Oh the Places You Will Chafe...Thots and Reflections on "The Relay" 2006

TMI? Actually, I got a few blisters : .D nothing more!

Just got back home from Santa Cruz. I am tired. My team, the Running Monkeys, ended up third from last place in a field of 110 teams, based on the preliminary stats after 32 hours of running. As you can probably guess, it was an *interesting* weekend. The weather held out, which was fantastic. It rained only briefly, the sun made an appearance Saturday and Sunday, and the days and nights were cool. Van 1, made up of all rookies did a great job. They were where they were supposed to be, when they were supposed to be. Kudos to them for a job well done.

We ran into trouble with our pace times. Most of us ran slower than anticipated. An injury in Van 1 made it necessary for the other 5 van mates to pick up the slack. Of course, that made them tired and therefore, affected their pace times. One of my van mates had strep throat last week. That definitely affected her pace times. As for me...Well, I would like to say that I was fighting off the mountain lion (see Santa Cruz or Bust) that appeared while I was running my first leg, but truth be told...uh, I got lost. I took a wrong turn, ending up at the top of a mountain (yes, I ran EXTRA hills!), 4 miles out of my way. By the time my van mates came looking for me, I had already realized my mistake and was on the way back down the hill. My arduous trek thru the wild vineyards of the Napa Valley was made all the better however, because the sun was out, there was a little stream bubbling next to the trail, I went up and down rolling hills that were awash with green, and came across a big, yellow farmhouse on a little lake complete with cattails swaying in the wind and cloud reflecting on its surface. In the distance, I could see the end of the bay. Amazing!!! I couldn't complain.

My second leg went much better, except that it was entirely up hill and at 3 am. I was in the beautiful city of San Francisco, on the Great Highway, listening to the waves crash on the beach. I took a right turn and started down Skyline Drive. I paused to remove my jacket and if you can believe this, from across the road, I could hear the gravely growl of a lion!!! No, it wasn't a dog, it wasn't a cat, it was a LION!!! Okay, I thot I was in the clear and was only going to have to deal with 2-leggeds, not 4-leggeds, since I was in the city, but no. I panicked and started to run, which is the last thing you are supposed to do in the event you come across a lion, mountain or otherwise, then came to my senses and realized I was probably running past the zoo. Phew! Unfortunately, since I was so tired from my vineyard run, I ended up getting passed by 10 other runners. In this situation, you are known as 'roadkill'. Some of the teams are very competitive and keep track of their roadkill by making tick marks on the windows of their transport vehicles. Rude, I say!

My third leg was ranked the easiest, but did you know that running downhill is almost worse than having to run uphill? My quads are toast. They are actually screaming in agony. I hope I can walk tomorrow. Maybe I shouldn't have sprinted at the end, but I was so happy to see that runner exchange and pass off the race bracelet that I couldn't resist.

Anywhoo, so much more happened over the last two days, but I fear, I will bore you with the intimate details. To pass the time during my last leg, I did think of awards to give to my van mates.

Rookie of the Weekend Award goes to Sammy, who kicked butt running 18.4 miles total in her 1st relay race.

Best Driver Award goes to Rob, who handeled all the driving, except while he was running, which meant he didn't sleep the entire weekend.

Team Spirit Award goes to Lynne, who jumped out of the van at every opportunity to cheer us on.

Fastest Runner Award goes to Mike F. who ran a sub-6 minute pace.

Best Team Captain Award goes to Mike G. who kept us on track and handled all the details leading to the race.

As for me, I awarded myself the Scenic Tour Award, for my jaunt thru the vineyards.

I need to find my waterwings so I'm ready for triathalon training next week!

Signing off now, Tenacious L