Pre-race team dinner

Many of us met up in Milwaukee and then drove over to Madison to find the remaining members of the team. After 30 seconds of introductions we went off to Noodles so we could finally eat. We decided dinner wasn’t enough time for fun team bonding so put 11 of us in one hotel room.

Team bonding

Race morning came early, which might have had something to do with the people who were up all night in the hallway or those who were up at 4:30 yelling for their teammates. Either way it wasn’t too bad to have to get up at 6:00ish. We met up in the lobby of the hotel and drover over to the start line where check-in was easy as can be. We then had to sit through the Don’t be an Idiot Safety Training. Van 2 met up with us for the start line and some photos.

Being Goofy! We’re ready to go!

Not much longer until Aaron was off. I was runner #2 this year so had to be ready quickly. A big difference from the other two years when I was runner #12 and #11. Aaron and I were awesome at the hand-offs.

The first of 3 perfect hand-offs.

My first leg was only 4.4 miles, but there were these damn hills I didn’t know about. No fun, no fun at all. There was, however, a couch around the halfway point. I did not stop, but did think about it. I enjoyed getting to actually run in Madison this year. Before I knew it I was handing off to my dad and we had to book it to the next exchange as he only had 2.7 miles. It seemed like our first legs went pretty quick (except for poor Brian who had the 9.9 mile leg), but at that point the rest of us were relaxing at Lake Mills High School. We found our Van 2 buddies and just relaxed until there was an announcement that Leg #7 had an additional 3.8 miles due to a detour. Poor Erica looked as though she might pass out. Corey was awesome and swapped legs with Erica.

At this point Van 1 was on hiatus so we drove to Water Street Brewery in Delafield and got an amazing lunch. We were all so hungry we basically wanted everything on the menu. We then went to Wales and hung out at the park for several hours. Some of us napped, we played on our phones, we lamented that we didn’t have shade, I found my book, and then we had to put on our reflective gear for night time hours.

You can only see us because we have the vests on.

My nighttime run was in Waukesha this year. The first part was on a trail, which was foggy and dark, but not too bad. The second part was on College Ave. As things started looking familiar I realized I was on Carroll College’s campus. The fun part was I ended at the Carroll Pool which is where I swam in high school because we didn’t have our own pool. I haven’t been in the building in 10 years, but walked in and didn’t need them to point out the bathroom and showers. We finished up our runs around midnight and drove down to Racine to pass out for a few miles. My dad, Aaron and I took our sleeping bags out of the van and slept on the grass. It wasn’t terrible, but it wasn’t comfortable either. Of course the only important part was the 3-4 hours of solid sleep I got. There was the moment I was awoken by someone screaming “Jim, Jim, we have to go. She’s ahead of schedule.” I can only imagine the look on my face as I emerged from my sleeping bag. That thankfully got the person to shut up.

By this time I really didn’t want to run my last leg. My last leg was my longest and while it was 6.2 and that shouldn’t be a problem I chose to wear my “I heart Running” shirt to convince myself that I did in fact love running. It only kind of worked, but I did love being done with my legs. The best part about our last segment is we met up with Van 1 of the Fit Milwaukee team. We basically leap-frogged each other for all six of those legs. When Brian was done and we passed off to Van 2 we decided the only important thing was food. We found a fantastic pancake house and ate a lot of food. It was amazing.

I’m done!

Dad and me after our final legs.

Having never been in Van 1 before I didn’t really know what to do with all our time before runner 12 would come in. We sat in traffic and then hung out on the beach. A few of us bought more Ragnar gear because why not. We then decided to get our free beers.

Beers on the Beach!

We relaxed, ate some pizza and hung out with the Fit Milwaukee Van 1 people again and all of the sudden Ian came flying in! Another Ragnar Chicago complete. It’s truly amazing how much I learn each year of doing this event. It also amazes me in the stress leading up to it that I’m all “I might take next year off” and then we are planning the next year before runner 12 is finished.

Thanks Team Bitches be Crazy for an awesome Ragnar. So glad you were all on the team. It was a blast!.

We’re done!

Ragnar Chicago 2013 Bling

In other years I’ve been a bit more organized and started packing and making piles in advanced. This year I suddenly realized it was Monday night of Ragnar week and I’m busy Tuesday and Wednesday so I need to pack now. It was a nice moment. And then I ran around my house like an idiot while my brother sat on the couch watching Game of Thrones.

I kind of looked at my list from last year: Ragnar Packing List, kind of just packed what I think I need and what I actually used in other years. I even took some things out of the pile and put them away. There will be some last minute additions and additions made after the laundry is done, but I’m about 85% packed I would say.

I really feel like I should have this packing down now that this is my third year. I’m hoping I did a good job. The water cooler is key and I still need to buy important snacks like Twizzlers and peanut butter crackers. Plus if I forget something someone else will have it.

