Some Race Results

To find the full relay results, you can go here.  But, to make things more efficient, I can give you the scoop.  Out of 16 teams designated as "military" (meaning at least 4 of the members have to be active duty, reservists, or veterans), my team, called "Keys Runners," was 11th.  However, when you look at the bigger picture of all 135 relay teams that finished, we were 51st.  Top 40%, and that means we beat 60% of the other teams out there.  Our official time was 14 hours, 54 minutes, 22.9 seconds.

Morgan's team won the military competition and came in 6th overall.  They were a really strong team!

Addie was the 2nd place female in the 50 mile race, and Jessica Wilks who's in my running club got 3rd place in the same race!  They're both amazing runners, and this was Jessica's first 50 mile race too!

Hans finished 34th out of 81 people who completed the 50 mile race.  In his age group, he was 5th out of 9.  This was also his first 50 mile race!

My physical therapist was on a relay team that finished in just over 18 hours (for 118th place); Melanie's team finished in under 19 hours (for 122nd place), and Anne & Michael's team finished between both of the aforementioned teams (in 120th place).

Overheard in the Kitchen

This gem is courtesy of my loving husband, Dave.  I explained that I had to put my feet up because I'm starting to suffer from "fat foot."  When I took off my slipper to show him, he said, "You know when someone blows up a latex glove?  That's what your foot looks like!"  (In case you're wondering, it's not that bad!)

A Few Run Stats for Your Viewing Pleasure

As much as GPS is a wonderful thing, each device sort of gives its own interpretation of things.  This means that RunKeeper and my Garmin are usually close in terms of distance tracked, but it's impossible to get them to both be stopped at the very same time, so I opted to take these stats from RunKeeper (when both devices were working).  Otherwise, what's in RunKeeper does match up to Garmin since I uploaded the .gpx file.  (That's probably way more than you really needed to know, right?!)

So here's how the day shook out!  I did 6 runs where two of the legs were "doubles" (meaning we bypassed an exchange point either on purpose or not).  The distance was 18.61 miles, and the total time spent running was 2 hours, 23 minutes, 48 seconds.  This works out to be an average pace of about 7:44!  Not too shabby, but not nearly like I was last year.  Hey, all things considered, I'm still very happy with it.  How many people can say that they could average that over 6 runs of various lengths and temperatures ranging from pretty warm to insanely hot?! 

Oh, even though I don't really care about calories, it is still pretty neat to know what was burned.  Any guesses?  Thoughts?  If RunKeeper is somewhat accurate, it's saying I burned 1521 calories.

We Finished the Relay and Hans Finished His Race!

It's really cool to be able to join up with the last runner and cross the finish line as a team to celebrate the accomplishment of traveling 100 miles together.  For this final portion, everyone changed into our Run to Remember shirts.  This is mine; I was running in memory of Ian Foster who was a friend of my friend, Joan Luebbe's family.  I'm honored that I could run not just for anyone, but for someone who was connected to a person I know and for someone who was spoken so highly of by Joan.

After crossing the finish line, we got our medals which are super cool this year!  I like how the ribbons are different for relay teams and 50 milers.  (I'm guessing the ribbons for the 100 milers were different too, or maybe they got a belt buckle; that's a tradition in the ultra world for 100 mile races.)  Take a look at these pictures!

After that, it was time to take a few group pictures, grab a turkey burger, and get some beer!  As good as that beer was in the van, the post-race beer was even better!  Here is a quick group shot of us.

Me, G, Kevin, Bryan, Tony, and Renee

As I'm walking away from the burger table & starting to stuff my face, I see Addie who had successfully finished her 50 mile individual race!  We both screamed when we saw each other & ran together to give the biggest hugs!  For someone who spent the day running 50 miles in the heat & humidity, she looked like she had just come out of her hotel room!  How does she do it?!  She told me about her race, I got to say "thank you" to her friend, Lisa, who was giving me the text updates, and then went back to finish my burger with my team.  However, I realized the Hans was still out there, so I offered up my beer to the first taker (Kevin), put on the reflective/blinking vest, grabbed my phone and what was left of my burger to head back out to meet up with Hans & Morgan.

I'm sure I got quite a few looks from people who realized I'm a racer, with my finisher medal on, but yet I'm going back out onto the course!  In fact, one guy even said (jokingly), "You're going the wrong way."  "Going to help a friend" was my reply.  Then, a little later, another person said "You're badass" as I passed him.  Hysterical!  Here I am jogging back up the course, munching on my burger, and realizing that I'll probably be doing another 2 miles (1 out and 1 back in).  Hey, Hans & Morgan would totally do this for me!

I met up with them, and together we did the last little bit.  While I can't say that my presence helped, it was nice to be able to be there for what surely had to be Hans' hardest race and to let him know that the end was, quite literally, near!  As we neared the finish line, Morgan and I veered off to the side and saw Hans cross with his hands up and, most probably, a huge smile on his face!  Morgan skee-daddled a bit too quickly and went to get the van, so Hans & I snapped a quick picture before it was time for him to go.

I Got a Compliment!

