I’m a BibRave Pro!

December 2, 2016 by Meridith

Agggh, you guys! I am so stoked! It’s official (there’s my badge!); I’m pleased to announce that I’ve been selected as a BibRave Pro!

BibRave is a great site where runners from all over can post their reviews of races and connect with other runners, both locally or in an area you’re looking to run a race.

I love reading what people have to say about all aspects of a race and I especially like reading what locals have to say if I’m traveling for a race. Their knowledge is invaluable!

Don’t get me wrong, I am a blog reader through and through but it’s cool to have all the information centralized. If you click on the badge above, you can find my profile and then we can be friends over there, too.

Tuesday nights on Twitter at 8 pm CST (9 pm for us east coasters) they host #bibchat. I love Twitter chats because it’s another way to connect with like-minded individuals and get feedback/ideas that I might not have considered. I do my best to stay awake for it but I have definitely fallen asleep mid-chat only to wake up in the morning, cuddling my phone. Waking at 5 am can do that to a gal.

As a BibRave Pro I’ll have opportunities to try out products that are running/fitness related. Which is especially great for readers here because I’ll be sharing my thoughts on Scoot a Doot. Your own personal guinea pig, right here! You also might see BibRave Pros at races – you can spot them in their bright orange apparel.

Good things ahead!

Are you on BibRave? (If not, join me over there, it’s lots of fun!) If you are, share your profile link with me so I can add you!

#WeddingWednesday: DIY Wedding Day Music

November 30, 2016 by kpjenn

I’m DJ-ing my own wedding.

I wish DJ Roomba would play my wedding.

I thought this would be pretty easy – I’m a musician, Clay is really a musician, we love a wide variety of tune-age. Finding songs that we like should be no problem, right?

Well. Kind of.

As it turns out, we both have pretty strong criteria for our playlists and while we like many genres and styles of music, it’s hard to sift through that many songs! And, we don’t want any of our ceremony music to feel cliched – because as pretty as Pachelbel’s Canon is, I am not walking down the aisle to it. Nope. (Not judging anyone who has used that piece, I’ve just played it one too many times, and the cello part blows.)

It’s also tricky to pick all of your own music for not only the ceremony, but also for dinner and dancing. That’s a lot of moods and styles to figure out and balance. (And let’s be honest, I really just want to dance.)

Basically, the Bravermans are #goals

Needless to say, I have a large spreadsheet mapping out our current favorites and ideas. The dancing and dinner portions of the evening don’t seem to be giving me as much trouble as the ceremony part – which isn’t really surprising, as it is the most personal and is when people will be the most tuned-in to what the music says and how it makes them feel.

Consequently, that means that I am over-thinking this portion like whoa. Because I want to avoid cliche, and I want the ceremony to be true to our music style, I’m finding myself wading through all of my favorite music and getting seriously distracted. “Oooh, I like that!” “OH! I like that too.” “Dave Matthews needs to be in here somewhere” “Also probably Paul Simon?” “HOW COULD I FORGET JOHN WILLIAMS?!”

You see my problem.

Fortunately, the lovely folks at Wedding Paper Divas have a super helpful tool to help with this kind of indecision. Their Wedding Song interactive is categorized by event within the wedding day, and then browse-able by genre and decade.

I spent about twenty minutes poking through their selections for processionals, as that’s where most of my indecision has been, and I was pleased to find a song I didn’t know existed that now I want to use! Who knew that John Mayer covered Beyonce’s “XO”? Okay. Clay knew. But I didn’t, and I’m kind of obsessed with it.

I’m really looking forward to continuing to play around with this tool as we build our playlists for Wedding Day – there’s still a lot of fine-tuning to do and this will be a great resource to inspire us.

What are some of the most unique wedding songs you’ve heard? Best? Worst?

How To Cheer a Friend at Her First Marathon (991 Miles Away)

November 28, 2016 by Meridith

First step: Realize that your friend is running her first FULL MARATHON when she posts pictures of herself with an astronaut buddy on Instagram.

Immediately text her and demand to know all the details, including how to track her. Confirm she’s running for funsies and that it’s okay to send her texts throughout her race (yes and yes).

https://www.instagram.com/p/BNSmgKIDz3s/?taken-by=thisgirlash_

This was the picture that tipped me off. I don’t know where I’ve been but as soon as I realized Holy schnikes, she’s doing a the FULL marathon I was texting that adorable little hand holder.

