Please Don't Die From Shock...I'm Still Here

For some reason, stress fractures can take a long time to heal. And your doctor starts to get worried about how long it's taking for you to heal. Really, he's more worried that you're going to key his car because you've been out for so long. (Those were his words. Not mine.) (He's pretty hilarious when he wants to be.)

So then you're better, finally...but then, of course, there's all this nervousness and hesitation to start running again. No one wants to deal with all that again. It took me a LONG time to get my act together. But being committed to a family Ragnar team sure does get your butt in gear. Especially when one of your best friends commits to running with you and your family. YOU CAN'T BACK OUT.

I suppose a smarter, saner person would start out with a more conservative distance when getting back into the swing of things. We can debate my smartness and sanity at another time, but Wasatch Back was approaching, and I was officially training.

This would be my second time battling the Wasatch Mountains. The first time, I went to battle with some of the loveliest Marathon Mommies we have here. And as luck would have it, I would be Runner 2 once again this time around. Now, I'm not going to get into everything...but I think I wanted to post a little bit of a race recap because I'm proud of finishing. I'm proud that I did better than last time. Even coming back from a lengthy injury recovery, I improved. The altitude didn't kick my tail quite so hard this time around. I'm not saying it was pretty (or easy), but I'm proud of the improvement. I'm proud that crossing that finish line with my awesome team inspired me to continue with my running goals I've set for myself. I didn't stop, even when most people wouldn't have blamed me if I did.

I'm not fast. I'm not a natural runner...but I run. And it's really good to be back.

What a highlight!

Ragnar Wasatch Back Relay 2008! I LOVE this race! What a fun and challenging accomplishment. I am so excited I got to participate in the Wasatch Back again this year! The team I run with really IS AWESOME! What inspiring people, I am so proud of all of them. So "Dirty Underwear Gang" did the 180.5 mile race in 26 hours and 43 minutes and 40 seconds. We were 12th in our division. There were more teams this year. 550 teams participated. The race starts in Logan at the Merlin Olsen Park and ends in Park City at a park (forgot the name). I was runner #3 again this year. So my first leg was 5.6 miles, my second leg was 4.9, and my third leg was 5.1 miles.

So my team picked me up at 6:30 AM on Friday morning. We drove to Logan, grabbed a bite to eat, used the restrooms and JD started us off at 10 AM. (I just have to say, JD is a COOL brother! He took good care of me on the race and I was so proud of him. He did a great job on his legs. You are awesome JD! Thanks for being such a great big brother.) So after JD ran, Bubba was up. Bubba did great too and added a lot of fun to our van. He handed off to me. I handed off to Tara. Tara was so great on those hills and it was fun to get to know her, yeah Tara, one day I will be as tough as her. Tara handed off to Chris. He did awesome too. He handed off to Margo. Margo started off every run by saying, I am so excited. You go girl. Again another great inspiration to me. I was surrounded by a great team, who just had a good time and cheered each other on, what a party!

My legs went well, I got a blister on my first run and was so glad that our other van had mole skin, thanks Jay and Tanya, you saved my feet. My first leg was the sweatiest, JD kept me cool dousing me with the milk jug full of water. Every leg was BEAUTIFUL! I loved it. My 2nd leg was around 8:30ish, great temperature, and lots of fun families out cheering. I met a man from Phoenix, we pretty much ran the same speed and just at the end when I was getting a little tired he helped pull me in with some encouraging words. He was there with his wife and siblings, his team did fun dances and cheers for us. We weren't able to rest between exchanges the first time, we showered, ate, and then rested standing at the next exchange point. It was fun to see all the runners running up the hill, they all did so good. After our 2nd run we went to East canyon and showered, ate, and got to sleep for 1 1/2 hours. Thanks to Matt & Amberly we had a cozy set up at the condo. It was so great! We were up and going at 2:50 to meet at the next exchange point. We barely made it to the next exchange, JD had to catch up to them because of the traffic, luckily it was just a minute or two. So I ran my third leg at 5:30ish. The sun rose on my run and it was beautiful. I was feeling very queasy before this leg, I think it was a combination of tired, morning sickness and nerves. But as soon as I was a 1/2 mile into it, I was feeling good and loving the brisk morning run. I caught up to a guy that was pretty competitive, when he would slow a little and I would go to pass he would speed up, so he kept me going pretty strong, I didn't ever pass him, but enjoyed the little competition.

Wow on my third leg, a 14 year old girl just cruised right by me, it looked like I wasn't running. I bet she was running 6 something minute miles. She ran it the whole leg too. There was a family of grandparents, kids, and grandkids, they had an 11 year old girl and 12 year old boy that just did great. I also was inspired by the team of 4 runners. Each runner ran 9 legs. WOW! I loved seeing the team names and watching all the different runners. Many were running for a purpose. I was so excited to see so many people accomplish a challenging goal. I am tired, but I loved it. I can't wait to do it again! I would love to do it every year! Go team DUG!