Ragnar Relay Adirondacks 2013

I’ve got another Ragnar Relay Adirondacks under my belt!

It all started out on Friday morning. In case you are wondering, Ragnar is a 200 mile relay race with teams of 12 runners (6 for ultra teams), who run non stop from point to point. Ragnar Adirondacks went from Saratoga Springs, NY to Lake Placid, NY, all through the Adirondack Mountains.

My alarm was set for 3:00AM. We had to start loading up Van 1 and head to the start at Saratoga, since our start time was 6:00am.

Nikki, our Runner 1, was all set and ready to go. It was still dark when she set off.

The first few legs of the relay were through Saratoga, and the sun was up by the time Nikki was done. Leg 1 of Ragnar, complete! Nikki was awesome!

And on we went!

Finally, it was my turn, and I was Runner 4, my leg took me down Route 50 in Saratoga and to the SPAC parking lot. Running down that road was kind of nerve-wracking with all the traffic, but I got it done!

Leg 4
Distance 4.1 mi
9:30 Pace

Van 1 finished up in Gavin Park and then Van 2 took over. Go turtles!

After we went to lunch at a place called the Silo in Queensbury. We needed some real food! An egg and cheese sandwich hit the spot. It was delicious! After lunch, we went to a hotel in Lake George to get some rest, since we’d been up since 3AM! I got about an hour of sleep there, then we headed to Million Dollar Beach for the next major exchange.

And take the baton (or should I say slap bracelet) from our Runner 12, Keri!

Time to prep for my second leg, Leg 16, AKA the Ragnar Leg, the most difficult of the race.

Yep, that goes directly up Tongue Mountain for 3 miles, with a total of 6. I was kind of nervous since it was so late, dark, and in the middle of nowhere. It was going to be 9:30PM by the time I started, and my team couldn’t stop at all for me during the leg. But I powered on my headlamp, and headed out when Loretta, our Runner 3, came in.

Time to run!

The first mile went well since it was fairly flat. Then the hill started…time for some serious power walking. No shame! I power walked the major climbs but made sure to run the flat parts…then the final few miles were downhill, which was difficult in a different way! But I made it, and was never so happy to see the flashing beacons of runners’ headlamps at the exchange! That was one of the hardest runs of my life!

Leg 16 Ragnar Leg
Distance 6 mi
10:52 pace

Once our Van 1 runners finished it was time to try to get some sleep. We went to the exchange at the fairgrounds where they had indoor sleeping in one of the barns. We brought our sleeping bags in and slept for maybe 2.5 hours. It was glorious.

Our start was around 6:30am. Nikki ran her her first leg as the sun came up (again!), for a tough five mile run that was almost all uphill…but she did amazing, as did Steph, Loretta and Cheryl! Time for round three! My third leg was only 3.5 miles, so I wasn’t too worried, but after my fall at Ragnar last year, I was determined to complete all of my legs! Time to go.

Finally, some awesome Adirondack scenery!

Third leg complete!

Leg 28
Distance 3.3 miles
9:50 pace

I was done!!! But, it wasn’t over yet.

  

Our last runner of Van 1 was Nicki! She and Cheryl, our Runner 5, had tough legs and ran on little sleep, and they both did incredible!

It felt good to be done, but Van 2’s third legs were just starting.

We drove into Lake Placid, got some dinner, and checked into our hotel to freshen up before it was time to cross the finish line. We got to the finish line just in time for our last runner, Keri, to come in!

And we crawled across the finish line, like turtles.

Team Herd O’ Turtles, finished Ragnar Relay Adirondacks in 36 hours.

196 miles, from Saratoga to Lake Placid, done!

What another awesome experience. We had such an amazing team and we all had a blast. We also couldn’t have done it with our Drivers, Dana and Alex, and our Volunteers, Allie and Carrie. You all are great!

To Nikki, Steph, Loretta, Cheryl, Nicki, Meredith, Christine, Keri, Dayna, Brittani and Amanda, you are all amazing and I’m so proud of us all for conquering Ragnar Adirondacks! So glad to have you all as teammates.

TURTLE POWER!