Running, Music, and Teamwork

I ran last weekend, in a race that was possibly the most fun I have had running, ever in my life. I absolutely loved all the competition, the demanding nature of it, the forced commradery, and the mountainous scenery. On all 4 of those levels, I was challenged and the trip came out all 5 stars, on all fronts.

Here is what we did:
1. Got 12 people together* for our team, of all abilities and enthusiasm for running (some were bikers, I gather).

2. Got 2 vans, and we lived as 2 6-somes for 36 straight hours (I was in an all-woman van, and yes, we got along fabulously- can you believe it?)

3. Ran 200 miles (over 2 mountain passes!) between the 12 of us. Very hard, tough runs. We each had 3 legs. They all varied. Mine were 4.3, 8.5, and 6.5 miles long.

4. Laughed, encouraged, ate crazy food, and napped (very little) and shared all of our gory digestive issues, together. Made memories.

It was amazing, I was part of a “gang”. We painted our van, heckled and cheered on other teams, took photos of each other, sang old Rod Stewart songs, shared long-distance running food techniques, and stomach aches. I made new friends whom I hope to do this again with.

I am hoping to turn this incredible experience into more good times, to be motivated to do more team-oriented/new friend making ordeals. It was really good! Life is good. No matter what we are doing, we can find the lighter side, the beautiful scenery, the long haul uphill, and most importantly, company we crave.

*I should mention that I joined this event in an effort to meet cute guys. God had a different plan… I ended up on a team with 2 maried men and 9 other women, all of whom seemed to be either amazon-tall cross-country runners, or seasoned marathoners. I didn’t meet any cute guys, but I shared an awesome time with really fun people. Sometimes we get what we need rather than what we want!