Second step: Wake up at 6:30am on a Sunday morning. Stalk the Twitter feed to get all aflutter when you realize that they started the race at exactly 6:32.

Third step: Decide that not only are you going to send TEXTS but you’re going to make motivational signs and text/tweet/Facebook her at appropriate times. Why? Because when you do something, you like to do it BIG.

Lay in bed and create them on phone (thanks to A Beautiful Mess and Word Dream apps) while your husband asks, “What in the world are you doing over there?”

Fourth step: Proceed to drain her battery with cheering! #sorrynotsorry

legends

beautifulmiserable

idiot

If you need help thinking of fun marathon signs, just search Google Images. I started there because it was early and my mind wasn’t fully engaged. As the day went on, I got more creative.

I’m sure they really appreciated that “only” modifier in there!

gilmoregirlsmarathon

Yeah, they both have to work.

Got a text from Ash saying she was around mile 25, so I sent this one.

Got a text from Ash saying she was around mile 25, so I whipped up this one lickety split. The beauty of cheering via the internet!

And finally, the tweet I was waiting for… they FINISHED the Space Coast Marathon.

262

I am so happy for Ashley and Michelle and their awesome accomplishment! Sure, I wasn’t there handing them shots or beers (um, and I hear that happens on this course) but it almost felt like I was right there along with them.

Ash has promised a play-by-play guest post for Scoot a Doot, so be sure to look for that… and if you see Ash and Michelle around the internet, make sure to congratulate the marathoners!

https://twitter.com/thisgirlash_/status/802964673742180353

Who else was at Space Coast? I hear it is a heck of a lot of F-U-N!

Happy Thanksgiving!

November 24, 2016 by scootadoot

Philadelphia Half Marathon 2016 Recap

November 21, 2016 by Meridith

I think I might need to break up with the Philadelphia half marathon race.

My heart hurts to feel it and it feels weird to even say it because I always told anyone who will listen just how much I adore the Philadelphia Marathon weekend. I’m not usually one to complain but I’m bummed. Even with a PR, I’m bummed.

artmuseum

I have a deep love for the Philadelphia Marathon which roots back to watching Victoria completing her first full in 2010. There’s been 6 straight years of being involved with the race in some shape or form.

This year brought a lot of changes to the Philadelphia Marathon; I know that I can tend to be resistant to change but I tried really hard to go into it with an open mind.

The train ride into the city at 5:40am. Chrissy participated in the 8k this year, which started at 10:45. She came in early with me so she could cheer for the half marathoners. The race began at 7:30.

The first change that was made was that the half and full marathons, which were usually both held at the same day and time were split. Which makes sense from a business standpoint. They added the Rocky Challenge, which is for those people who wanted to run both the half and the full races. Good on you, running all the miles folks!

The race weekend, once run by the City of Philadelphia, has been taken on by Philadelphia Parks and Rec (they manage the Broad Street Run as well). Communication prior to the race was a bit on the light side. People asked questions via email and Facebook, many went unanswered. I know there is a learning curve that comes along with these things but I was surprised that there wasn’t better communication, as this isn’t their first race rodeo.

The change that impacted me the most though was… they changed the half marathon course. I take issue with this because I know the old course and I really loved the old course.

I did not really love the new course. The old course is still run-able… as the first half of the marathon. It’s comprised of a nice mix of running through the city, through the streets near Drexel University, past the zoo, a small jaunt through Fairmount park, and finishing along the river in front of the art museum.

I knew the new course would be different but I wasn’t mentally prepared for just how different.

securitycheck

New this year is that they had shuttle buses from hotels to the start area. I didn’t utilize this because I stayed at home and took the train into the city but I’m thinking that was a benefit to those who took advantage of it.

The security check points were set up through which we all slowly filtered. I appreciate the efforts to keep us safe but I don’t understand why the Philadelphia race weekend has it and something like Broad Street, which has 40,000+ runners does not. I suppose Broad Street’s start line doesn’t really lend itself well to having check points?

Chrissy stared at an empty street near Love Park (currently under construction), waiting for all the runners!

