Red Rock Relay (MOAB)

I'm pleased to say I survived the latest relay that I ran in May 14th.  This was more like a mini-relay because it was 70 miles (6 people), as opposed to 180 miles (12 people), and only lasted one day instead of over-night into two.  Last year, about this time of year, my friend invited me to join her Red Rock team for the race in St. George in September.  I had no idea what I was getting myself into, but I figured it would be good training for my half-marathon (2 weeks later) and I was excited.

That relay weekend in St. George was probably one of the best weekends of my life!  We had a blast and I loved the opportunity to meet people and make new friends.  One of those new friends would turn out to be Jessee Goates.  She is a strong runner-- far better than I am-- and we clicked right from day one.  The two of us decided we wanted to create our own team for the upcoming relays the next year, and that's exactly what we did! 

With the help of our trusty "team sponsor" (my roommate Cassity), we "bought" our team the end of January.  It was like a 2 for 1 deal-- pay early and get to run in the Moab AND Zion relays without an extra fee.  So this little Moab race was like a freebee... and a taste test for what's to come in September!  I recruited half the team and Jessee recruited the other half.  And together we will all live happily ever after.  Moab was only a 6-person team and we had 3 boys, 3 girls.  We picked some great runners and I knew that I would be the weakest runner on our team. No hard feelings!  It's just the truth. :)  But as team captain I put forth a lot of energy and encouragement and made sure everything worked out smoothly. Cassity was a huge help in making preparations for the weekend-- she took care of the car rental and secured a place for us to stay Friday and Saturday nights-- her house in Grand Junction! (less than 2 hrs from Moab).  It worked out perfectly and saved us a lot of money!  Her mom was a gem in supplying us with plenty of food before and after the race, and we surely lucked out on a wonderful, hospitable place to stay.

So What Is The Red Rock Relay?

Basically, it's a 70 mile loop that takes you through the beautiful, amazing scenery of the mountains and Red Rock structures of Moab.  Each person ran 2 legs (2.5-8 miles, depending on elevation, uphill, etc.), spaced about 4 hours apart, and there was always someone running on the road.  The van follows either a mile or so in front of or behind the runner, staying close-by to offer water and make sure the runner is doing okay.  We're surrounded by other runners and vehicles and the goal--of course-- is to pass other runners and feed off that sense of competition to keep you going.  Let's just say the boys before and after me always passed up a good number of runners... but during my leg I would usually get passed by the equal amount. Sooo... at least they kept things evened out!  My last leg I passed 2 people so I felt good about that.  :)

My legs were considered "medium" and everyone else had "hard" or "very hard".  I really wanted to avoid elevation issues because I found out the hard way in my last relay that high elevation is not fun to run in!  I only had about 2.9 miles to run and I could hardly breathe and felt so sick and almost considered stopping on the side of the road to take care of business.  If I had toilet paper or cardboard handy, I totally would have.  Needless to say, it rocked me and I felt embarrassed and defeated.  I didn't want that to happen to me in Moab. So I chose "good legs"... but they turned out more difficult than I'd anticipated!  My first leg showed a nice, flat 5 mile run.  I figured that would be cake... but that "flat run" was really a series of rolling hills, up and down all over the place, along the cliffy edges above the Colorado river.  Great scenery but I was not mentally prepared for all the hills!  I survived though. 

My last leg was supposed to be a steep 7 mile downhill run. I was excited and a little nervous about the impact I would feel in my knees.  But once again, that "downhill" turned into a lot of uphill and I was frustrated!  That leg seemed to go on and on, and finally I asked some people on the side of the road, "Am I there yet?!" and the lady told me it was all downhill from there!  I began down this very long, steep, downhill descent and I booked it... like, ran really hard!!  And it felt so good as I envisioned the bright flags at the bottom, signaling the exchange point for the next runner.  But wait... no flags... no sign of being finished... and just then my van was driving back towards me to give me the bad news that after this downhill bliss, there was a switchback that went all the way back uphill and around the bend... a mile or so to go. What?! I wanted to cry like a baby after just exerting so much energy flying down the hill.  Luckily my teammate, Scott, jumped out of the van and ran the rest of the way with me.  I really wanted to quit.  I just wanted to crawl to the next exchange.  But somehow I made it, and I was soooo glad when it was over!  5 miles and 7 miles turned out to be much harder than I'd planned on... but what a great accomplishment.  And the scenery was breath-taking!