You can follow along with us on Facebook or Twitter this year. We’re Team Bitches Be Crazy, which sounded like a really good idea when we came up with it during Ragnar last year.

Happy packing.

Once I dropped the Wisconsin Half from my schedule I realized the only races I have on my schedule are fun 5ks, three of which are connected to weddings. I think this says as much about my friends as it does me. I have the Tie the Knot Trot 5k next week, the day before two wonderful friend’s get married and then have a 5k in June as part of my friend’s bachlorette weekend and a 5k the day of another friend’s wedding. I kind of love that. And then in August I will be running the second annual Bacon Race. I mean who doesn’t want to run for Bacon? Ragnar isn’t really a race, it’s just a lot of fun.

I never got into running for the medals or for the race bibs. I run because I enjoy it and it’s a good form of exercise for me. I frequently forget that I don’t need to have a race on the schedule, that I don’t need to run a certain distance. If I feel like running a half marathon this year I will, but otherwise I am not registering for anything.

Other than that I am just going to run. Run as fast and as far as I feel like. Run with friends. Run with groups. Run when I want to instead of when I have to.

See, I do have fun running.

Ragnar is something like seven weeks away and I will not be horribly out of shape for it. That is decided. And the excitement is starting. We have a full team again. It’s been crazy, kind of like the first year, with people dropping and adding, but I think we have ended up with a good team. Over half of us have done multiple Ragnars. While I desperately want it to get warmer I really, really don’t want it to be a thousand degrees for Ragnar again. I just couldn’t handle it. That was miserable and flat out unsafe. I’m just glad that the excitement is building. I know it will be fun no matter what. I know it will be another adventure. I know there will be something that annoys the hell out of me and I will forget about it a month later. I know I will be tired. I know I will recover.

This was probably the only moment all of us had the black t-shirts on. Never ever again.

Also, I wish I were still on vacation where it was warm.

This hit way too close to home for me as it has for most runners. I spent all of yesterday afternoon trying to not to burst into tears at my desk. When I received a text from my friend that she and her fiance were fine and had left the finish line before any of this took place I felt like I could breathe again, just for a moment. I spent the rest of the afternoon with a lump in my throat. I felt sick. I didn’t, and still don’t, know how to wrap my head around all of this.

Running and runners are a huge part of my life. This is a community I am proud to be a part of. The selfless acts of yesterday, by not only the running community, but the city of Boston, leaves me at a loss for words. The human kindness that comes out of these tragic events is amazing.

We all react to things differently and we all deal with tragedy in our own ways. I had to sign off of social media last night. I couldn’t keep reading it all.

I am eternally grateful that all the people I know who were in Boston yesterday are okay. I am horribly saddened that a happy day was marred with this tragedy.

But we, sadly, live in a world where these things happen. And how we react and respond matters. As I was reading things yesterday about things people wanted to do to in solidarity with the city of Boston I quickly had to remind myself of all of this. It’s not stupid just because it’s not something I would do. Let people react and act in a way that works for them.

I finally broke down and joined a gym again. And then promptly remembered I hate the treadmill. I did run a measly three miles on it. I guess it’s better than nothing. Still not highly motivated to run though. And I do have a half marathon in a month. That will be interesting.

Things I am enjoying:

• Seeing friends I haven’t seen in a long time
• New beers
• Planning adventures with friends
• Running with Sara again
• Snuggling on my couch
• Knowing it has to get warmer eventually and if it doesn’t I will be in DC next month where Spring actually exists.
• Planning for year three of Ragnar
• Nashville, the TV show, not the city. I’ve never been to the city
• Milwaukee Beer Week starts this weekend

Instead of a baby picture this year I dug up a few from my 21st birthday. I was unlucky and turned 21 the Monday after spring break. Of course that didn’t stop us from celebrating. On the Friday of that week my wonderful friends managed to pull off a double surprise birthday for me and one of my roommates. Neither one of us had any idea. It was a blast. There was probably too much tequila and lots of dancing. Great way to celebrate.

I think this was my first legal drink: a margarita at Fridas.

21st Birthday Party

Best Friends

There was a lot of tequila and a lot of dancing. I assume this is tequila being wiped off my arm.

One of my favorites. Still friends with all of these ladies.

Filed under: friends, Just Me ]]> http://runningtowardsomethingnew.com/2013/03/20/another-year-older/feed/ 5 rshill37 I think this was my first legal drink: a margarita at Fridas. 21st Birthday Party Best Friends There was a lot of tequila and a lot of dancing. I assume this is tequila being wiped off my arm. One of my favorites. Still friends with all of these ladies. http://runningtowardsomethingnew.com/2013/03/17/lucky-leprechaun-7k/ http://runningtowardsomethingnew.com/2013/03/17/lucky-leprechaun-7k/#comments Sun, 17 Mar 2013 21:15:12 +0000 Renee http://runningtowardsomethingnew.com/?p=1894 ]]> This is the first year in four years that I haven’t run a March half marathon, specifically the National Half, which I still hate is now a Rock’n'Roll race. For obvious reasons it was not in the cards this year, but still sad to not run through my favorite city. Instead of running a half marathon I ran the inaugural Lucky Leprechaun 7k, yes a 7k. Now I don’t give a shit about St. Patty’s Day, but there was a fun race and I figured I could get back in shape for a 7k. Both of my parents ended up registering as well.