I was in the blue corral, AKA, the last corral. I had big plans. I’ve been consistently training and I wanted to PR in a major way. I found my pal Christina and we caught up on each other’s lives while we wanted for our corral to start. The wheelchair start was 7:25, the elites started at 7:30, and our corral toed the line at 8:03.

corralblue

The first mile was very congested but I was feeling great and happy to be running! I noticed there was a lot of construction within this mile, which didn’t help with the squeezed feeling. I looked for Chrissy at the spot we picked for her to cheer but missed her during the first mile. I knew we’d be coming back the street on the other side so I held out hope I would still be able to see her.

No big surprised that it felt a little squished with so many people!

I bobbed and weaved in the first two miles but after that I found a good spot and we all spread out. As I circled back around City Hall I knew I’d have the chance to see Chrissy and I wasn’t going to miss it. I hugged the right side of the road and found her! We blew kisses as I ran past and headed back toward the Art Museum.

Miles 1-5 were fantastic! Seeing City Fit Girls around mile 4 gave me a boost like you wouldn’t believe and I’m pretty sure I lost my mind when I saw them.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BM_z6L1Dcoo/?taken-by=cityfitgirls

Running along the river was gorgeous. Boathouse Row is always beautiful and the fall foliage was in its prime. I continued with my 2:1 intervals and was exactly where I wanted to be pace-wise.

I took a GU gel at mile 5 and then heard someone in the crowd yell SCOOT A DOOT! I didn’t know it then but it was Kim, one of our buddies on Facebook and Instagram! It made me smile and I was still smiling, despite turning the corner and facing the first hill. I am no stranger to this hill; I’ve run it quite a few times in the past during races. It’s not my favorite but I was prepared for it and did the best I could.

Plus there was a sweet downhill that I knew was coming ahead so I focused on cruising down.

After that, it was pretty much uncharted territory for me as far as the course was concerned. There was a nice stretch of road and we all continued happily along our way.

Around mile 8 we turned to go up a hill and then it felt like we never stopped going uphill. It was hill.

After hill.

not-impressed-comment-meme

From a race that was touted as a flat course in the past, it really wasn’t what I expected. I hustled up the hills as much as I could but I watched my time creep up on my miles and my expectation of a huge PR went down.

However, I did see Dimity McDowell from Another Mother Runner during one of those horrible hills and I was so happy to see her; I thought she might be a mirage. That interaction put a pep in my step for a short amount of time, because you know, I was on a steep hill.

Pretty sure you can tell EXACTLY where the hills were located, looking at this.

I saw Christina a few times throughout the course and it helped to have a familiar face to look for in a sea of people. The last 3 miles were pure survival mode. I knew I wasn’t going to get the time goal I wanted, which was disheartening.

That said, as I was bopping along with my music and I realized that despite not getting the time that I wanted, I was still feeling really good. My legs didn’t hurt, I was still able to do my intervals, and I was grateful for a good day of running!

I finished a minute faster than my old PR (which was back at the 2014 Nike Women’s half) and while I know were it a different course, I might have gone faster, a PR IS A PR!

phillymedal2016

The finish line area was sort of a mess. I got my medal and then immediately started looking around for water and food. I finally asked a few fellow runners where to find it and they pointed off to the side where a tent was set up.

They had a great assortment of food for us, including the soft pretzels and chicken broth that I’ve grown accustomed to having after the race but no bags to put everything in.

I found Christina again after the race and we made plans to meet up and run soon, which I’ll be holding her to (it’s in the blog post so it must happen!).

I got to cheer Chrissy as she came across the 8k finish line and she felt really good! It was awesome to be there for her finish and to see many familiar faces from #run856 as they crossed the finish line.

merandchrissyfinish

Overall, this race wasn’t what I expected and that’s odd to say, coming from someone who has done the race multiple times. Even though there was a PR that was involved, the race wasn’t what I envisioned so I guess that’s why I’m a little whomp whomp regarding this race.

Maybe next year I’ll do the 8k again. Maybe I’ll get over my disappointment, train on hills, and try the half marathon again. Maybe I’ll get really crazy and run the full. I guess I’ll see where 2017 brings me!

Did you race this weekend? Have you ever had a good but disappointing race? I’m feeling really conflicted with my emotions.

What’s next? A local little fun run called The Light Run to look at holiday lights. My older child has agreed to do this one with me and I know we’ll be seeing a lot of friends there too. Yay!

