It Is Done

This last weekend I successfully competed in the Red Rock Relay. It was quite the experience. Since you have nothing better to do than to read our blog, let me tell you all about it. :)

We drove down to Cedar City Thursday night to get all checked in and ready for the race. Some local scouts had a spaghetti dinner thing for the racers. It was pretty good for only $2. While we were eating I was listening to others talk, and I felt pretty out of place. As most of you probably know, I am NOT a runner. I just kind of got roped into this whole thing. People were talking about how much they love doing these relays, and how "addictive" they are. Everyone on our team was just looking forward to it being over.

So, the next morning around 11:30 am I got to start my first leg. For about the first 2 miles it was a pretty steep incline. It was about a 400 foot elevation gain in those couple of miles. It was pretty difficult, but early on, I saw another runner walking up ahead of me. I knew I had to pass her. At the same time though, I had to make sure I didn't go too fast and use up all my energy and kill myself. So very methodically I made my way up and made the pass. After getting up the hill, the rest of the run was mostly down hill and pretty easy going. It was 3.9 miles in all. It was very pretty where I was running and was kind of nice. I felt like Forrest Gump out there. Well, my run came to an end, and I was feeling pretty good. "This isn't too bad. It's kind of fun," I thought to myself.

That evening around 9:00 pm I began my 2nd run. It began with a hill too, but it wasn't as steep as the first one. Again I saw someone not too far ahead of me, and I had to pass again. She wasn't walking, so it wasn't going to be as easy this time. I got maybe 5 feet behind her and then I think she sped up a little. We ended up going the same pace for quite a while after that. Then I saw the top of the hill, and decided to speed up a bit to make the pass. I was able to pass just as we reached the top. I was running for a while, when I heard people gaining on me from behind. I didn't want to be passed, but they were going way too fast for me keep up. So, I just lagged behind. It was dark when I was running this time, and I could look up and see tons of stars in the sky. That was pretty cool. Later in the run, I saw someone way ahead of me. I was slowly gaining on them. I knew that this leg ended with a right turn, so I kept looking out for it. The road started turning right, and I thought my time was running out to pass. So, I picked it up and started running pretty fast. I was able to catch up and pass. I felt pretty good about it, but then the road kept going to the right. It was a bigger turn than I realized. So, I kept on running for a while, but I finally finished it up. This one was 4.5 miles. This was a pretty good run too, and I wasn't too tired after. "This is pretty fun," I thought, "maybe I'll do it again next year."

After our team finished this part we drove to where we'd be starting running again. It was about midnight when we got there and it was time to try to get some sleep. That didn't really happen. Sleep doesn't really work in a car after running 4.5 miles just a couple hours before. So, around 6:00 am it was my turn to run again. Yet again, this leg started with an uphill part. It was less steep than the last two, but it was a bit rough with my legs being so tired. Then, after the uphill, it went fairly steep downhill. So, those muscles got worked out as well. After that, it flattened out for pretty much the rest of the way. At this point, my legs were DEAD. It seemed like I was barely moving as I lumbered along. My legs were dying and begging me to walk. But I really wanted to keep running. All my thoughts of fun and repeating this experience completely evaporated. I decided I was never doing this again. I didn't want to run again period. As I trudged forward, I kept hoping I would see the end of my run. I would see something off in the distance and hope with all hope that that was the end only to see more road ahead. Finally, I made it to the end and was so glad to be done. This run was 5 miles. It was seriously the hardest physical thing I've had to do in a long time.

Well, the rest of the runners on our team finished their runs and we were done. It's been hard to move the last few days, but it's that soreness that feels good after doing something hard. After being in so much pain while running that last leg, I was afraid I would forget that pain and somehow do it again next year. My mind has already started trying to convince me with things like it should be easier now that I've done it once. It kind of worries me. When I was running I had firmly decreed "NEVER AGAIN," and now I'm already at the "maybe....?" stage. Where will I be in 6 months when it's time to decide again? Scary.......