Ragnar Trail: McDowell Mountains

After last year's Lake Vail Ragnar Trail run, I vowed to NEVER, under any circumstance, EVER run another Ragnar trail run, but yet a few month later, I found myself registered for the Ragnar Trail Run in the McDowell Mountains in Arizona.  Huh? Say what??

The weather was our friend this time.  No rain.  No freezing temperatures.  It was cold, but it was endurable.  The heat was bad, but I would still take that over rain and cold.  Our team, Lost in Transit, consisted of 8 runners of which there were three runners that I had never met.  We traveled from Sacramento, Orange County, and Georgia. I absolutely love the Duran brothers (Jorge and Raul) and I have nothing but GREAT things to say about GG.  Ready Eddy, Krystina, and Kempton were the runners I never met until this race, but they are so good natured and fun that I got along fabulously with all of them.  AMAZING people!!

 The trail run consisted of three legs/loops (red, green, yellow) at 8.4, 4.0, and 3.1 miles for a total of 15.5 miles (per runner) of hilly, rocky terrain in the McDowell Mountains.  Every runner runs each leg.

We left Orange County Thursday afternoon and arrived in Scottsdale that evening.  We stayed in a local hotel, and we all met the following Friday morning in the hotel lobby before carpooling to the campsite.  Our team began the 120 mile relay at 12 noon (the slower the team, the earlier the start time ) and finished the following day at 1 p.m. so we ran for 25 hours.  In that 25 hours, there was always someone on our team running on one of the trails.

our team (we did a half ass job on the costumes.  It was suppose to be 60s/70s)

my $5 dollar thrift store costume

Dylan, GG and me....both these guys are wearing my clothes.   It takes confidence for a man to dress like this for fun.

I was fortunate because my first leg was the most difficult and as the race progressed, the legs got easier. I always prefer it that way. Get the hard one done when you are fresh and strong.   Dylan, however, started off with his easy run and ended the race as the final runner with the hardest leg. Poor Dylan!  Both Dylan and I had to run in the gosh awful heat.  It was in the low 90s--hot, hot, hot!  Brutally hot!!  We had to ascend up 500 feet in that heat.  I got my butt kicked and realized that I'm not in good shape.  I don't think I'm a slow runner, but I was constantly getting passed by runners who would utter encouraging words as they passed me.  It was kind of discouraging.  Was I that slow?  I've come to the conclusion that runners doing the Ragnar trail runs are in much better shape.  It's a different type of running. You have to navigate the uneven, rocky terrain. You have to climb hills.  It's also challenging mentally because you need to stay on the trail.  You follow these colored arrows (one for each leg), and believe me, it is very easy to get lost, especially at night.  You have to be really alert.  One slight turn in the wrong direction could send you off course for several miles. Also with such uneven terrain and rocks, you could easily twist an ankle or fall and scrape a knee. It becomes not only a physical challenge, but a mental one as well.

Before I even began running, I suffered a painful injury. A jumping cholla attached itself to my calf when I was trying to take a photo.  Dylan tried unsuccessfully to remove it amid my screaming.  I finally started heading back to the campsite, and several runners saw me hobbling with the cactus attached to me and my calf dripping blood. Several guys stopped to help me and thankfully, one had a knife.  He warned me it would hurt, but I didn't care. I just wanted it off, and fortunately, he was able to get it off.  I put ice on the injury to minimize swelling and bruising.  It HURT!!

view of the Green Loop trail (the shortest but not necessarily the easiest trail)

before my first run (the 8.4 mile in the  Arizona heat)

taking off

finishing my 8 mile leg

one of the directional signs you follow along the trail.  These signs light up at night.

Dylan on his 8.4 mile leg

gorgeous Arizona desert

trying to cool Dylan off in the 93 degree temperature while he is on his last run

this is NOT my leg, but it could have been.

