Over the course of 2 days, my team of 12 people ran 198 miles from Logan to Park City. It was an incredible experience!! I was in van one and was runner 6, which means I had legs 6, 18, and 24. My first leg was 6.9 miles (1.5 miles up hill and then about 3 miles steep downhill on dusty/rocky road). Finished that leg in 1:09 hours. My legs kept cramping up after running the downhill part so I had to stop and stretch at least 4 times during the run to maintain my ability to run. It was crazy! My team was there to cheer me on at two different spots along the run and then they were there yelling for me at the finish line. That was awesome!! That was really helpful and definitely inspired me to run harder. It's amazing what an awesome support system can do.
After my first run, Pete and I walked around to the various booths they had set up in an open field near the finish line. We tried these "strawberry lemonade" energy shots and they were so gross! They tasted like cough medicine. I had to plug my nose to finish drinking it. Yucky! The girl passing them out said she liked the strawberry lemonade flavor better than the lemon lime, so we were thanking our lucky stars we didn't try the lemon lime; can imagine how gross that would have been...ick!
Pete's first leg was 7.4 miles up through Avon Pass and he totally rocked it!! He basically ate that run for lunch! He had 79 kills on that leg alone! A kill is when you pass someone on your run and they don't pass you at any point before you finish that leg. He did awesome! I was so impressed!
My second leg was 8.2 miles steady incline up through East Canyon up to the reservoir. I started my run at 8:50pm and finished at 10:22pm...took me 1:32. I felt so incredible after that run- felt like a champ, because it was such a challenging run but I didn't stop, I just kept running. My body had no desire to run, my quads and calves were totally tight and kept seizing up, but I told my body that this run was happening so they were just going to have to get over it! I felt strong and steady the full 8.2 miles. I felt the prayers of my mom and sister as I ran, because I knew that they have been praying for me to be able to perform in this race. Thank heaven for family and faith-filled prayers. They truly work miracles! It was such an incredible experience working through that run and sprinting through the exchange point at the end of my run; hearing my team yelling my name; passing the bracelet off to my next teammate. It was indescribable how it felt to have a challenge that feels so huge and somewhat impossible, but then to work through it with sweat and determination, and then finish it! I can't adequately describe it, but it was awesome!
Pete's last run was 2.8 miles and he finished it in 20 minutes!!!!! That is wicked fast; especially since we had gotten only about 3 hours of sleep Friday night and he had already run almost 12 miles within the previous 24 hours. Insane! He seriously has skills that are beyond me and he has an incredible drive/will power to do his very best! It's very cool and inspiring to watch. I was so impressed!
Pete and I even gave each other good luck tattoos of kanji (Japanese) symbols before the race. I drew four symbols that translate to mean eternal fire, unstoppable drive on his right forearm. He drew four symbols that translate to mean fast legs, strong heart. We both learned that our tattoos actually inspired each of us at various points during our legs. It was really cool and they looked sweet!
The race was awesome. Such a good experience running a race as a team. We had a blast! I'm so grateful for the opportunity we had to be apart of it! So grateful to be blessed with a physical body that can jump, run, play, and work hard for the things I desire. Heavenly Father is so aware of me and each or His children. He blessed me so much during this race. I couldn't have done it without Him!
