BFFL Best Friends For Life

I tip my hat off to Eric Lerude and Andy Bunkse of People Burning Fat Productions for figuring out a way to have the relay and still avoid the fire ravaged areas of south shore. Sometimes, the easiest solutions are the simplest ones. Instead of worrying about coursing through South Shore, the event this year just eliminated those legs.

As a relay veteran, I was at first bummed out we wouldn't be running in the middle of the night, but it's one of those things you don't have any control over - so why worry?

It's always good to have a plan B anyways right? I know we (Jon, Lesley (who also blogged about it) and Christine) did. Our original plan was to head up Thursday evening, spend the night at my cabin, then head over Mt. Rose to Reno. But those plans ended up in smoke as the Angora Lakes Fire was way too close to the cabin, and with all of the emergency personnel working the fire, it was best we avoid the area completely.

I found a couple of last minute hotel rooms via online in "beautiful" downtown Reno at the Sands Hotel for $34.00 Well, at least the price was right. We pull into Reno around 7:20 pm, just in time for the captain's meeting and the room was packed, understandably so. I am sure everyone was wondering what was going to happen due to the fire and basically Eric told the group that we'll avoid that area completely. We had to sign additional waivers (damn lawyers)and we were given alternative traffic maps.

We rallied after the meeting and met our sponsors, KREN. We were going to be running for the local CW station, KREN and we were excited to meet them. Rebecca selected a restaurant inside our hotel as the dinner spot, so that was nice and convenient. After dinner, we made ourselves over to Mel's Diner and shared a sundae. One of the good things about being a runner, is you can normally eat whatcha like and not worry about the caloric boost! After our dessert, I wanted to go to Circus Circus and try my luck at the arcade. I I had to convince the group to join me as I got the impression they need a lot more sleep that I do. But once we got there, I could tell everyone was having fun. We walked back to the hotel with our arms full of bounty.

Friday morning and we are off to the start of the relay. All of us were in Van 2, but the start just a few blocks away from out hotel and we wanted to meet the rest of the team. I was looking forward in seeing Eric and Andy again as they were my van mates in the Calistoga to Santa Cruz relay earlier. I see Eric working the mike, and wait for him to finish his announcing duties. We hug hello and he tells me that he has a surprise for me a little later on. Knowing Eric, I could only imagine.

Our team start time is 10:00 am, and about 5 minutes before the start Eric announces all of the teams departing. But before he does that, he has a special "announcement" to make. Last year, I made an unfortunate mistake and now that mistake has been forever cemented in the RTO folklore. As Eric is speaking, he holds up this very bright orange sign with my name printed on it and an directional arrow pointing to the left. This is in reference to my inadvertent left turn when I ran last year. We all had a good laugh and took some pictures of the sign. Afterwards, I asked Eric if I could have the sign and he said, no way dude, we are going keep this forever!

Our first runner, Diana takes off and we want to drive up to the first relay exchange point to wish her well. This was her first relay event ever, and in spite of our "calming" conversations, I am sure she was a bit nervous as I know I would be if I had a TV camera capturing the event! After the exchange, we head back to our hotel and lounge at the pool. Now this is how I like to get ready for an event. Sunscreen, bright sun, a towel and a fully reclined lounge chair. We had several hours to kill and why not at the pool?

The operative word during the entire weekend was FUN. I wanted to make sure everyone was having fun. That included all of the first timers. The Reno Tahoe Odyssey is a tough relay but with the right frame of mind, you really don't notice the lack of oxygen in the atmosphere. Lesley was our first runner in our van, and with some last minute instructions, she was off! I think her initial pace and altitude messed her up a bit as well as the headwinds and blazing heat. But other than those minor inconveniences, she did great. I had the next leg, a 4.8 mile trek into Truckee. I know I don't like headwinds, but that is what I was up against for the majority of my run. So I just kept my head down low and tighten up my cap. Even though we were not on a competitive team and just out there to have some good fun, seeing a potential roadkill alters your tempo and pace just a wee bit. By the time I hit the end of my leg, I notched 6 road kills.

