Ragnar: The Extended Edition

So I posted all the details and such on my family website here: Ragnar Post

But I always like to do a few more of the "running" details on this blog. So here we go.

Best Parts of the Ragnar:

1) Number one would have to be running with Taber. If you've been following this blog you know about the ups and downs he has had with knee injury this year. It's been a rough road to recovery but I am so happy to say that he is BACK!! and He totally rocked it at the Ragnar. He was taking it really easy in his training because he didn't want to re-injure himself before the race. Once he got out there though he really let loose and not only ran his 18.1 miles but he also biked 12 more so he could shadow me and another runner on our team. The man is a machine!! So yes, VERY happy to be running with my man again and also just pumped to see him tearing it up out there again!

2) Bonding with friends in the van. Yes, it got a little stinky in there. (okay, A LOT stinky!) But there is just something really bonding about sweating together.

3) Gorgeous trails and scenery

4) Being part of the "running club" with all the other crazies on the course.

5) Running in the middle of the night. That was seriously awesome

Tough Parts of the Ragnar:

1) Sleep deprivation. Due to some delayed flights (my parents flew in to watch the girls and my sister and her hubby flew in to run) and some cranky babies we literally only got 2 1/2 hours of sleep before the race. That wouldn't have been so bad if we were only running one leg, but pushing through 30 hours without sleep was TOUGH. Have you ever been so tired you thought you were gonna puke? Well that's pretty much how I felt several times through out the race. Luckily the adrenaline before my legs got me pumped up but in between I was kind of a zombie.

2) Nerves: I get really nervous before a race. Don't know why but my nerves wrecked havoc on my digestive system and I ended up in the bathroom before EVERY leg!

3) Nutrition: We naively thought that we'd be able to eat on the road in between our legs. Um yeah, that didn't really happen. We were running in some pretty remote areas and at some really crazy hours of the night so we were only able to grab some junk from a few gas stations. That combined with my nerves made for a very unhappy tummy and a rough last leg due to lack of fuel. Next time we'll bring our own food!

Other than those minor details though the whole experience rocked. I was really happy with the way I ran. I was strong and steady the whole time, (even on the last leg when I thought I was moving like a turtle I actually ended up being faster than I thought)

Here is the breakdown of my running times. Time doesn't matter, I know that. But, it's always fun just for my own personal improvement to see how fast I run.

Leg 1: 8.3 miles, finished in 1:16 min. Average pace: 9:39 min/mile
Leg 2: 7.5 miles, finished in 1:04 min. Average pace: 8:40 min/mile
Leg 3: 3.9 miles,finished in 38 min. Average pace: 9:44 min/mile

(If you want to figure out your pace when you run here is a cool website with a pace calculator. You just enter your mileage and time and it figures out your pace.)

So there you go, the inside scoop from our latest running adventure. Not sure what we'll do next. I imagine we'll take a little break but knowing us, I'm sure it won't last for long!