Fitness Friday: Reach the Beach Recap

Reach the Beach weekend finally arrived and thanks to my running partner I was invited to be a member of Team One Track Minded this year. This was definitely one of the craziest running adventures I have done yet.

Thursday: We drove to Lincoln, NH after work to stay with the team in a teammates' condo and get organized for the Friday start. Team members who arrived earlier in the day prepared a dinner feast of chicken and pasta for all of us to enjoy. Somehow we managed to find places for 12 people to sleep in a 3BR condo!

Friday: The whole team went to the start line at Cannon Mountain to send off Shana, runner #1 from Van #1, at 7:30am. It was nice to be there for the opening festivities and know that we would reach the beach early enough to enjoy the post race fun. 

After some shopping for some RTB merchandise, we went back to the condo to decorate Van #2, eat breakfast, clean up, load up, and head out to the first Vehicle Transition Area where our legs would begin.

On the way we stopped to grab some lunch at White Mountain Bagel Co. 

We arrived at Attitash Ski Area in Bartlett with plenty of time to spare and meet up with team members in Van #1. This was my first chance to see the transition areas in action. Despite the fact that there are hundreds of vans and runners, the process is pretty smooth and simple. Runners enter the transition chute and hand off the relay bracelet to the runners waiting while non-running team members stand off to the side and cheer. 

My first leg started around 1pm when runner #6, Joe, came into the chute and handed me the relay bracelet all curled up (so cute). It was seriously HOT and I guess I was excited because I went out on this 7.31 leg fast and ended up struggling the last couple of miles. I was lucky enough to be able to cool off at Echo Lake in North Conway afterward. It was gorgeous and felt amazing.

My running partner cooled off after her run in the piles of snow left by the zambonies at the HAM Ice Arena in Conway.

After all our runners completed their first leg (and Van #1 finally arrived, ugh), we had dinner at Kenneth Brett School (one of many fundraisers held at the transition areas along the relay) in Tamworth and then headed to the home of one teammate's in-laws' in Laconia to get some rest before our night legs began. Luckily her in-laws lived about 15 minutes from the start of the next legs.

Saturday: After about 3.5 hours of sleep, we were up and ready for the next leg of night running. I started us off with my 4.5 mile leg at 1am from the NH Technical College in Laconia. Before this run, I had only run once at night and never in the middle of the night, but I was surprisingly calm. It was incredibly muggy and humid, and I was thankful that I changed into shorts from capris at the last minute. This time I stayed with a couple of other runners for about two miles and used my playlist from Rock My Run to pace myself after passing them. This run went much better than the first. The only scary moment was when one of my flashing lights came off, but the girl running behind me spotted it upside down in the grass.

Somehow we survived all six legs without losing anyone despite going to the wrong transition area, driving right past one runner, and having two runners with stomach issues during their runs. As horrible as all this sounds, running at night was not bad at all! We drove straight to the next vehicle transition area at Sanborn Regional High School so that everyone could get some more rest before starting the last leg. I fell asleep in the van on the way there and took another nap in the back seat while others headed outside to sleep. Thankfully I put on my Zensah compression socks right after my run.

Rain had passed through earlier in the morning, but by our start time the skies had turned sunny and blue. I started off the final legs for Van #2 around noon with a short 2.4 miles to Kingston. It was warm and I went out faster than I planned, but was able to pull it off this time without burning out because it was short.

The final legs went by so quickly. Before I knew it we had left our last runner and were driving to the finish line at Hampton Beach! Oh yea, anticlimactic moment...Van #2 didn't get to run across the finish line with the team because we were stuck in traffic. So the scorecard will have to suffice. 

Team One Track Minded. Twelve runners. 9 veterans. 3 "Virgins". Official finish time: 32:20:38.

RTB was an incredible experience. My teammates in Van #2 were so supportive, hilariously funny, and running-junkies like myself. I am extremely grateful to have had the opportunity to run with these amazing people. 

So today I am off to my next running adventure: the ZOOMA Cape Cod Half Marathon. I am really looking forward to all the amazing events and hanging out on the beach. I'll be back with a recap soon, but you can follow the #ZOOMA fun on Twitter.