Our next runner, Jon, takes off like a bat out of hell and we had to get moving quickly, otherwise, he'd beat us to the exchange point. When Jon agreed to run with us, he wanted to take it easy as he's recovering from a foot injury. We made sure Jon's legs were easier and lucky for us, he took full advantage. Once he hit the finish line, he also notched up 7 road kills!

Christine was next and her leg was 5.5 miles along Highway 89 to Squaw Valley. All of us California people were definitely feeling the altitude and our heart rates were way up there. Christine had a bit longer leg and with the heat, it took a toll on her too.

Josh the librarian was next! Josh joined our team earlier through a fluke chance. We were down a runner, and were scrambling to find a replacement. Josh called Eric and expressed an interest in running the event. Rebecca called Eric and told him that we were down a runner. So there ya go, a match made in heaven. Josh ended up being our secret weapon, as a very good athlete, he just chewed up the mileage as well as the road kills.

The last runner of the day was our team captain, Rebecca. She had roughly a 10k leg that snaked through the west side of the lake down to Homewood. It was around 6:00 pm or so when she started and that part of the evening is just beautiful. The air has cooled off, the winds die down, the sun is starting to set, and you can feel the night air starting to form.


Rebecca finishes up her leg and now we are done for the night. Typically, we would have ordered a pizza, try to get a little shut eye and then commence the second leg of the relay in the middle of the night. But since the course was modified, time for plan B! Both Vans were to meet at Rebecca's mom's house, (Jean) for dinner and a place to crash. We got there first - geez, I wonder who was driving the van. Jean had baked zitti was sausage, salad and brownies for us. I think I ate several helpings.

Van 1 shows up and all of us sit in the backyard telling stories and teasing one another. This was definitely nice. Normally, you never get to hang out with Van 1, but this year it was different, and we took full advantage. Since we had so much free time, Jon brought along his WII from home, and after dinner we hooked it up to the TV and played some WII. Words cannot describe how silly we looked boxing - but I am pretty sure there are some pictures floating around.

Like all good things that must come to and end - Van 1 had to get some rest as they started back up again at 4:30 am. I think I finally turned in around 12:30 or so and managed to get a few winks in. Around 3:00 am, Van 1 was rallying to leave and I got up to wish them all good luck.

We left the cozy confines around 7:10 am and drove up Gieger Pass to Virginia City to wait for Van 1. Lesley took off again for us, but this time, she was a lot more confident in her stride as she acclimated a bit to the altitude. Her particular leg was a tough one 3.1 miles of Most Difficult terrain. But that didn't bother her, she ran up the big hill like it was a minor speed bump and then sprinted down towards me.

I was really looking forward to my next leg. Even though it was also a Most Difficult rating, I knew I had about a mile and half of straight downhill, and I just love running downhill. I quickly passed a couple of runners heading up the pass, and nearly at the apex of mountain, I heard some footsteps, and all of a sudden, I got passed! Wow, I wasn't expecting that - but I knew soon enough I'd be running on the downside of the hill, and once I get going, I turn into a run away freight train. Sure enough the gal that passed me didn't pull far ahead of me and I knew it was only a matter of time before I returned the favor. No more than 500 meters down the hill, I said good job runner as I passed her.

Peering down the hill, I spied upon 4 other runners that were all within striking range. I had to work quick as I was running out of road and I knew the exchange point was coming up. Running a comfortable 5:50 pace per mile downhill, I notched the 4 other runners and handed off to Jon.

Now Jon was dialed in, his leg was 6.5 miles down Geiger Grade Grinder. Jon just grinded the road and the roadkill. Jon's 5:30 pace per mile notched him 12 roadkills! I am so glad Jon was running on our team.

Christine and Josh were up next and their legs were probably the most difficult of the entire van. Christine had 7.5 miles of a relatively flat run, but 7.5 miles! The air was getting hot again and the roads and sidewalks were heating back up again. Josh also had 7.5 miles and he was never so happy to be done either.

Rebecca finished us all up and by the time we got to end, we ended up finishing 4th from the first two group. We still do not know what our official finishing time is, but none the less, we had a great time.

Finally tallies -

Wrong turns: None
Lost runners: None
Van 2 roadkills: 44 (thank goodness we weren't a competitive team this year!)

Labels: relays, running