The village with runners near the exchange

Lance didn't leave OC with us.  He ended up arriving at the McDowell Mountains in the early evening on Friday, and I was just happy to  see him.  He brought coffee for Saturday morning. THANK YOU!!!!  He also brought hotdogs that we grilled on Friday night.  Our campsite was about 1/4 mile from the runners village--not exactly convenient.  In the beginning, we would all see our runner take off, but as the night came upon, and it was your turn to run, you walked to the village yourself with "no love." Our campsite was small too so all the runners were packed in there, and there was no space between the tents.  We were squeezed in like a pack of sardines.  You could hear every conversation so it was difficult to sleep.  I only slept maybe 3 hours.  I told Lance, "Please do me a favor.  If I ever think about doing this again or say that I'm even going to do one again, please, please please remind me that I am NOT having fun." 

This photo gives you an idea of how CLOOOOOSE the tents were....

making new friends

Having fun with fake boobies

Enjoying beer at our campsite

group shot at night

my GG

Yeah, we are camera whores!!  The entire bunch of us....

We used the back of Lance's pick up truck to set up our grill...If I never see a hotdog for a year, I'll be happy.  Too many hotdogs that night. 

I LOVE all my runner friends.  I love how funny they are....I love how open and down to earth they are.  I love their positive energy.  I love how they love taking pictures.  When I was finished with my 8.4 mile run, I was dying for water.  GG met me and I said, "water? Water?" He looked at me and apologized, "oh no, I forgot the water. I'm sorry....(pause)...but I got a really good picture of you." Ok then, it's all good. Haha.  These guys are so inspiring, and I love being around them.  They truly are wonderful, wonderful people.

Finishing as a team

Crossing the finish line. Dylan was the last runner.

Lost in Transit

When the race ended on Saturday afternoon, we were so exhausted and it wasn't just because of a lack of sleep, but the heat really did a number on all of us.  We returned to a hotel in Phoenix to take a two-hour nap before awakening at 6 p.m. for dinner.  GG took us to a happening place for ASU students.  ASU just beat Notre Dame in a game, and the streets, restaurants were lit up with activity and people.  I returned back to the hotel only to fall quickly asleep.

I'm really proud of Dylan.  When he finished, he did not look so good.  It wasn't the run, but the heat that kicked his ass.  He did much better than me and redeemed himself after his poor performance at Long Beach Half Marathon.  He is an amazing and inspiring young man.

Ragnar is like childbirth.  You hate it.  You don't sleep.  Your body aches, and while you are doing it, you wonder what the hell you were thinking.  For me, the hardest part of doing a Ragnar is not the actual running, but the lack of sleep but then when it is over, you realize it is   such a unique and memorable experience.  Why would anyone want to do this? I had to think about that, and the truth is that I like the bonding with old and new friends.  I like running in places I would never run.  When would you go out in the desert at night to run? When would you run across the 7-mile bridge? You wouldn't do these things without Ragnar. 

At night in the McDowell Mountains, it was a full moon.  No words could describe the beauty of the desert at night with the full moon.  Breathtaking!!! And, I was lucky enough to be able to run in it.  I was alone with the stillness and beauty of the night with the full moon glistening above.  There was always another runner near, but not too near so that I felt alone and free in my thoughts and yet safe and secure.

I've done 8 Ragnars, and ready for it? I want to do another one.  Yep! We are planning on doing Cape Cod in May 2016.  I know it is a way off, but it gives us time to plan and save.

One last note---Lance and I have this tradition that we renew our vows often.  This time, we renewed our vows in front of a giant cactus in the McDowell Mountains.  I know its corny, but it just strengthens our bond. Each time we travel to a historic or unique site, we always stop and recommit ourselves to each other. Initially, we just did it, but now, we've made it a goal to do it as often as we can at as many different and unique sites.  It's like getting married all over again. Yep, we were married at the Queen Mary, in Prague, Vienna etc and now in front of a giant cactus.

We renewed our vows at this cactus