What I Did - Hood To Coast 2010

Thursday night I began packing for my adventure. Brilliant move by my procrastinating self... Thankfully, I have an amazing husband who helped me through it. Making sure I had everything I needed and didn't even say a word when I realized that I almost forgotten my sleeping bag and pillow!

As I stood putting things in my bag, I honestly told Cory, "If I would've known that I would have to get up at 3:00 a.m. and ride in a van with a bunch of women that I don't know, I would've said no!" Yes. I did. I said that. I was a little crabby. I was constantly having to remind myself that I WANTED to do this. That I said "yes" to this. That I had paid money to do this.

The alarm went off at 3:00 and I begrudgingly got out of bed. Got dressed. Made coffee. Packed up the car and out the door I went. Stomach turning...

I arrived at Karen's house and was thankfully NOT the last one there! (I am ALWAYS late.) We introduced ourselves. Waited for the other girls to get there. I think we were on our way by 4:30.

The drive to Mt. Hood was peaceful. Chatting. Getting to know each other. I was the rookie in the van. And at this point, the ONLY person who was anxious. The closer we got to Timberline, the more my stomach turned...

Frigid and beautiful is how I would describe it. The mountain, the sky, vans parked side by side. Anxious runners. Rookies and the experienced, side by side. Teeth chattering, we waited for our wave to start. 6:45 and Tammi was off!

Then Kailey.

Then Kim.

Then me.

Ready to puke. I stood like a child. Not knowing what to do. Not confident. Kim was fast approaching and as I waited to take the bracelet from her in the exchange area, a man pushed me out of the way so he could get the bracelet from his teammate. I just kept saying, "this is my girl" as I tried to stand my ground... pushy man took off in front of me and off I went.

The adrenaline surged and I was off. Looking at my watch. Slowing myself down. 6:45 is what my pace was when I started. Yeah. THAT would not be smart running! First mile ended up at an 8:18.

Downhill.

Running hard.

Watching the beauty fly by.

A little anxious about the semi's driving by.

Passing 9.

Even pushy guy!

Getting passed 3 times.

Never by pushy guy!!

It was over all too soon.

7.22 miles. 1:03:07. Average pace - 8:45!

Feeling great. Nervous stomach gone. Confident.

It was fun!

Karen's turn.

Then Katy.

Van exchange in Sandy. Then time for a shower and some rest!

5:00 came and Tammi was off again. Running from OMSI. Here we go again...

7:46 and my leg starts.

Holy cow. I was not nervous. Just tired. And when I started running, my legs gave me some sass and I had to push hard to keep going. I. Was. Tired!

Only 3.54 miles, but the longest 3.54 miles of my life! It was dark. I didn't see my van drive by. The entire run I was worried about them. Were they okay? What if they weren't there when I got there.? Would I have to keep running?? And holy cow!! I am close to those semi's!!!

Pushing hard I see the end. Wait for the light to turn. Cross. Wait again. Cross. I did NOT like having to stop just as I was starting my final kick! Approaching the exchange. SO relieved to see Karen!

3.54 miles. 31:16. Average pace - 8:50

We finished our legs around 9:30. Did the van exchange at the fairground in St. Helens (I think!) and headed to the next van exchange in Mist. Down the windy road. Barely able to keep our eyes open. It felt so much later! I remember driving by a house and thinking it was crazy for someone to still be up. Then I looked at the clock... it was only 9:45!

We pulled into the field/parking lot in mist. Parked strategically. Put the tarp on the ground. Rolled our sleeping bags out. And crawled in. Stinky. Filthy. Sweaty. Tired.

I thought it was crazy that I could find comfort on the hard ground, in a field, with a car tire by my head. That lasted a minute. The rest of the night I lay there. Listening to cars pull in. People crawl into sleeping bags. People packing up. A man snoring LOUDLY right next to us!