It's funny when I run  these relays, all the mental thoughts that go flying through my brain.  In September when I was running at that high elevation point, I was yelling in my head, "I hate running! I quit!  I don't know why I even do this crap!  This is ridiculous! I'm no good!" ... and then it turns out okay. :)  This time I was thinking more things, but not exactly yelling.  These thoughts were more calm and controlled:  "I'm not a competitive runner, nope.  I'm not fast either, nope.  Why do I even like to run?  I have no idea.  I guess it's just a good way to exercise and stay fit... but I'm not a fast runner and I'm okay with that."  And yes, I'm okay with that. :) 

All of my pics are posted on Facebook, but here are a few highlights from the weekend:

 My  cousin's wife did Red Rock also-- we saw each other at the starting line-- great timing!

 Cassity was our driver all day, and the only one approved to drive the rental vehicle. Lucky her!

All geared up, literally.  I ended up tossing the water bottle belt to my team members towards the end of my leg.  I couldn't stand the bouncing and jiggling around.  I need to get a new belt that fits better!

 My creepy team vehicle passing slowly...  :)

 The exchange.  Only Rob can get away with wearing short shorts like those!

 You get a "bar" after each leg you run.  Great feeling!

 Miss Jessee Goates and I!  It was so fun to do another relay together.

Tyler was one of Jessee's recruits and he was awesome!

Nateal used to be in my ward... such a cute and fashionable girl.

I love that sweatshirt.... wearing it right now!  So cozy.

Cheering on Jessee.

Behold the beautiful Moab landscape!

Port-a-Potties= Must have "Wet Ones" afterward.

The beginning of my 2nd leg.  This was the fun and easy part.

This was the hard and miserable part... but almost finished!  That's Scott running beside me-- lifesaver!

I loved our happy vehicle.  "Red Rock Rhythm" was our team name.

I was happy to see Nateal embrace the trusty bandanna.  Gotta have it!

Finished with our legs, so happy to relax!

Approaching the finish line with Nateal... yay!

I love our team!  We'll all be together in St. George... plus 6 more!  It will be fabulous.

The best part of the whole day:  DINNER!!!  Pizza buffet in Moab.  I ate like crazy. :)

Speaking of food, I really tried to be smart about the things I ate the week before the relay, and especially 2-3 days before.  In September, I had diarrhea ALL weekend and it was terrible!  I'd never used Port-a-Potties so much in my entire lifetime, all years combined.  I don't know what it was, but I was determined to not go through THAT again!  So I read quite a few things on the internet that advised me to avoid eating bran, fiber, broccoli, lettuce, and other specific foods a few days prior to the race.  Instead, I ate more breads, macaroni (& tomato juice of course), baked potato (from Wendy's, mmm!) and other "safe" foods.  My digestive system is all out of whack as it is, so I felt like I had to be EXTRA careful in order to have a successful and painless weekend.  Cassity's mom also prepared a delicious chicken pasta meal the night before the race, with garlic bread.  I probably ate waaaaay too much of that but it was impossible not to keep filling up my plate.  Oops!  Anyway, I'm happy to say that I had a pretty smooth weekend and no huge moments of wanting to run off the road to find relief.  I was like a normal human being.  Of course I used the Port-a-Potties probably more than others... but I just wanted to stay ahead of the game instead of having to run in there out of control. :)  

Well, overall, the Moab relay was fantastic and we all had so much fun.  I love that it only lasted one day (8:50am-7:04pm) and the rest of the weekend was play time! :) 6 people, some who have never even met before, come together to be a part of a team, and leave as friends with life-long memories.  That's what it's all about it... and if that means I have to do a little bit of running and maybe hate it for a minute... it's worth it. :)