I lucked out with great times of day and conditions to run in, lots of scenic beach views, and some nice flat routes, with the last leg having some good rolling hills.

Some memorable moments from our weekend included:

having Kady beat our van to her exchange after her 12 mile leg

and then getting lost for a good hour - not so amusing at the time

making Bart hitchhike and picking him up on the side of the freeway

being the only runner who had to wear my reflective gear and headlamp for ALL THREE LEGS

getting the best night sleep of all my teammates by hogging the back seat of the van

Gay offering money in exchange for expletives from Kady caught on camera

running .1 miles with Kady up her awful hill with Gay, and feeling like we were going to die

being woken up from my nap by my teammates blasting Snoop Dogg

Jono basically ignoring our Snoop Dogg blasting efforts

contemplating canoeing with Gay while our van napped

Gay's phone haunt texting Anneli about a parakeet dying

eating the best eggs benedict ever and feeling like I could eat another entire order

and of course, finishing the race with my team.

 

A few years ago I would have never believed I would do something like run all day/night, get no sleep, and enjoy it.  But I gotta say, running and hanging out with great peeps has quickly become one of my favorite weekend getaways.