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| Our team shirts, Race #54, & Honoring Boston ribbons |
Yesterday my team....Global Grrrrlz (make sure you say that with all those R's) participated in the 24th annual WSU 100K relay. I was blessed to be with an amazing group of women who all went out there to run hard, do our best, and enjoy the day.
I truly love and enjoy the team aspect of this race. We covered 62 miles together....that is alot of miles!! While one person is running, the rest of us are supporting and cheering. We stopped about every 2 miles to be there for our teammates. Sometimes we just cheered, sometimes we gave water, sometimes we encouraged in ways specifically requested by the runner, and sometimes we went the extra mile for the team.
So.....here are my thoughts from the day :)
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| Global Grrrlz before the start |
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| Kerri |
Leg 2: Laurie (sorry I didn't get a pic of Laurie running, she is in the team pic above though) was part of our team last year and drove all the way from Omak to run with us again this year. Leg 2 is 5.6 miles and has some nice rolling hills. Laurie ran her booty off!! She amazed me with how fast she finished. Great job Laurie!! Thanks for joining us again this year :)
Madison
Leg 3: I'm calling this girl the MVP of our team. She ran 7.9 miles of mostly downhill (good thing she is young and has strong knees). She was a champ and as you can see....she did it with a smile on her face :) Madison is a very positive person and I love that about her. She was so supportive throughout the entire race. Many times, she was the first to go hand out water to the teammates and/or run along side them to help motivate at the end of the leg. Madison is amazing!! (Read Leg 8 for more of my MVP reasons)
Cassandra
Leg 4: Cassandra was our anchor leg from last year. She joined us again this year as an even stronger, faster runner :) Leg 4 is 7.7 miles of all flat along the Snake River. It was extremely windy throughout the day which was deceiving. Cassandra's leg was the first one where it became a little warmer for the runner, but she handled it in stride. She totally crushed her leg and ran like the wind!
Leg 5: I met Angie back in October 2012 at the Run for your Life race. We were chased by Zombies! Before the race, I was kind of hiding in a little corner. Angie sat down right next to me and we started talking. I think it was fate! Angie and I were meant to meet, she was meant to join us in this experience (a perfect addition to the team)....and I see many more fun times ahead with Angie :)
Back to leg 5 - This is the longest leg in the race, 8.9 miles. We knew Angie was the right person for it. She ran the Snake River Half Marathon like it was a 5K. This girl can RUN! Per Angie's request, the team changed up their cheering tactics for this leg...super fun! Angie was killin' it, we were all hanging out about 5.5 miles into her leg, we gave her support, she kept on her way....and then.....gravel jumped out and bit her....down she went :( Angie went down hard, scraped up the palms of her hands and got a nasty scrape on her right leg. Our support crew (aka my hubby Dan, more about him later) came in to help. Kelly (more about her later too) jumped in and said...I'll run some of this leg. We patched Angie up and went on to Plan B for leg 5. Angie ROCKED her leg of the relay. I was so proud of her. I can't wait for her to be my teammate again next year :)
Madison, Me, Chris, Kajsa
Leg 6: I know for a fact you have all heard me talk about Chris before. She is the person who asked me to run in the first place and my best running buddy. I love Chris!! She ran what I consider to be the hardest leg of this race. I really don't think I could do it without walking the entire time. She inspires and amazes me! Leg 6 is 6.3 miles straight uphill on a gravel road in the canyon. It's beautiful scenery, but hard as hell!! Chris did this leg last year because nobody wanted to do it and volunteered again this year.....she took one for the team. Chris was awesome! When she finished, I asked her how it went. Her reply..."it was hard, but as I was trudging up the hill, I played a slide show in my mind of all you wonderful women. You inspired me to keep going! Go Global Grrrrlz" (I may be paraphrasing a little on that quote, but that is what I remember her saying to the best of my ability.) Chris continues to inspire me daily. She is the best! Oh and thanks for the cookies Chris...they were yummy!
I know it's hard to see, but that is Kelly finishing her leg.
Leg 7: Do you remember me saying that I had more to say about Kelly? Well....I've known "of" Kelly since our college days which was many moons ago, but yesterday was the first opportunity I've had to get to know Kelly. This woman is a TEAM player! The Friday before the race, we didn't even know if Kelly was going to be able to run her leg due to a back issue. But she is a true athlete and competitor. She wanted to run her leg to the best of her ability and be part of the team. We all said....go for it! As I mentioned, Kelly not only ran leg 7 which is 4.1 miles in length, but she also ran at least 3 miles of leg 5. Wow! Great job Kelly!! She is a really great person and I thoroughly enjoyed her company. Thanks for joining out team and going above and beyond!! Amazing!
Me finishing my leg
Leg 8: This one was my leg. It was 5.6 miles of rolling hills on partial pavement and partial gravel. I was excited to do my leg and ready to see if I could improve from last year. In truth, this ended up being a hard run for me. I'm not sure if I can explain why, but I was having breathing issues and my stomach hurt....but I do have determination....I was not going to stop. My team was great, offering their support every couple miles. I think I was a little over 2 miles into the leg and Madison came out to offer me some water. I didn't need any water, but I asked her if she would run with me a little bit. Her answer was....sure! This is another reason why I think Madison was the MVP....at least in my eyes. She had already ran 7.9 miles earlier in the day, but was still willing to run a little bit more with me. In my mind, having someone run along side me was the motivation I needed to keep moving my feet. Putting one foot in front of the other was how I finished my leg. Thank you Madison!! You are awesome!! Oh, do you see the sky in the picture above? With about 1.5 miles left in my leg, the dark clouds came and the rain started.
Kajsa, ready to run!
Leg 9: This leg is 5.3 miles of mostly flat on gravel. Let me tell you....Kajsa is a trooper!! She supported and motivated the rest of the team all day long. When it was finally her turn to run, the rain had already started and then the HAIL came!! Kajsa ran her entire leg in either pouring rain or hail. She deserves an award for running in the most extreme weather. She didn't give up and she ran her heart out....way to go Kajsa!!
Alex finishing the relay
Leg 10: This was the last leg. 4.1 miles from the Johnson Rd elevators, to Stadium Way, and back to the Fieldhouse. Still raining, Alex joined us as the anchor of our team. She just went out there and ran us home. The picture above is the best I could get of Alex. She was running so fast that it became an action shot :) Alex always makes me smile. Thank you Alex!
Done!
Support Crew: For the 2nd year in a row, my husband Dan was our team support crew. He drove us along the route, offered water or food when needed, and shared his first aid skills. Thanks Dan for being a great hubby who is always willing to support my running endeavors. You truly are the best! I know the team appreciates you too :)
Officially receiving 3rd place
So....are you all wondering how we did? Well...we all ran out butts off! We brought home a 3rd place ribbon in the all women's category. We finished with a time of 11 hours and 3 minutes which was 54 minutes faster than last year. We did totally awesome and can't wait to do it all over again next year!!
I have a couple little thank you's.....
1. Troy...thank you for supporting the relay by manning transition point 2. You and your son do good work. It was great to see your face!
2. Tony...thanks for coming out onto your porch to give me a little extra support. Every bit helps!!
3. Rob C...we know you missed running with your own team this year, but totally appreciated you coming out to see our first runner start the race. Thanks for all the constant encouragement, Coach Rob!!