We Found Love in a Hopeless Place

November 18, 2016 by kpjenn

When you’re alone and life is making you lonely
You can always go downtown
When you’ve got worries, all the noise and the hurry
Seems to help, I know, downtown

I think Petula Clark was on to something – because last weekend, when I was still deep in the dark place, the fiance and I took a quick little jaunt down to Charlottesville, VA (not exactly “downtown”) to spend some time together outside of our normal routine.

It was a short trip, but it was just what we needed.

Between crazy work schedules and travel and extracurricular commitments, finding time to be together and just enjoy each other’s company has been a challenge, because when we are together, we’re usually running errands, or cleaning the house, or hosting our friends for Sunday football, or collapsing on the couch after a long day and zoning out in front of Netflix. And trying to save money for the wedding has meant that we have been keeping things pretty low-key.

So, we planned a weekend away. But what was supposed to be a two-night stay became a “less-than-24-hour excursion” because, wouldn’t you know it, work happened and we needed to get back in time for that. That said, we managed to capitalize on all of our time there and it was just what we needed.

Friday morning, we hopped in the car and drove back country roads to Monticello, Thomas Jefferson’s estate just outside of Charlottesville. We spend lunch and the early afternoon there exploring the grounds, enjoying the unseasonably warm sun, and touring Jefferson’s house. Consequently, I think we also managed to get Hamilton songs stuck in everyone’s heads if they were following us on social media.

Following Monticello, we had planned to visit a winery, but we were tired and hungry, and decided that checking in to our hotel sounded like a better plan. Because that involved stopping for snacks and then laying in bed watching tv and napping without any reason to move.

(I know. I vacation hardcore.)

One of the big reasons we wanted to visit Charlottesville is that it is the birthplace of the Dave Matthews Band. Dave was living and working as a bartender in Cville when he formed the group and there are a number of DMB landmarks there. Clay really wanted to see a few of them, so we spent the evening on a DMB mission.

It was important to Clay for us to stop at Leroi Moore’s gravesite – Moore, one of the founding members of the band, passed away in 2008. He, and the band, have meant a lot to Clay over the years, and getting to pay his respects was something Clay had wanted to do for a long time.

Afterwards, we decided we needed a drink and some dinner – and we needed to pour one out for Leroi. Or shoot whiskey. Same thing, right? I thought so. So, we headed to Miller’s Downtown – the bar that Dave Matthews was tending at when he put the band together. Yes, there was fangirling. No, we’re not sorry. The burger and the wings were awesome and downtown Charlottesville is the cutest. They’ve taken a few blocks of the downtown area and closed them to vehicles, so it’s just a pedestrian mall. We walked up and down it after dinner and explored that little corner of the city before retiring to bed.

When you try to get the Miller’s sign and your faces in one picture… with little success.

Saying goodbye to Charlottesville the next morning happened early and cold – but we left feeling rejuvenated and energized and, honestly, more connected. That sounds so sappy, but it’s true and I’m grateful that in the midst of what has been a very uncertain and emotional week, we were able to find time to focus on each other.

Recipe Box: Beef Stir Fry

November 9, 2016 by kpjenn

Friends, today is a hard day. I don’t want to preach or soap box, but I needed to say that if you’re feelings are raw or your heart hurts or you’re feeling vulnerable this morning, know that you are not alone. I’m feeling that right alongside you – and I know that the best way to move forward is to take care of each other. We’ve all got each other, no matter our differences. We can heal.

I’m finding it hard to write with my usual sense of joviality today, but I do have a recipe to share, and it’s a good one and definitely hits the mark on the healthy/delicious scale. One of our go-to meals is stir fry, but its rare that we make it with anything but chicken. And if I’m being quite honest, I’m over all of the chicken. Too much chicken. All the time.

So, in meal planning for this week, we took a stroll through Costco and picked up a few cuts of meat that we don’t usually get, namely a massive amount of chuck roast. Which is perfect for throwing in the slow cooker and making things like Italian beefs, and, as it happens, stir fry.

Ingredients:

Broccoli (4 cups, ish), chopped

Snow peas (a couple handfuls)

Whole red and yellow peppers, sliced

1 large white onion, diced

1.5 lb Chuck Roast

Salt

Pepper

Ginger (to taste)

Onion powder (to taste)

Cayenne (to taste)

Soy sauce

Teriyaki sauce

Sesame oil (JUST A LITTLE)

Kikkoman Stir Fry Sauce

Lime juice

Pull out your crock pot, tenderize that chuck roast to within an inch of it’s life. Seriously. Slice into inch cubes. Toss in the crock pot with soy sauce and teriyaki and a liiiiiittle bit of sesame oil. Also throw in your seasonings, to taste. Let that sit for… a few hours. Like, maybe four? Or five? Just let it ride for a while. When it’s broken down and falling apart, it’s ready.

