What is it? A Ragnar
Trail race is an intense, 120 mile relay race that takes runners up, down,
around, and over a mountain 24 times. It takes between 24-28 hours to complete.
Teams run through the day—night—and into the next day in relay fashion
until all 24-legs of the race have been completed.
At times the trail race feels more like a death
march than a race one willing signed up and paid for. Each team has 8 runners that can only be
described as fun loving masochists. The
exception is the Ultra Teams--whom are ultimately ultra insane maschochists. These teams consist of a
mere 4 runners. These "Ultra" folks have
brains that really are "wired differently" from the rest of the general population. Of course I say that in the
most respectful and perhaps, sick, jealous way.
Ragnaraians are indeed a truly unique breed. You will not find a better bunch of tough, funny,
intense, hard-core, friendly, caring, athletic individuals anywhere else on the
planet than at a Ragnar venue. These folks have stories to tell, tips to share, and are willing to step up to the
plate when needed. They will share with you: their Ibuprofen, marshmallows, muscle rub,
and even their moonshine!
Shout out to the Flying Monkey Racing League for sharing!
Some may view these creatures as sadists or masochists. In a way, after this race, I cannot argue
with this assessment. In fact, on my second leg of the race, the green loop, I…for the very first time
asked myself a question. "Am I a masochist? Could I be? " It was the
first time in my life I’ve ever associated myself in any way…with this
word! It's the first time I experienced such agony.
My feelings and thoughts on masochism were confirmed by Jian on the third
loop, a.k.a. the red loop of pain, when she too…described the race as being masochistic. As we neared the finish
line our fellow runner shouted out, “I have run 4 back-to-back Boston’s and
this…this is just sick!” As we neared
the finish line we imagined that victory tasted like a“Sierra Nevada” the beer
at the finish line. Then, just as we were approaching the finish line we saw a deer
leaping across the field. It was a
marvelous sight and a great ending to a grueling race. We dashed to the finish line~mission complete!
This race was by far the toughest thing I’ve ever done. I’ve
run 2 Road Ragnars, the NE Relay, the Tornado Relay, the Glass Slipper
Challenge, several half-marathons, Warrior Dash, 2 Tough Mountain Challenges
and have competed in several sprint triathlons.
If you asked me to compare the experiences of running Ragnar Trail MA to
a tri I would say this: “A tri is like
ice skating at Rockefeller Center at Christmas time while Ragnar Trail MA is
like willingly signing up and paying for: the water-boarding experience.”
My first loop was yellow and I ran it at 10:00 pm. As I climbed up the mountain I thought
“Wow! I didn’t know they were serving
pie at this race. As I quickly wolfed
down a piece of HUMBLE PIE!”
This was my first trail race and this yellow trail was the
most technical of the bunch but by all means was not the most difficult. As the yellow trail split off from the red
this is what I saw and No! These are not lighting bugs. This is what passing through the 7th gate
of Hell looks like. Yup, here it is!
As I came barreling down the yellow trail it cut to the left at a
90 degree angle. I could hear other
racers scrambling behind me and I lost my footing slipping on a bed of leaves,
rolling my ankle. Man….I ate trail and saw
stars!
The runner behind me asked if I
was okay and gave me some water. I got
up and tried my best to shake it off my walking a bit. Then I got back into the groove. I eventually crossed the finish mat and my teammates
brought me over to the medic tent for some ice.
My second leg was green and that was fun. Another 800 foot climb within the first two
miles followed by another climb, grassy downhill and some fire
roads—whoohoo!
My third and final leg was red and the toughest of all
3. Climbing over 1000 feet in the first
4 miles on the red loop took determination and true grit. There were times I felt like stopping. There were times the pain in my legs became
unbearable. There were times when I
wondered whether or not my legs would physically be able to move one more
step. There were times I thought about walking up the hills backwards to relieve some of my muscles. There were times when I recited poetry to get me to the top. I even had some positive affirmations "Ahh it's just a wee sprain and we all know that pain is just weakness leaving the body. Right? Right? Yeah...right!" "No pain, no gain!" and when all else failed it was "Suck it up buttercup."
At one point I needed a stick to
help me along the trail because of my ankle.
Jian found the perfect little branch on the side of the trail and broke it down for me (note: no trees, earth, or trail were injured in the making of this walking stick). It was PERFECTLY straight. As she handed it to me I couldn’t help but
exclaim with great joy “Gandalf has nothing on me.” As I walked and ran up the rest of the
mountain I thought “just don’t quit,
keep it going, you are strong. I
love you mother-nature thanks for giving me what I need. I dumped the stick on the downhill and when I told my teammates about it at the finish line the Gandalf references kept flying. Just another confirmation that I was in good, nerdy, company. Thank you for great teammates.
Thank you God and Universe for giving me the
strength and courage to endure” And then
were on the downhill! I even shouted
out, in Dougie style, “Yeehaw!” Jian and
I couldn’t wait to see the “one mile to go marker.”
One Mile to GO!
Team: Misfits Redux
was awesome. We all came from different
backgrounds, all had different life experiences, and careers but were all
brought together by our love of running, our ability to test ourselves and push
ourselves to extreme limits!
Meet the Misfits
Our team captain Shelley, originally from Georgia, now lives
in Boston was a logistical wizard. She was
able to coordinate the tents, team, race pace, transportation, and food for our
entire team. She has a fixation for
“bars” of all kinds. Well, the kind you eat, not the kind you dance on top of
after having a few too many drinks.