Compliments seem to come at the most random times, and those are sort of the best ones!  Because G's leg would be about 2 miles, we all got in the van and drove closer to the finish line to wait for her.  As we park in this lot, a few members of my team start speaking with a guy who's a Coast Guard runner on a different team.  Renee, our team captain, mentions to him that I'm one of two team ringers, and she also throws in that I'm a civilian.  The guy looks at me and says, "I think I know who you are."  I'm assuming that he ran on Morgan's team, so I ask just that.  He says, "No," and then asks what my name is.  All I said was, "Kim," and he goes "Gates!"  How hysterical is that?!  Of course my reply was, "How do you know that?!"  He explains that he knows Hans & has heard about me.  (Proof right there that I don't suck as a runner!  How cool is that?!)  Later on that night when Hans & I had a chance to catch up, I told him I owed him a "thank you" and then explained the story behind it.  :-)

Sorry For the Cliff Hanger!

If you've followed my blogs in the past, especially for relays, you know that I sort of drop off the face of the earth right before my last run of the day.  Unlike Grandma, you also know that means that I'm not in the hospital after suffering a stroke & blindness.  (For those of you saying, "WTF is she talking about?!," that's what Grandma thought happened to me after my DTR race because I fell 5 times.  Despite me telling her that I never ended up in the hospital, I know she still thinks I did!)  Ok, enough of that!  Since I'm not in the hospital, let me catch you up on how things ended!

The sun finally started to set, and the weather was becoming absolutely wonderful!  This was the chance for each of us to have one more good run where we could really go balls to the wall without the imminent threat of heat stroke.

I was sure that Hans & Morgan were still in front of my team, so as I'm standing at the exchange point waiting for Kevin to come my way, you can imagine my surprise to see Hans & Morgan trotting up!  What a treat it was to see them!!!!  Hans looked exhausted, but he was so close that he knew he could do it.  He sat down to rest a bit, I got Morgan a Gatorade, gave one of my blinkies to Hans for his reflective vest, and then had to say my goodbyes because Kevin was haulin' ass my way.  Just as I was about to leave, Bryan says to me, "Don't worry, Kim, we won't miss you this time!"  LOL! 

This leg would be my last of the day, my legs were tired, but the weather was just too good to not push hard!  I felt good, had my tunes going, and just went for it!  Along the way, I did pass some people, so that was good.  

Scene of my outburst!

Everyone who does this leg comes to a point where you have to change sides of the road, and it's a royal pain because it's at a pretty sizable intersection.  There was another runner who had to stop with me because of traffic.  Now, here's the thing, pedestrians (I'm pretty sure) have the right of way in a crosswalk.  (Don't they?!)  Well, we got halfway across to the little median section, but the turning cars coming toward us just wouldn't stop!  Needless to say, I lost my shit & literally shouted "What the f*ck?!"  Of course, then I apologized to the guy next to me because I don't know if he speaks as colorfully as I do!  He got a chuckle out of that, and then we kept going.  Oh, getting back to this guy, he was one who had passed me before the change-over.  (The nerve of that bastard!)  However, after we could finally get through the intersection and start running again, he was sticking pretty close to me (which is annoying because the sidewalk isn't that wide).  Anyway, I thought to myself, "I know I can outlast you; just watch!"  Sure enough - I slowly started to pull away.  Ok, maybe it wasn't so much me pulling away as it was him fading back.  Either way, it was cool to have "won" that showdown.  (Lesson to all: don't mess with KimmieLynnRuns!)

The wind was coming off the water and as much as that's a good thing, it really isn't when it's in your face this late in the day.  However, Roosevelt Blvd turns, so as that happened, the angle of the wind (thankfully) became less & less of an "in your face" type of problem.

At some point before the curve, another guy passed me.  Obviously, he did not get the memo that this is unacceptable.  He sort of blew by me, but then about 200 yards up, he starts walking!  What's that shit?!  You haul ass past me, but then you realize you can't keep that up so you walk?!  Dumb, dumb, dumb for him...but good for me!  Needless to say, I ran passed him, and left him in my dust!

In all, I think I passed 4 people (including the 2 who had originally passed me), so that was awesome!  By the end of my run, it had gotten pretty dark, and I hadn't taken any lights with me; I was happy when I could see the crowd ahead which meant that G had to be there for the hand-off.  True to Bryan's word, the team didn't miss me this time!  

One More Run for Me

G is out there now, she hands off to Tony, he'll hand off to Bryan, who hands off to Kevin, who will hand off to me for my final run of 2.9 miles. 

There's one more leg after that, and G will likely do it.  We'll all meet up and cross the finish line as a team!  It'll be great, and I'm looking forward to it!

Where are we?

We are headed to mile marker 11.  Getting closer!