When your meat is ready, get your veggies all chopped up. Throw them all in a wok (or sautee pan, whatever), on medium heat with olive oil covering the bottom. Add a few squirts of lime juice. Stir occasionally, making sure to evenly distribute oil and juice on all the veggies. Cook only until warm through – they should still be pretty crisp. Drop the meat on top, stir it up and feed your face.

You will have a BUNCH of foodz and in my house, that means leftovers, which are the best.

2016 Cooper Norcross Run the Bridge 10k Recap

November 8, 2016 by Meridith

benfranklinbridge

A lot can change in four years. 2012 seems like a lifetime ago at this point but it was actually the first time I participated in the Run the Bridge 10k. Dinosaurs weren’t exactly roaming the earth but it was pre-Scoot a Doot days, when I used to blog about my races on Tumblr, so I think that’s saying something.

Packet pickup was quick and easy – I live right near one location of the South Jersey Running Company. When you register you are able to choose your packet pickup location of choice.

I was in and out of the store in less than 3 minutes, although they did offer bridge runners 20% off that day. I refrained but it was a challenge! There was also a 15% coupon in the race packet so my plan is to get back there soon for new Mizunos for the Philly half.

The packet had the race bib, long sleeved cotton t-shirt, and a couple of papers regarding the course and other little odds and ends.

shirtandbib

The race benefits the LARC school, which is a local school that assists students with disabilities at no cost to the families. It’s a great cause and one that I feel really good about supporting while participating in the race.

The emails from the race management were informative and they kept good communication lines, which is always appreciated! They suggested getting to the parking lots early and I did just that. Roads apparently started closing around 7am so I arrived at 6:30. Plenty of time to tailgate in my car with water and a banana and play on social media – #runnertailgating.

Most races I’ve done I wind up carpool with friends or meeting up with them for pre-race pictures/post-race drinks. I was solo for this race – I saw a lot of people I recognized from other races and our local Run 856 group, but I wasn’t there with anyone. I missed my buddies!

bridgegroup

Campbell’s Field used to host the Camden Riversharks, a minor league baseball team, but within the past year the organization disbanded. I’m not sure what they’re doing with the stadium now that the Riversharks are no longer playing there but it was well kept and ready to host 4,000 runners and walkers.

A plus of being at the stadium was that there are real bathrooms to use prior to the race. I will always opt for that over port-a-potties. They were also offering coffee and other assorted things, as well as checking IDs for the post-race beer garden. Very cushy in comparison to other races!

bridgewalktostart

The walk from the stadium to the bridge provided a warm up and there were two lines of port-a-potties along the way, as well.

As the name suggests, the Ben Franklin Bridge is a huge portion of this race. Once on the bridge, there were no official corrals but they did have pace markers for people to self-seed. I placed myself in between the 11-12 minute mile, which I knew was what I would be doing for this run.

bridge11min

We started exactly at 8:30. I don’t have any pictures from the course because I was just trying to focus on breathing and getting up the hills of the bridge. I haven’t done much hill training so the incline, while slow and steady, was still felt. I definitely took advantage of the downhills. There was brief stint in Philadelphia around the loop and then it’s back for round two of the bridge.

The second part of the race is through the streets of Camden, along the waterfront, near the Battleship New Jersey, and then back to the stadium. There were 3 water stations and plenty of police and volunteers throughout the route. Not many spectators but the enthusiasm of the volunteers was fantastic!

My legs weren’t too pleased during the second portion of the race. Additionally I think I made a mistake with pre-race fuel by taking it too early. I wound up finishing in 1:13. Not my best, but given the course it was pretty much what I anticipated. I’m definitely proud of getting out there and getting it done!

bridgemedal

Finishing on the field is always exciting and immediately after volunteers had medals waiting for us.

There was plenty of water, chocolate milk, snack bags, bagels, waiting for the runners. There were lines for each and I wasn’t exactly sure what was what so I just found the end of one and stood in it. You can probably imagine my happiness when I found out it was the beer line! YES PLEASE! I think this was the first year that they offered a beer at the end of this race. (Yards, for those interested.)

bridgemer

Easy getting to my car and I was back home before noon. Mother Nature had my back this time because the weather was perfect! A lot can change in four years but this race stays consistently challenging and great.