Now I did not go into this race thinking of it as a race or with excitement. Mother Nature is a confused bitch right now and we woke up to fresh snow and frigid temps on race morning. By chance my running windbreaker is green so I was all set. I met up with my parents near the start line. We all whined about the cold. I started questioning why on earth I paid money to run 4.3 miles. Basically I wanted to be anywhere else at that moment, mostly my bed. I shut up and ran once it started. The roads were slushy, snowy and slippery. Not exactly great for running. I ended up running with my mom the whole way. The first mile was SLOW due to the conditions and the crowds, but I decided to not dwell on it. Mile 2 we sped up some. And then we negative split on the way back. I’m super proud of my mom for our last 0.32 miles that we ran in at 8:46.

I’m really glad I ran it. I had a blast running it with my mom. Would I do it again? Maybe. No desire to run in this shitty never ending winter anymore though. Good fun race for my last race at this age. I’m really hoping mother nature gives me a nice birthday present and actually brings spring this week, but I doubt that will happen.

Overall this was a great week. I ran three times and did #30DayShred 4 times. My vacation laziness seems to have finally worn off!

I read Divergent and Insurgent after several people told me there were better than the Hunger Games Trilogy. I really liked them. I do not like that I have to wait until October for the next one.

I read Dead Until Dark, the first Sookie Stackhouse book (or for you TV people the first True Blood book). Kind of strange to read after having watched all of True Blood, but I still enjoyed it.

Next up was America, You Sexy Bitch: A Love Letter to Freedom. This is Meghan McCain and Ian Black’s book. I started it awhile back, but had to stop when there was a section on guns and the Sandy Hook shooting has just taken place. I just couldn’t read the politics and experience all of that. Overall it was okay. Meghan McCain is one of the only Republicans I can read and listen to. I assume that has to do with her beliefs on gay marriage and her beliefs that some of the out-spoken a-holes in her party are exactly that. I’m not sure this book actually achieved what they wanted it to, and it got a bit long, but it was entertaining.

A Negotiated Marriage, not sure I should admit this one. It was brainless, mostly pointless, and definitely a beach read. I read it in one day.

The next one was intriguing; The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake. It wasn’t at all what I thought it would be and I still don’t know how I feel about the ending.

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close - This is kind of about 9/11, but only kind of. And it’s through the eyes of a kid. I enjoyed this one. It was deep, complex and came together well. At times it was a bit hard to follow, but I think that was vacation brain.

The Millennium Trilogy - or Better known as the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo Books.  I know I’m several years late to the party on this one and actually had the books on my kindle for over a year, and for some reason decided vacation was the time to read them. I read all three books in six days. They captured me and I needed to find out what happened next. For anyone who only read the first book I highly recommend reading the other two. They get a lot deeper and a lot stranger, but hold you until the end.

Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail, ugh, what a self-absorbed woman. This was our last book  club book and it took me three times to get past the first chapter. Not sure why I stuck with it. Oh no, your life was hard and you decided to hike. Gah. Save yourself the time and don’t read it.

Another brainless vacation read: From Notting Hill with Love… Actually. Nothing wrong with this one. It actually had a plot. Simple and a nice break after the previous reads.

This was bad, Faking It, yet didn’t end how I expected it to, so at least there’s that. The character’s (ok, some of them) actually had substance to them.

I have enjoyed a lot of Ann Patchett books. State of Wonder was different. It was too fantastical or something. It was interesting to be reading it at the end of my trip considering it took place in Brazil. There are many of her books I would recommend, not this one.

So that was February. Since getting home I have watched too much TV. My DVR is overwhelming me and I’m ready to start reading again.

What do you like most about living in Wisconsin?

Being close to my family and being able to go to Badger games.

Is your favorite meal something you cook, or something you go out for, and what is it?

My favorite meal is almost anything my mom cooks. She makes phenomenal food from the basics to gourmet.

What was a hobby you had as a child you don’t have anymore?

Swimming. I used to swim 5-6 days a week from age 9-18. Now I don’t remember the last time I was in a pool. I still love the smell of a pool though.

What were you doing prior to working at COMPANY?

Graduate school in Washington, DC.

If you could go back and talk to yourself the day after you graduated from high school, what would you tell yourself?

You aren’t even close to being grown up. Enjoy this summer, but it’s not the end of your youth.  Also, you won’t regret choosing to go to school in Madison. It turns out to be one of the best decisions you ever made.