Eat.Drive.Sleep?Repeat!

Yep, that pretty much sums up my Ragnar Relay Race Weekend. We ran, we drove, we tried to sleep and then we ran some more! All the way to Daytona Beach!

My team was called Runners United (I came up with the name). We were a mix of very fast runners and very slow runners (me).

My team members were awesome and we had such a great time. It truly was a great adventure and one that I hope to relive some day, although I want to be in much better shape and run much faster! Here is a picture of the two teams from Tampa (Brandon Runners) that participated in the race.

Here I am getting ready to run my first leg of the race (3.4 miles). It was HOT (86 degrees) and humid on Friday, so running was NOT fun or easy. I came in under my projected pace (too slow to post, embarrasing) but the heat definitely took it's toll on me later in the day.

My 2nd leg (6.5 miles) was at 12:30 at night, so there were no pictures taken of me waiting for the hand-off. My team mates were so supportive and we were very protective of each other during the night runs. The vans weren't allowed to follow the runners (we were running on a major highway, against traffic) but the van was never more than a mile away from me. We decked out our van in windshield paint and Christmas lights, so it was a comforting beacon in the middle of the dark, lonely night!

Here I am getting ready to run my last leg of the race (3.1 miles). It was about 7 am on Saturday morning and I had about 40 minutes of sleep in me. Yep, I was ready to run! Luckily, it was great running weather! I came in just under my projected pace and celebrated my "end" of the race with a cold, refreshing beer. Who cares if it was 7:40 in the morning?

Here is Jenny and I at dinner on Saturday night. I don't know how we were keeping our eyes open at this point, but I do know that we felt quite delirious after all that running, driving and no sleep. That's okay, as a mom of twin girls under the age of two, Jenny is used to no sleep!

Ahhhh...

Here I am the morning that we were leaving to drive back to Tampa. This weekend held a LOT of firsts for me, mainly it was my first cross-state relay race and the first time I left James overnight with Will. I truly enjoyed my "mommy-free" time and relished my quiet, calm hotel room. Yes, by Sunday morning, I was very anxious to get back to my boys, but I knew they were just fine and enjoying their own daddy-son bonding time.

So, that sums up my race experience. There are a lot more interesting pics and a lot more intersting stories to tell from the weekend, but these are the blog-worthy highlights!

Anyone interested in the Runners United Team for 2009?