Next race for me is the Philly half. I’d like to get a couple of training runs in before then – possibly do a bit more hill work in the interim. But first, this week is the start of No-school-vember – my kids are off Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. Give me strength! 😉

Finding Gratitude in a Noisy Crowd

November 2, 2016 by Jennifer

Last week, I experienced an almost spiritual moment of gratitude. I was at a concert, a Tool concert to be specific. As I stood in the 12th row, my hair literally blowing from the sound waves (maybe I should have worn earplugs?), I was overtaken by sadness when I thought about my late grandma.

Yes, my grandma. At a Tool show. I know it’s strange, but stay with me here.

I realized how much she would have loved it, and how I wish I had taken her to a rock concert before she passed away in 2003. I imagined her throaty giggle as the sound waves vibrated in her chest. Her eyes full of excitement from the drummer’s insane solo as it ricochets around the arena. I could easily imagine this experience moving her to tears.

My grandma was deaf. She had scarlet fever as an infant and it stole her hearing. She grew up in the WWII era, and was sent to a deaf school. Her parents and siblings did not learn sign language. As was common at that time, deafness was associated with a lack of intelligence, and deaf folks were relegated to low-wage jobs and sub-standard education. She grew up, married a deaf man, and they had four hearing children. They refused to teach any of the children sign language for fear the kids would have the same stigma attached to them.

Grandma Beverly

My mother was one of those four, and she and I learned to sign when I was eight. Grandma gave me a Sesame Street signing book, and she was so thrilled when I was able to tell her what I was learning about in school. I’d show her my favorite signs over and over, like dream, turtle, and grandma, but she never tired of it. Although I was (and still am) a horrible speller, she pretended to understand what I finger-spelled to her. She had the most amazing laugh, because it was complete abandon every time. Guttural, loud, and full of life. She didn’t know about “indoor voices”. Just recalling the sound of it makes me laugh thirteen years after I heard it last.

My favorite memory of her is when I took her to a doctor appointment, and blasted Snoop Dogg from the stereo as we drove. I look over, and there is my grandma, bobbing her head and tapping her foot to the bass vibration in the car. She asked me what kind of music it was and when I told her, I was rewarded with her best laugh ever.

Not long before she passed, she got new hearing aides. We gathered at my mom’s house to fill out and send my wedding invitations. My mom messed up on one of the envelopes, so she crumpled it up in a ball and tossed it aside. Grandma’s eyes got huge!

“What was that noise?” She signed.

“It was the envelope,” I told her and replicated the crumple action.

“Paper makes noise?!?” She asked, totally astounded. She’d heard the crumple sound for the first time.

Imagine that. Imagine not knowing that virtually everything makes some sort of noise. Imagine how wondrous each sound would be as you discovered it for the first time at the age of 63. Then she heard my mother’s (her daughter’s) laugh for the first time and she cried.

That’s why I know she would have loved the Tool show. She’d have loved the vibration of the music, the feeling of a sold out crowd united by what they are hearing. She didn’t get to experience music, or her childrens’ laughter, or the sound of thunder or ocean waves.

Everyone was jealous of our seats

So when I was at the Tool show, being bombarded with amazing guitar riffs, the gratitude hit me. We are so lucky. Fortunate. Blessed. I try really hard not to take experiences for granted. In my opinion, they are the most important thing. Possessions are only things that lose their shine and usefulness over time, but experiences teach you, they broaden you, and they make you more interesting. Plus, they don’t go out of style and they can’t break like things do.

Me and the Mr. #twelfthrow

Have some experiences that push you and scare you a little. Do the things you have passion for. Do ALL the things. Don’t squander the chance to enjoy every moment of life. It’s the simplest experiences that can give us the most happiness. Don’t forget to be present.

That time I wrastled a gator.

What are your favorite adventures? What’s on your bucket list? How do you savor you life? Let’s share!

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Ninjas Spotted in the Aloha State

October 31, 2016 by camoozle

I suppose I should preface this post by acknowledging the obvious fact that there are easier ways to experience paradise than spending 38 hours with 12 teammates, running a 200 mile relay race through heat, humidity, wind, rain, lava rock, and hills. I’m sure most people would rather spend that time lounging on the sand and sipping sweet drinks from a coconut. Well, that’s not how ninjas take on the big island. Not initially, anyway.

