Team Because We Can survived our White Rock Marathon Relay this weekend!
Once we got Fair Park, we had to get situated and figure out where to be. I had to be in the corrals by the starting time of 8. Everyone else headed to the buses for the exchange points, except for my sister, who waited with me until about time to start.
I had the first leg of 5 miles. I couldn't feel my feet until mile 3. Then I started warming up and couldn't really shed many layers. I just unzipped the fleece jacket and kept going. I did lose my Bondi band though. I had it around my neck and when I warmed up, I took it off and looped my arm through it...but didn't think about it when I shifted my water bottle from one hand to the other. Off it went. :( I did ok with my leg...52 minutes for right at 5.2 miles once I hit the exchange point. That was crazy. I had no idea how I'd find my brother. Luckily, he's tall so I spotted himi over the crowd. I yanked the chip timer off my ankle and passed it to him as he handed me my bag. Off he went.
I don't have an exact time on him, but he did a great 5 miles! He was planning on running a mile and walking a quarter, but he ended up running 2.5, walking a bit, and finishing running.
He passed off to Mom for the longest leg. From what I can tell, they had a rough exchange point...all chaos. She ran 6.73 in under an hour, an amazing 8:48 pace! She's a rock star!
She passed off to Dad, who had to battle the wind and hills the most, but he did very well! 44 minutes for a little under 5 miles. Awesome!
He passed off to my sister for the last leg. She did her five miles in 45 minutes...I'm jealous! I got to see her finish, as did my brother and mom, as we'd all made it back from our exchange points.
The things we learned?
We figured out a way to have the things we wanted after our run without dealing with bag check. It was also a way to pass off any layers we didn't need while running. Each person waiting at the exchange point had a bag and would pass it off to the runner coming in. That way, the runner could have water, Gatorade, snacks, an extra jacket, etc. after they had finished, and the new runner could leave behind clothes they didn't want to wear running.
To be honest, I probably wouldn't choose a relay again. You miss out on everyone else running because of the exchanges. I only saw my brother take off (since I handed off to him) and my sister finish.
Being a part of a large race, like the White Rock, was amazing. I really liked watching the finish line as the half-marathoners and marathoners finished. Amazing!
It does scare me a little. I did see one lady throwing up as she ran to the finish. I saw another break down just feet from the finish line. I saw lots of tears.
But what motivates me is that I saw many runners finishing strong, with a smile on their face and a spring in their step. One was even singing into her iPod as a makeshift microphone :)
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