Ragnar : Great River 2011

I don't even know where to start! Well for starters, Ragnar is a relay running event that includes in most cases 12 runners, 6 in Ultra teams. The event I participated in began in Winona and ended in Minneapolis, and covered 196 miles. It's relay style, so 1 runner runs at a time and a slap bracelet is handed off between runners at each exchange point. 


I had no intention of doing this race until a few weeks ago. I joined the Winona Running Club facebook page and got a message from a girl named Kyla, asking if I wanted to join their team, as they needed a sub because someone dropped out that had already paid. Score for me! He had already paid the fee, so all I had to pay was the $10 transfer fee. (It's $1,200 a team otherwise, so $100 a person). Of course I can't back down from a challenge, so I said yes and had no idea what I was getting into really. 


We had a meeting last week where I met everyone for the first time. 11 strangers. I knew right away I liked these people, and wasn't going to mind spending 48 sleepeless hours with these people running day and night and when not running in a cramped van. 

We met Friday morning at 6:30am at someone's house. Our start time was 8:00am. Our team name was Victorious Secret, so we had bras and panties that we were going to wear throughout the weekend and over our running stuff and of course to decorate our vehicles with. 


Here's a picture of Scott and Chris, the 2 men from my Van, trying on their panties of choice. 


There are 2 vans of 6 people each. I absolutely adored everyone in my van. Each person is assigned a runner number, and I was runner #2. We all went to the Levee at 7:00 am for safety check and to get our packets/shirts etc. It was our first exposure to the runners and teams that we would see for much of the next 48 hours. 

Here are the WHORs... Women Hooked On Running.

Ragnar 911... hilarious group! They had little sherriff symbol temporary tattoos made up, and they handed out "Citations" for certain stuff... my citation is below... 

Below is me getting my citation from them......

Anywho, Scott was our first runner. He headed out, we all hopped in van 1, and headed to exchange 2. I was runner 2. I got ready for the exchange, and did my run when Scott met me at the exchange. I'm used to running at 4am, so it was weird to be running in the daytime. My first run was at 9:04am.It was 6.2 medium miles. It was toasty out! It was from Fountain City up the highway in WI. I got 5 "kills" which is Ragnar talk for how many people you pass or "roadkill" on the way. Despite it being very warm and me being out of my normal element, it felt great. I think the greatest part of Ragnar is knowing that you'll have 5 smiling and cheering faces for you at the exchange point, and another runner waiting for you for the hand off. 

We went through the rest of our runners, and when our last runner Pam was done, we met with our van #2. Our van was done for awhile while van 2 had to take their turns running, so we took advantage of the time to take a make shift shower from a hose at the exchange station and find some food. 

The "boys" from my van taking a shower at the major exchange between van 1 and van 2

After lunch, we headed to the exchange point where we'd meet up with van 2 again when they were all done running. It was a camping area where a lot of people had their blankets and pillows out and were trying to take naps, they had first aid set up, free s'mores tent, and of course music and stuff like that. We walked around a bit, there was no way any of us could sleep. We were all so excited and hopped up and ready to go. Scott started to get ready for leg 2 - and of course, had another fashionable outfit to display. 

My second leg was the first of the night legs. Any run that started after 7:30pm had to have night time gear, meaning a head light, butt light, and a reflective vest. My leg started at 7:33. I knew going into this leg it was a "hard 8.3", with one bitch of a hill in it. 

Holy Balls! That was one mother f'ing hill. It was awesome though. My van leap frogged and met me about every mile to cheer me on, and I peddled up and down that mother. I ended with an average pace of 11:01 for that 8.3 mile leg which I'm super pleased with. And of course I had 5 smiley faces at the end to meet!

At the end of this leg for our van, we were at a junior high at about 1am that had free WARM open showers, hot chocolate, and a gym floor. It was GLORIOUS. I showered naked with all the other ladies and didn't even care. It felt so amazing. I filled my belly with warm, free hot chocolate, and laid down on the gym floor with my ear plugs. I got 1 hour of sleep before Chris woke me up and said it was time to hit the road again!

one of the night time exchanges

My leg 3 started at 5:10 am and was from Hudson to Bayport. It was an easy 3.9. When the 5 of us were walking to my exchange I almost toppled into the stream by the sidewalk I was so exhausted and couldn't even stand up straight. Great I thought, this should make for an interesting run. But as soon as I saw Scott and had that bracelet and hit the road and heard my crew cheering for me out the window of the van, I was good to go again!