Funny (and Not So Funny) Story

Earlier in the day, I said to my team, "if you get to an exchange and don't see anyone, just keep going."  Well, I get started with my 2.1 mile run, so I'm bookin' it because I have only 2.1 miles to do.  In fact, my first two miles were at 7:36 and 7:35 (respectively).  Of course, I did that thinking I'd be handing the slap bracelet off at the exchange.  Well, I get there, and no one from my team is there; I threw the crowd there a very clear "WTF?!" look.  I knew my team had passed me earlier because they honked as they went by, and I even waved!  So at the exchange point, when I knew for sure they weren't there waiting for me, I followed my own rule to keep going.  FML!  Well, long story short, I kept running but had to (obviously) slow down.  At one point, I walked so I can take my arm band off of my arm to text my team and say "Where are you?!"  LOL!  I kept running (slowly) and just kept going.  A bit later on, I texted another team member to say "Where are you? I kept going!"  Renee wrote back, "We're coming to get you!"

I essentially did all of my leg and pretty much most of Renee's!  The team does get major credit for hauling ass to find me & pull over as soon as they saw me!

So what happened?  They saw me and turned down a side street to park.  They did everything right.  However, they just didn't get to the exchange point as quickly as I got there.  In fact, when they got there, the small crowd asked, "Are you with the girl in the pink shirt?"  When my team said, "Yes," the crowd said, "Well, she kept going!"  LOL!!!! 

So how did I do?  Well, I didn't keep my under 8 minute average pace, but (all things considered) that's understandable.  Actually, factoring in the walking, I really didn't have a horrible pace.

8:02...I'll take it!  The walking killed my pace, but I couldn't run & text!

Look at This Team!

From the base of the 7 Mile Bridge.  Only Tony was missing because he was still running & bringing it home!

Right to left: Renee, G, Bryan, Kevin, and me

How Are the Others Doing?

It's really cool to be able to keep in touch with Hans, Morgan, Melanie, and Addie (via her friend, Lisa).  Everyone's doing well!  Morgan's team is likely almost done.  They're killing it and will be done way before my team.  Hans and I have been texting back and forth, and he's doing really well too!  Looks like he'll finish before me.  I'm not sure where Melanie & her team are; we haven't seen them at all today, but she's texted me a few times to say she's doing good.  And I've asked about Addie; her friend Lisa said she's still looking strong & seems to have found a second wind.  I'm so happy for all of them!!!

 

Catching You Up on My Roadkills

In a relay, the people you pass are called your "roadkills."  On my third run, I passed 5 people, and on the fourth run, I passed 3.  So far today, if you're wondering, I've only gotten passed twice.  I'm still a bit bitter about that.  The last guy was worried about me; he kept looking over his shoulder to see where I was.

 

I Was So Excited About My Beer that I...

...forgot to tell you my last run's stats!!  Sweet baby Jesus!  You see where my priorities are, huh?

Pretty amazing that for starting off slow (over an 8 min pace), I was able to get the average back down to under 8!

Right Now I Am Having...

...a fantastically delicious and cold Bud Light!  Why?  Because I damn well feel like it, and Bryan said these are "community beers!"  Love my team!!!

 

Catching You Up on Things

G finished the bridge and rocked it!  Bryan took off for his mile, and then I got the baton for my 3.5 miles.  I opted to keep the hydration vest on & filled it with ice and water.  Normally, I'd never do that for only 3.5 miles, but this is not just any 3.5 miles.  So being that I finished not too long ago, let's assume that what Weather Channel is showing now is what I was dealing with in the recent past.  Looks like fun, huh?! 

We Just Saw G on the Bridge!

We just saw her!  G is out there looking good!  Probably just another mile left for her to go, and then she'll hand off to Bryan.  He does 1.4 miles, and then I step in for about 3.5 miles. 

Overheard in the Van

This gem is courtesy of Renee: "Quiche, beer, and pickles are not enough to sustain a runner!"  Awesome!

It's Time for Lunch!

This is what my team did last year while I kicked ass on the bridge: went to Publix for lunch!  Of course, you may remember, they almost didn't get back in time to meet me at the end of my run, but Beau was awesome and made it happen!  I'm looking forward to grabbing something "real."  I've had enough snacks and want something more substantial.

 

Kevin Wasn't Left Out

He had some pickle juice!  All it takes it a little bit to work its magic!  Yes, in case you're wondering, I did pack dixie cups just for this!

It's 7 Mile Bridge Time for G!

Girlfriend, you are a bad-ass runner who's going to kill it!  Give it all you got; I know you can do it!

Status Update

Kevin just finished running, Tony's out there now, and he's got 3 really hot miles to do.  He'll hand off to G who's going to tackle the 7 Mile Bridge.  Rock on, girl, rock on!  You'll do great!

Renee gave G her hydration vest, and I gave her a 2nd Surge gel (which is awesome).  Oh, and there's also the promise of a beer when she's done!  If that's not motivation to finish as quickly as possible, nothing is!

Pickle Juice For the Win!

I kid you not; pretty much everyone in the van has done a shot of pickle juice (minus Kevin who's out there kicking ass & taking names right now)!  Pickle juice...for the win!!!

 

Garmin Proof That I Kicked Ass!

We're in Marathon...

...and almost to the halfway point!  Wow!  It's crazy how fast these miles come & go!

It Was Bad, But I Survived Hell's Tunnel...

...and I did reasonably well!  I'll grab the Garmin proof in a bit, but trust me when I tell you that it says 3.03 miles with an average pace of 7:48.  My splits actually got better as I got further into the run!  Is that some shit or what?!?!