Shelley bought bars and apparently so did everyone else. We had so many different varieties of “bars” that Jian joked “We could open up our own convenient store!” Shelly brought us all together, vetted us all
very carefully, made sure that we were all safe, and ensured that we all had a great time. Shelley ran Ragnar Cape Cod, brought loads of
long-distance running experience to the table, and always had a smile on her
face. Shelley is full of hard-work and dedication. Even when she tweaked her ankles
on the red loop of pain she was still happy.
Shelley was strong and has the heart of a tiger. She was the glue that held us all together. I'm glad she lives in nearby so we can get together for coffee.
Co-captain Cathy was one tough cookie. Being an Olympic distance Triathlete and
marathoner she was jacked and strong! This
was her first Ragnar and I’m sure that it won’t be her last. In fact she's running the 'Daks in September. She was a fierce to be reckoned with and had that
special kind of NYC swagger. Cathy
killed the hills, took no prisoners, cheered everyone on at the exchange tent, tried moonshine, and took pictures along the way. Clearly a rebel at heart.
There was super-star Vikram, a nationally ranked archer, hiker, ultra runner who is in training for a 100 mile race. Vik hooked up the team with a sweet 8 person tent that was like so big and awesome it was the penthouse of Ragnarville. Vik was strong, and from NYC too. He was tall and tackled Northfield Mountain like a champ. Vik was quiet, polite, and had an amazing laugh. He also had these memorable jiggly, squeezable, silicon, bottles in his hydration vest that he drank from. He would leave the bottles in the vest, curl his head down to his chest, drink from them and say (as he sucked from them) “I’m like a baby.” Which made us all bust out laughing. Ahhhh…..good times!
For, Greg, computer engineer and dodge ball extraordinaire,
it was his first Ragnar Trail too. Greg
ran Reach-the-Beach, was very familiar with relays and had special colored lights that he wore on his fingers. Greg rocked the pirate bandanna, brought extraordinary
endurance and a sense of calmness to the team.
He taught us how to play a dice game called “Bull Shit!” It was so much fun that I need to find myself a
box of dice.
Papa George, retired Air Force rocket scientist and math professor,
was from Utah and is an avid trail runner and Ragnarian. He was able to secure VIP tent site for us,
as well as many other perks along the way.
George was very friendly and caring.
He was fierce on the trails and educated us about the different varieties
of Salomon shoes. He had given us
technical trail running tips, made sure that we were all hydrated, and he took
especially good care of my ankle with his “special, magically, blue crème” and
Aleve. Because this game involved statistical mathematical George easily calculated formulas when
playing “Bull Shit” making him wicked smart. I wonder what he'd be like in Vegas? It was clear from the very moment I met George, that he is a
great guy who loves the trails and enjoys being outdoors in nature. He also had a handy dandy portable cell phone
charger that he let us all use. George also likes fine wine & moonshine :)
Then there was Dale, retired Army-special forces medic from
Maine who no doubt is part “bionic-man” was a super-fast, tall and thin, running
machine who loves pickles. I don’t think
there’s a type of endurance race that Dale hasn’t done. He runs 2 half-marathons a month and in fact,
the day after Ragnar Trail NE he and his girlfriend Pam (aka
"Sweetie") took on a half-marathon
relay style! These 2 really are "Maniacs."
Dale gave us all sorts of
running, exercise, stretching, and nutritional tips. He gave me advice on how to recover from my
sprained ankle and encouraged me to get on the treadmill and rowing machine
rather than pounding the pavement. Dale
and Pam ( who works for LL Bean & is now a Ragnarian in
training) were super cool. I’m so glad I
had the chance to meet them. Pam was full of spunk and gave us the history of LL Bean which was super fascinating. He was full of great one liners that I will refer
to as “Dale-isms.”
- "I’m no Billy Goats Gruff…"
- "Just bite those nuts”
- “What’s a butterfly wrench?”
Jian, from Wisconsin, now lives in NYC. Jian had a good sense of humor and likes red Gatorade. She does not like gorillas. I am so
thankfully to have had the opportunity to get to know her better as we took on the
red loop of pain together. Jian is a
runner, and avid hiker who loves the outdoors.
As we climbed up the red loop she found a tree along the side of the
trail, snapped it in half, and made me the perfect walking stick. As she handed it to me I exclaimed (in true
Nerd Style) with great joy “Gandalf has nothing on me!” We stopped along the way to snap some photos
and as we continued to run I asked Jian about Chinese culture and learned a
great deal from her. It was an
interesting conversation and I enjoyed learning more about her as we scampered
down the mountain together. It was an
awesome experience that I’ll never forget. Jian is tough, full of grit and as sweet as she is...I wouldn't want to get on her bad side. She's tough and has a bit of rebel in her too. Thanks for keeping me going Jian.
Clearly there is a bit of the archaic rebel in all of us. Our team embraced the mantra of the"misfit" in style. It will take me a few days to fully digest and recover from
this experience. Everyone brought
something unique to our team. Thank you
Shelley for together an amazing group of Misfits! I’m so glad to have taken part in this
grueling experience with such incredible teammates. #RagnarTrailMA will push you to your limits
and through it you will find the most amazing people cheering you along! It will humble you and show you what you are
made of. You’ll make memories that will last a lifetime and have stories to tell. You'll also have a "wicked mint"multi-tool medal that you can use out on the trail. Just be careful these things will cut your fingers off. I encourage all of you reading this to “go out and find your #innerwild!
#unforgettableteamphoto