Being van 1 definitely had its perks. We were done about 8 or 9am. Then van 2 had to finish running to the finish line where we met them. Meanwhile we were at the major exchange showering again, and then we went to Perkins and ate an amaaaaazing warm delicious breakfast! YUM. 

We went downtown MPLS and walked to the finish area and waited for our other van full of people to show up. Our last runner, runner #12, would be running to the finish and then we would all run in as a team together the last little ways. She runs 7 minute miles and the last leg was only 4 miles, so she should have been in under 45 minutes or so. after about an hour, we were all getting worried. Our team captain told the MPLS police our runner was missing, and one of our runners borrowed someones bike to ride down the course to look for her. She was no where. We were all pretty much starting to freak out, because she was in the middle of downtown MPLS with no cell phone and no ID and had no idea where she was. Thankfully she came around the corner. Whew! We all joined her running and crossed the finish line together. 

Team Victorious Secret!!

We ended up finishing with an average pace of 9:01. # 131 out of 280. Only 1 person on our team had ever done a Ragnar before. Not bad!!!!!!

It was the absolute best time of my life. Better than my first marathon even. I can NOT WAIT to do it again. The group of people I met are just amazing and I have met some really amazing new lifelong friends! 

Trails

My first Ultra-Marathon is in less than 3 months. It's 34.8 miles of trails. I've already proved that I can handle 26.2 on the road, but 34.8 on trails... yikes. Today I got a taste of just what I've gotten myself into.


I'd consider myself a fairly decent runner. I'm not all that fast, pretty average. I can, however, run very long distances without much trouble. I don't hit the "wall". I don't cramp or have pains. I never need to take walking breaks. My body can go 15-18 miles without needing any refueling (Although I know it needs it, so I give it what it needs.) I think I'm pretty lucky.


I spent a good hour last night trying to figure out which trail area I wanted to venture out to this morning. I decided I'd go behind Holzinger Lodge here in Winona. I've been hiking back there before, so I knew that if worse came to worse, there was at least a half mile or so of good trails I could loop back and forth on 20 times if I needed to to make 10 miles. I've narrowed my Ultra training plan down to this one I found here. I'm excited for this training plan. It's different than the plans I've been on since February 2010. It's time for some change.


I think the biggest difference I need to get a grasp on with trail running is that pace doesn't matter. I've done a lot of research these past weeks and it all comes down to the same thing. Pace doesn't matter. The only thing Garmin is used for in TR is in case you get lost in the woods, to find your way back. They actually recommend walking up hills in TR as it is more efficient. They explain that running up roads is okay on the body because roads are paved and built for cars to go up them, however trails are rough and the terrain is so brutal that it is usually better to walk up them if they are extremely steep. With typical running and races, everything revolves around pace and PR's and age groups etc etc. Since I started training for my first race in February 2010 everything has revolved around pace.  None of that matters on the trail. Which is why when I looked down at my watch after mile 1 today, my stomach sank. I was at about a 14:30 pace. But, it was f***ing HARD. It was the hardest, roughest run I have ever experienced. For one thing, road running around here doesn't allow much for elevation change. Running the bluffs here definitely does. Then you factor in the terrain. Dirt, mud, sand, rocks, pebbles, sticks, logs. It is mentally exhausting keeping track of your footing placement with each step you take. It's like each step is a mini obstacle course.

Got to do the limbo under this log

I managed to pound out 3 miles on the trail, and it kicked my ass. Any belief I once had that I was a strong runner was crushed. That trail was the worst and most amazing run I've yet to have. I could feel my legs burning yet they were screaming for more. I have a lot of work in store for me in the next 3 months to be ready for this ultra. My plan is to do my second weekend long run on trails. I should probably mention I ran 20 miles less than 24 hours before this little adventure... and not one bit of pain or soreness... man I love my body these days.

I headed back to my car and drove to the lakes and finished the last 7 there. Amazing how much easier it was to run on the regular road. The biggest problem I had was that I had to wait until it was light out (BOOOO I'm a 4am runner damnit!!!) to hit the trail so I didnt trip and maul myself on a boulder so by the time I got to running the sun was out and it was getting warm.

48 miles this week. 30 in the past 24 hours. 69 days till the Chicago Marathon. 85 till Surph the Murph ULTRA!

Awesome new Saucony trail shoes... love em!