Hood to Coast - finally
This weekend was Hood to Coast, and it was incredible. I had such an amazing time. I can't wait for next year.
Jamie Azevedo, Gretchen Miller, Sarah Pozzi and I ran it from Bodyfelt. Sarah and I were in Van 2 with Colin Reilly (Keystone, from Indiana), Tim Fisher (attorney Amy Fisher's husband, from Oklahoma), Patrick Paul (Arizona lawyer), and Peggy Ward (Maryland lawyer). My other client Lindsey Christian from Camping World was in Van 1 with Jamie and Gretchen and some of their friends. We had several last minute drop outs and filled it with Serena (who ran last year on the team and is from California) and a couple of people Gretchen knew.
We met as a team on Thursday at our office so people could meet each other and we'd decorate the vans. Van 1 started at Mt. Hood at 7:30am.
Van 2 started around 11:00 at Sandy High School. Tim led off for us and he was so excited, he sprinted off like a jackrabbit. Of course, he's super fast and has ran Boston over 20 times in a row. He's quiet and hilarious and intense about his running.
Sarah was next. She did great and was a solid runner. She also drove most of the time. When I drove around Gresham and she navigated, she got us lost twice and we were late for two runners. She ended up getting fired from navigating but she was a great driver and got us in and out of many crazy spots.
Patrick followed Sarah. He literally had a hamstring pop days before the race. He went to cryotherapy, PT and a naturopath in a single day to be able to run with us again. He ran last year. He did amazing his year. His hamstrung cooperated and he put in some fast times. He has a great sense of humor and really wants to help and participate.
Peggy was next. She also had solid times. She was the matronly one of the group, with a great sense of humor. She's a good friend of mine from the FDCC. She also ran last year.
Colin was next. He is training for a marathon and is a newer long-distance runner. He's tall and super fun. He was running 8 minute miles as well.
I followed Colin and did well. My first leg was on Springwater Corridor and started near Sellwood and ended at the Hawthorn Bridge. It was hot, in the low 80s. I made a rookie mistake and took off too quickly and burned myself out. As I started to find my pace, a snake crossed my path which spiked my adrenaline again. I was running sub-9 minute miles for the first couple, then crashed. I averaged 10 minutes for my 5.6 mile leg. That was a bummer. But the really cool thing was that no one in the van really cared. We were all supportive of each other.
We then hung out at the office for a bit, ate some pizza and tried to rest. No one really slept - it was just too early. Then, we drove out to the St. Helens area for an exchange with Van 1. We started running again around 11:00pm. My run was round 3:00am, and it is within the top 5 best runs I've ever had. It was totally dark, we were wearing head lamps and flashers on our reflective vests. My leg was 4.8 miles and primarily downhill while running on a paved country road. I was mostly alone with the occasional runner either passing me or me passing them. It felt wonderful and freeing and I ran fast!
We then drove to the next exchange somewhere in the middle of nowhere and slept in sleeping bags in a field. We got there around 5:30 am. The announcers were still calling team numbers and people were laughing and talking. Yet, we were so tired that most of us cat-napped for about an hour. Then we were off again. We bought a 6-pack of beer at a tiny little store so the runners could celebrate their last leg and drink a beer after they finished - yup, while the van was heading to the next stop. I ran the final leg of the entire race. I started around 1:00pm. It was a tough leg though the course wasn't actually that hard. It was 5.2 miles, starting on a great forest path, then getting onto the road only to hit a hill. The downhill was long and fantastic but the 2 miles of flat through Seaside, Oregon as tough. My watch battery had died so I wasn't paying attention to my time. I ran about 9:06 - way faster than I anticipated.
After hanging out on the beach, drinking a beer as a full team, we eventually made our way to the house and had dinner as a group. I had so much fun and really enjoyed the people on our team. It was an epic adventure that I will treasure.
