We had a team of 12 women and we trained all summer. The weekly training on Saturday mornings was so fun...everyone took turns choosing the location, and we found some really beautiful walks. Yes, sometimes it was rough getting out of bed that early, and sometimes the training was a tremendous challenge, but all-in-all it was entirely worth it. We got to know each other (since each of us only knew a few of the others, and the rest were friends of friends), and this time we spent developing friendships goes miles toward us having a great time come relay.
I could try to explain to you how the logistics of this relay work, but frankly that would be boring. Essentially, on a 12 person team, each person will have two legs of 3.75-7.75 miles. We walk round the clock from early Friday morning until mid-morning Saturday. It took us around 32 hours total to finish; teams take anywhere between 20-35 hours to cover the 127 miles. The truly wonderful part of this relay is that anyone can participate, granted you can actually walk about 6 miles without stopping. There is no real time limit (there is, but it is set up so that even slow walking teams will finish nearly 8 hours before the course closes), and I love the fact that this opportunity is available to anyone who wants it. This opens the event up to wonderfully diverse teams of people who have fun together, without having to lend too much consideration to times.
The fun of it is in the friendships. The endless laughs we have as we each near exhaustion. The fast-paced, high-energy atmosphere, the hundreds of people and vehicles at each exchange, the fantastically funny team names and costumes, the lights and decorations on the vehicles...there is no end to the entertainment, and we experience it for over 30 hours.
The greatest thrill is the finish...waiting for the last team member to come down the Promenade in Seaside, joining them to cross the finish, and knowing you all have completed something amazing. We then spend the weekend in Seaside, attending the largest annual party on the west coast. Music and dancing, beer and wine, laughter and great times as a reward for our hard work.
I won't kid you, it is taxing, it is challenging...we face outhouses and massive crowds and sick stomachs and hornet stings and blisters and sunburn and rain...we get testy with each other and apologies ensue....but it is every bit worth it, and I can't WAIT to do it again next year!
*The photo shows my team minus two people who were on the course walking together.
Ooh, feeling rather fatigued this morning reading this and it's like, "Aaaggghhh!!" Haha :)
ReplyDeleteIt sounds so great. What a cool thing to do all of you together. I just went the ye olde trusty "miles to kilometres converter" - wow, that's a pretty decent distance. How long did it take you to do your leg?
That sounds like a lot of fun even though it involved blood, sweat and tears. Your group looks adorable.
ReplyDeleteSue - It's a blast, I can't even tell you.
ReplyDeleteThe first one was 5.77 almost flat miles (9.29k) and took 87 minutes, but that included almost 8 minutes of waiting at crosswalks -- we have to obey all normal traffic laws even during the relay.
The second was 6.14 miles (9.88k), about 3 miles uphill and 3 miles downhill in the pitch dark (I had a headlamp), and it took 84 minutes, I think. I don't have the exact figure on that because it didn't get written down.
The training was countless hours, but I'm so glad I did because it really was much easier for me this year than last year.
Our team WAS adorable, Ruth. I was so proud of how our shirts came out, and we had tons of compliments on them.
ReplyDeleteNot too much blood or tears, thankfully!
Wow, that is one HOT group of babes!
ReplyDeleteTotally HOT. Inside and out. Lovely women.
ReplyDelete