Two weeks ago, my fella and I traveled to the big island with eleven other ninjas to run the inaugural Hawaii Ragnar. Hawaii!!! I had never been to Hawaii so as soon as this race was announced, I knew this was the way I wanted to see paradise: from the pavement! This race had everything: sandy beaches, palm trees, and let us not forget the humidity! Oh the humidity. I should have trained in a sauna. Let me rephrase that, I should have trained…period. Ragnar Hawaii was one of the most difficult courses I’ve ever encountered. So much so I feel my feelings can best be presented in a list entitled “Reasons Why Ragnar Hawaii Kicked My Ass.”

At the start in Hilo. It was still dark when our team headed out!

Please note: this list does not include any obvious reasons like lack of training or preparation or bug repellent. I really should have done more research.

Reasons Why Ragnar Hawaii Kicked My Ass

#1 – Time Zones

Did you know that Hawaii is 3 hours behind California? I didn’t until I got there. At first I thought, awesome, it’s like I’ve gone back in time, I get three extra hours today. Sure, it helped when I had to get up at 2:30 am to be at a start line by 5:30 am. It felt just like any other day, but by 6:00 pm, I wanted to sleep. This doesn’t fare well when you have thirty more hours of running ahead of you. In past Ragnars, Van 2 (my van) usually starts by mid afternoon. I didn’t start running until almost 5:00 pm! This meant night gear for my very first leg of the race as it starts getting dark around 6:00 pm. That’s technically 9:00 pm California time aka Cam’s bedtime. So yeah, this threw me off my game a bit. I was fighting sleepiness the whole race. Luckily, my van threw a dance party every time we stopped to support our runners, who frequently sported unicorn heads and rainbow legwarmers. This rave-like atmosphere put a little pep in my step, but time zones, you really know how to mess with a girl’s head.

#2 – Weather

So I mentioned humidity earlier, but that’s pretty expected. I also expected the 80-90 degree temperatures during the day. I planned for this, brought my sunscreen and my tank tops. I did not expected the temperatures to drop and the winds to howl. Apparently the big island has two sides, the wet side of the island and the hot side of the island. Well, this course took us from Hilo to Kona so we got to experience ALL of it. Biting winds, warm rain, muggy heat…I almost didn’t even bring a jacket. I had no idea this one island could be so diverse. Hilo was a lush jungle with tall shady trees and green vines everywhere. Kona was a lava field, black rock all the way to the ocean. I really should have done more research.

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My SECOND sunrise in Hawaii!

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Fields of Lava Rock

#3 – Hills

Yeah, so about that research I should have done, specifically volcanoes and how to run near them. It shouldn’t have been a surprise really, they put the course maps out months in advance, but still seeing those inclines on paper and then experiencing them in real life when you’re jet lagged and melting is a whole other beast. I was lucky, my legs were relatively flat. However it seems like every other runner had the worse hills ever! Especially runner 5, who had to run uphill for 11.8 miles. This run was so difficult, it warranted an extra medal, the Big Kahuna, just for this one leg of the race!

The best thing you’ll ever see at Ragnar.

#4 – It’s Effing Hawaii

We ran through so much beautiful scenery, it was hard to stay focused on the end game. Hawaii is such a laid-back, relaxing atmosphere and I wanted to savor every minute of my surroundings, both during and after my runs. I was awestruck by the geology of the place, how tufts of grass grew out of the hardened lava rock and how cliffs seem to just thrust up out of the sea. I had to stop and take pictures of the sun rising over the fields of lava rock, while in the distance the ocean gleamed to life. Even in the darkness of night, the island held a peaceful murmur that was hard not to be captivated by. This is the reason I run Ragnar, so I get to experience this part, the part that’s far from the vacation. The part I’d never see if I had just come to Hawaii with a bunch of friends.
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#5 – I had to leave

The biggest regret of this whole experience is that I left right after the race. I wish I would have set aside more time to explore this island. The rest of the ninjas stayed and took in all the splendors Hawaii had to offer and I watched from Facebook in envy, wishing that I too had a sweet drink in a coconut. My advice, take the time to make this one a real runcation. Bring a jacket and bug spray. Get there a day early and leave many days later. And do some research. Who knew they had snow in Hawaii?

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