The End.
Okay smelly laundry is the by-product of Awesome, especially when you are part of the #wimps. If you have read this blog before you might know my sherpa is my sister. Sherpa is not just a damn good race day manager (aka tells me what to do once I throw up my chocolate milk) but also a really good marathoner. And Captain of a team who annually descends on New Hampshire every September to run a 200 mile relay race. I won't share what wimp stands for- that you learn if you get the chance to be one, but it is definitely not wimpy. But Wimp is our team name and being one is cool.
Being a part of the Wimps starts about 9 months or so before the race weekend with an email asking if you are in. Immediately you need to say yes. Because it is worth it- I will race on bad legs for this. Then about 8 weeks out there are a flurry of important emails about ensuring you have paid - pay when you sign up, your pace- sandbag a bit, and travel details- get there early on Thursday. Good thing I am the Captain's driver so I don't have to plan when to leave. On our drive up, we have to be careful while we drive through Connecticut- there is no food in CT, but as long as we are prepared we are good. And the drive through CT is only 100 miles or so...
This year we all met at the Finish line hotel - all 12 of us and got into our 2 mini vans for the drive up to the Start- at Cannon Mtn. The way the RtB relay works varies based on the type of team, but our team is 12 Runners who each run 3 legs varying from 2.5 to 9+ miles. We start on Friday afternoon and run straight through the night until we Reach The Beach at Hampton Beach. Every 6 legs the vans switch off from running to not running. Not running involves a lot of laughing, eating bad food (unless you are in van tutu) and finding clean portos. Running is pretty much the same, except you also have to run.
During our drive we stop in Manchester NH to pick up food. Our Van- Van Won buys crap- pringels, pretzels, Utz Ridged Chips, Frosted Animal Crackers, Cheez-its, Fake Oreos, Devil Dogs (well now they are know as Devil Cremes), water and Vegan Bologna. The other Van, Van TuTu buys water. This year our normal store Stop N Rob was closed, as was the other Stop N Rob in town??? So we had to find a new place to buy our crap. While we were successful- the drive through town was definitely a door locker. After leaving manchester we had to drive through a monsoon- I could barely see out the window, but the road was sorta straight and we made it to our start line hotel- Right Before a massive tour bus. So glad!
So after the initial hugs and handshakes our first time as a team is dinner at a really cool restaurant. I am not sharing the name but it is a pretty common in NH- plus they have Smutty Nose on tap. The pre race dinner is awesome and great to catch up on how everyone is doing. Post dinner everyone pretty much crashes trying to get as much sleep as possible- the next night well don't plan on much shut eye.
Now something that is a bit cool and crappy at the same time is the Wimps are pretty fast (cool) but because of that we start kinda late on Friday (cool and crappy). It means we are not rushed on Friday AM, but means we have to hammer when we run. So Friday Morning is a low key breakfast followed by Van Packing and Decorating. Here the two vans start to assume their own identities. And Sherpa who is both Captain and part of Van Won makes stuff happen. My Sister is in charge and that works for two reasons. She knows everything about RtB and having one person make decisions lets the rest of us just show up and run. We know she is the one who reads the manual, knows every rule and time check. There is no other ideas- and for me it is awesome- all I have to do is drive, run and laugh (as long as I don't waste time...).
When we packed our vans the weather was nice, almost warm and sunny. I even put on sunscreen- didn't need that. On the short drive to the mountain the sky exploded and the monsoon from the day before looked like a drizzle. Rain and RtB is a fact of life- one that I really wanted to ignore. But hey it was what is was gonna be- wet. And after a couple of hours of final pre-race stuff- check in, pictures and pretzel eating (we shared our stash with van tutu) it was time for our first runner to crush it. So while RtB is about having fun, eating and laughing, we also run. Pretty much the entire team are serious marathon runners- we had three at Boston last year. I am working hard to get more Ironman Finishers in the mix (no not new people, but getting these awesome folks to swim and bike). What does that mean- we run Hard. The running portion is sorta serious. Not 100%, but then again not a laughing matter. You bring your A game and run. And then laugh at Vegan Bologna, Well Done Steaks and the guy who always wears a visor.
Running- Van Won- Off the mountain. The first two legs are long and hard. This year Captain Bligh (notice we shift from Sherpa to Bligh once the day starts) switched up Van Won's legs so everyone had new legs. I did not run these two legs, but instead drove the van and tried to stay dry- which I did well and got wet. I was runner 4 so after our first two folks finished liked almost drowned rats- really fast drowned rats it was almost my turn to run. Now I had requested to be runner 4 based on the middle leg- more on that later, but it was almost time for me to run- finally!
