Monday, September 20, 2010

Run the Red Rock

Here's half of our 12 team members. We left late Thursday (Sept. 9) afternoon and here we are taking a break in Fillmore (Heidi, Tawnya, me, Jake, Mariangel, and Geri). Chris, our driver and Geri's husband isn't pictured because he's the one who took this picture.

Once we got to Cedar City (about 8:30ish), we met up with everyone at the packet pick-up/pasta party venue. After dinner, we headed up to the condo in Brian Head--only a minute or so away from the start of the race. Above is a picture of me helping to decorate our half of team's van (the snow van). We start the first set of legs in the colder climate and the other team members end in the other van (the sun van) in Zion.

The following morning we had to be at the resort lodge around 8ish. Our start time was 8:30, but that only meant that Geri, our first runner, could get on the ski lift then (which was a 20 minute ride to the top) before she could even start running her first leg.

Our team was "R.A.G.E." which was the name of the gym that a lot of the people on the team are members of.
My name was misspelled, but it's not a biggie. We kept track of our roadkills (the other runners we passed while running) by putting Tally marks under our names. At the end of all of my runs, I had 15 tally marks.

Just before race time, Geri and I were lucky enough to score some sweatshirts.

Taking some pics by the ski lift.

Here's most of our team minus two of our runners and another driver.

Here I am starting my first leg (I was the third runner on my team and we rotated through the twelve of us 3 times which equals 36 legs). This was a 7 mile run entitled "Cedar Disco Break." We're in between Brian Head and Duck Creek.

Still running...minus the sweatshirt.

Oh ya, I scored me a roadkill tally mark.

The running exchange...passing off the "baton" (a slap bracelet) to our next runner, Jake. I finished my 7 miles in about 50 minutes.

Taking a little picture break during Jake's run.
Various Van Photos
Jake, Heidi and me


Chris and Geri

Tawnya, Heidi, Mariangel, and me

Starting my second leg the same day (Friday) but it's about 9pm now. I had to wear a reflector vest and head lamp since it was so dark and the name of this leg was quite fitting--"Desert Solitude." I felt like I was out in the middle of nowhere. There weren't too many runners with me, but I did pass the few that I saw. This run was about 4 and a half miles, but half of it was up and the other half was down. We're between Cedar City and Newcastle.
I look like an alien :)

Glad to be done with that run (took me about 40 minutes). After our van finished up it was midnight. We drove to Veyo while the other half of our team was running their legs. We had to roll out the sleeping bags at the next van exchange which was a church parking lot. Let me just say that I only had about 1 and a half hours of sleep because I just couldn't get calm/comfortable enough to sleep (that on top of the three hours of sleep I had the night before).

The next morning, running my third and leg. This was about a five mile run called "Snow Canyon." It was absolutely beautiful, and I actual ran on a trail as opposed to the road for most of it. We're between Veyo and the Washington Community Center at this point in the race.

Passing off to Jake. I finished in about 40 minutes (maybe more like 37 to be exact).

Showing off our 3 stripes. You make a stripe for each leg of the race you run. The actual race is 186 miles (obviously divided up between 12 people).

Waiting for Kamille (our last runner) at the finish so we can all cross the finish line together.

Here's our team after finishing in a little over 32 hours total. We received finishers batons instead of medals--very appropriate for a relay race.

Our team plus our two drivers. Afterwards, we went to Wendy's for dinner then headed back home (got home around 10:30ish), but still had to grab Hayden from my mom's.

Sunday, September 5, 2010

Thrill of a Lifetime...Skydiving!

So due to recent events I have ultimately come to the conclusion that life's too short to let opportunites pass you by. I think life's a gift that is meant to be unwrapped and enjoyed. I want to be optimistic about outcomes and taking chances rather than let fear dictate my choices. I want to take risks and I've also determined that I'd much rather live with the pain that comes from being hurt than the pain of regret (at least that means I'm living life). Skydiving has been on my "to-do" list for a long time and this just seemed like the right moment in my life to just go for it. I want to be a "yes" girl and live life to the fullest. I am so glad that my family supported me in this crazy endevour...what would I do without them. We decided to make it a fun road trip for everyone by riding to the Ogden Skydiving Center in the RV. Brooke and Travis were so cute to come with--especially since it was their anniversary. This whole experience would not have been possible without the help of my mom and step-dad. This was their early birthday present for me, and it's something I will never forget. Hayden was such a good sport to come along. Even though I had explained to him earlier what I was going to do, it didn't sink in until he saw the airport hanger and some of the other people leaving on the plane. Then he cried because he was so worried about me coming back. Eventually we got him calmed down and I convinced him that I needed him to be happy and to cheer me on.
Hanging in the motorhome


The Ogden Skydiving Center

Getting on my gear



Getting some instructions before getting on the plane
Posing with Hayden who really did try to smile through his tears

This is one of the instructors/experienced divers that I was going tandem with

Halfway up in the air (about 6,000 feet at this point)

Jumping out at 12,000 feet off the ground...aaaaaahhhhhh

This is the point where I think the "Free Falling" song was going through my head. Also, I realized how challenging breathing was and how exhilerating it was to feel like I was flying.




I tried so many times to give a thumbs-up--this was the least sideways looking thumb.

We were free falling for about a minute before opening the chutte

Yes, I was relieved when the parachutte opened. It took about 5 minutes to get to the ground after that.

Landing safely with no injuries (another sigh of relief)

Letting Hayden know that everything's okay
Afterwards, we went to an early dinner/late lunch at TGIFridays--the same one I ate at before the Ogden Marathon
So who knows what's next...hotair ballooning, indoor surfing, taking up skiing again, triathalons, and possibly more skydiving. I guess the possibilities are endless.