Around 2:30 I went to get something out of the car and Karen, who had slept in the car, said she kept hearing something beep. Then, we heard it again. It was the walkie talkie (no cell coverage in mist) "Rain Runners are you there??" We scrambled looking for the walkie talkie. Found it. Tried to talk back and only got a man telling me we must have the same channel, but he was not the Rain Runners. Oh, be quiet!! Is all I wanted to say... Then, we hear them again, "Van 1, Rain Runners, we're 25 minutes away!!" Holy cow!!! We jumped out of the van. Woke everyone up. Packed up. Our runner ran to the exchange JUST as their runner came in. We jumped in the car and headed for the next exchange.


Ready to puke again. Beyond exhausted. Wondering how in the world I'm going to get this body to go. My legs already felt like bricks. It was pitch dark. How in the world??

Tammi finished. So relieved to be done.

Then Kailey.

Then Kim.

Off I went.

I really wanted to soak up my last run. Enjoy the beauty. Enjoy the experience. Adrenaline surged as I started running. And running. Passing by 4 or 5 people. Running uphill. Then, it was just quiet. And dark. And I was all alone. And did I mention it was dark??

I kept praying that someone would pass me so I could at least have someone near me. I could not see the ground. I was praying I would not step in a pothole and turn my ankle. I was praying a car would not hit me. I was praying no one would attack me. I kept hearing things and at one point thought I heard a bike behind me on my right. I'm sure I would have laughed had I not been so freaked out... turning my head every 10 seconds to look over my shoulder.

At one point, all I could see was a cliff to my left and lots of clouds/fog below.

Pushing as hard as I possibly could. Feeling like I was crawling. I don't even remember what my exchange looked like. I just remember seeing Karen. Giving her the bracelet and the vest. Thankful to be done!

4.09 miles. 38:37. Average pace - 9:27.

Karen was next and her leg was one that made me want to cry for her. Uphill for about 3.6 miles and then all downhill. At the top of the hill there was an aid station with a sign that said, "congratulations! You made it!!" Seriously. She made it and did an amazing job!

Katy finished her leg.

We saw van 2 one last time. And off we went to Seaside.

Holy cow.

We were tired!

Hobbled into Starbucks. Got a wonderful cup of coffee. So thankful to be done!

We walked around Seaside for a bit. Sat in the van a bit. Waiting for van 2 to finish. Waiting to go home.

It was awesome down at the beach. Seeing all the teams. Watching the runners come in.

At one point, "Mom's Bucket List" ran across the line. With a tear in my eye, I realized, that's what this was for me. A wonderful experience. Something I was so glad I did. One of those things I could check off. One of those things that I NEVER wanted to do again!

Our last runner came in and we all crossed the finish line together. Got our medals. Pictures taken. And home we went.

What a crazy race! I went in saying I was going to just enjoy my runs and run nice and easy. Yeah right! Can anyone ever run a race nice and easy?? I pushed myself on each and every run... even when my legs no longer wanted to carry me. I gave it my all! I survived on clif bars, zone bars, fruit leathers, sports drinks and water. For 2 days. (And some cashew clusters that proved to be a bad idea for my tummy!) I slept a few minutes here and there. I rolled over in my sleeping bag and got a whiff of myself - not so pretty! I peed in pitch dark port-a-potties (maybe that was a good thing!) I met some great women. I saw some beautiful things. I was scared out of my mind. I was glad to have finished.

Two days later and I'm able to say that I will do it again someday. First I said, "maybe in 5 years." Then, while talking to my brother yesterday, he asked if I would do it with him. Absolutely! We're hoping for Hood To Coast 2012! A healthy brother to run with would make me do it again in a heartbeat!

I have never been so tired. Well, okay, I guess maybe I have. I have birthed 4 babies, after all!! But, I am sore as can be. Sleeping like crazy. Catching up on all the sleep I missed. Taking care of my body and wondering what this next weekend will be like as I head to Eugene to do the Eugene Women's Half!