My week leading up to RtB included a lot of business travel and a PR in the 70.3 distance - 4:59:27 (that Never Gets Old). So on race day I was a bit tired but 100% determined to crush my run. Plus runner 5 was Capn Bligh so I really wanted to go fast. My secret goal was to beat the van- 2.9 miles of sprinting downhill. My leg was short and steep- like diving off a cliff. Almost 600 feet of drop in 2.9 miles. So what did I do- yup run sub sixes down the mountain in the rain. Did I beat the van- nope. Did I crush my legs- yup.
Leg 1- 2.9 miles -5:39 pace - About 530 ft of descending
Best part of the leg- easy. Seeing Capn Bligh sorta smiling as I came flying in. And she crushed her leg- 7:20 pace. She is a freakin awesome runner. Our final runner then hammered his run- man that guy is fast and runs so nice. He thinks 50 milers are easy (must have an IM gene...).
Once we were all done, it was time for dinner. Let's just say Vegan Bologna beat Pantech, Portland, visor guy and even Capn Bligh. We need better planning and local staff support. And Circle K clerks are liars with good coffee.
Our next set of legs took us through the middle of the night. And while we might have been off the mountain- the legs were not flat or downhill. The first three runners were flying- the lack of rain was nice but these folks fly and soon it was my turn to hit the inky black night. But my middle leg is the reason I wanted to be runner 4- 6.5 miles, 3 hills and Pitch black (minus a casino). When I started we were over 10 minutes behind our rival team- the Bubble Wrappers. But I ran hard and passed their runner at mile 3 and gave Capn Bligh a big lead. The run was everything I wanted+ it was really hard. Leg crushing X2. And part of each legs are the number of people you pass or kills in RtB speak. Leg 1 had 1, leg 2 had 24. Leg 3 had 36.
Leg 2- 6.5 miles 7:00 pace 732 feet of climbing
Capn Bligh had her longest run- just over 9 miles including a Loooong climb but of course she crushed it. She might sandbag on paper, but we all know that she will dominate her legs. And before long our number six was handing off to van tutu. It was time for us to sorta sleep. Brussels Sprouts and Mushrooms are good to discuss before an hour of sleep.
Last year VTA number 2- Bear Brook SP was my favorite part of RtB. Sherpa/Bligh and I had coffee/hot chocolate and a nice egg sandwhich as the sun came up. This year we were a bit later, but breakfast was the same- goodtimes. And we bough coffee for the morning bear. So worth it. And soon our runner number 1 was hammering the hills. Now our van does not stop during each runners' leg- we don't nurture. But runner 1 has a wild card transition which means we find a place on the route to hand off to runner 2. The two of them decided where to pass the baton (wrist strap). And Our guy from Portland made everyone wish then had stayed in the VTA- getting a ton of road kill running uphill. And waiting for him was kinda cool since we had an awesome spot to wait and we got to cheer lots of runners- but glad we only do this once- nurturing would be so hard.
Before long it was my turn for Leg 3. A rolling 5.6 miler that had a couple of false flats. We were again down on the bubbles by 10 minutes- it would be a lot harder to catch their runner but I decided I would run hard. And I did. The first two miles were both up and down- not as steep but my legs were hurting and I had a couple of coughing attacks (where the heck did that come from). But I was running at 5K race pace and at mile 5 I caught my target. As I passed she was first complimentary- nice run, but then realized it was me. A couple of friendly curse words and a wave- but really in good fun and I passed. And then ran to Santa who always hangs out at this transition. Super Sherpa (back to Sherpa) had the entire crowd cheering for Thumper- does it get any better- nope. The best thing about finishing my leg is it meant it was time for Beer and Tacos- yup that's how we roll.
Leg 3 -5.7 miles (yeah it was long...) 6:35 pace- rolling
After tacos, we actually head to the beach and walk to the water. It is cold, but feels so good. We waited on the beach for van tutu and before long they were there and our awesome # 12 runner was making her way through the sand- yup- the last 1/2 mile or so is on the sand and the whole team runs in together (well we ran the last 100 meters or so).
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And I have smelly laundry- guess I will just throw it away since there is no hope... #wimps
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