Have you entered my Mizuno Giveaway? Today is the last day to enter. I'll post the winners on Monday. Good luck!

Have you ever done a relay? What did you think?

I'm ready to do it again ;)

#TrainingTruths: RTB Lessons + GIVEAWAY

Last week was busy leading up to the Reach the Beach Relay. With my new running schedule, I was able to get in one last run before hopping into the van and heading up to Cannon Mountain where all the relay running brilliance began. A full RTB Relay recap is in the works, but today is all about my RTB lessons! 

#TrainingTruth: You can't fully pack for RTB until the last run is done.

#TrainingTruth: Starting out too fast leads to a fizzle in the end.

#TrainingTruth: Pacing can be found in other runners, music, and yourself.

#TrainingTruth: It's ok to be passed by 6 other runners, if you're still running.

As you can see, I never go for a run without my Mizunos. They are one of my running must haves. And you may remember from this post all the reasons why they are my go-to running shoe. 

There is no better feeling than not having to think about what you are going to put on your feet. Whether you run on the road, the treadmill, or the trail, Mizuno wants you to become the best runner you can be and experience the brilliance of a Mizuno run. 

Lucky for you, they have asked me to give away 10 Mezamashii Run Project  invitations!! 

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Fitness Friday: Golden Opportunities

Today I am off beginning my adventure running the Reach the Beach Relay in New Hampshire. While I am very excited to be hanging out with my running partner and four other crazy runners in a van for the next 24+ hours, I am also super jazzed about some exciting events that I have coming up next week.

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• On Tuesday I'm attending a screening of the Nike film There Is No Finish Line which documents the spirit of Joan Benoit Samuelson through her career and a Q & A session with Joan after at the Palace Theater in Manchester. Joan is an American marathon runner who won the first ever gold medal for the Women's Marathon at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, a two time Boston Marathon winner, and she still holds the fastest finish time for an American at the Chicago Marathon. She has also run a sub-3-hour marathon in FIVE different decades!

     Here is a preview of the film: 

                                   

• On Wednesday, I am one of 50 lucky people who get to participate in a Run with Joanie through Livingston Park in Manchester. This event includes a 30 minute warm up and discussion, a 30 minute run, and a post-run stretch and talk.

In August I was supposed to run the Beach to Beacon 10K in Cape Elizabeth, Maine in which Joan Benoit Samuelson is the founder and chair. She ran the race herself, along with icons Frank Shorter and Bill Rodgers. Unfortunately, I was unable to make it to the race at the last minute, so I am thankful to have the opportunity to attend these events and hopefully erase my feelings of disappointment for missing what looked to be an amazing race in Maine. I am optimistic that I will get another chance to run it next year.

Who is the most famous runner you have ever met?

TrainingTruths: Changes & Preparation

Last week I went back to work as the start of another school year arrived and with this came a change to the running schedule. No more weekday morning runs for me. Luckily, my running partner and I work together so we are able to adjust rather easily. 

On top of getting ready for a new school year, I have been getting ready for my very first Reach the Beach. Even though I have a reasonably easy leg (running #7), my running partner has a challenging one. This means we did some hill work. Only one more run before we head up the mountain, so it was a weekend of checking things off the RTB Runner's Checklist.

#TrainingTruth: Switching to afternoon runs from morning runs really wears me out (this is the only picture I managed to get that day!).

#TrainingTruth: Running up a really BIG hill helped relieve the pain in my gluteus maximus.

#TrainingTruth: Every tough run feels awesome at the end.

#TrainingTruth: Least favorite item on RTB packing list: sleeping bag!

#TrainingTruths is not just about me. We all like to see what everyone else is doing and use that information to assess ourselves. It's not judgement. It's a way to share and learn and make changes when necessary.

To participate all you have to do is share your #TrainingTruths:

1. Tag a Twitter post with the hashtag #TrainingTruths
2. Comment on the Running Escapades Facebook page 
3. Leave a link to your own blog post in the comments

I look forward to reading your #TrainingTruths!