We Came, We Ran, We Conquered...

After all the craziness that was finding 6 more people to run on our River to River relay team, we could not have found a better group. Jason aptly referred to us as the "team of last resort" due to the fact that the majority of our team committed to run the week of the relay.

Matt Steidl, a childhood friend of Jason's flew up from Texas. Angie Rathjen, a high school friend of Jason's drove over from St. Louis. My mom drove up from Fayetteville, TN, picking up Gary Harris and his daughter, Valerie Moore on the way. We all convened in Marion, IL where the packet pick-up was located.

The morning of the race, we all rose bright (or dark) and early. Jason, Matt and I met the others in Carbondale and picked up Angie on our way to the start line. We parted ways when we got close so that Matt and Angie could take Jason to the start line and Mom, Gary, and Valerie could get me to the second exchange zone where I would start my first leg of the relay.
Our start time was 7:45a.m. and even though I didn't see Jason start, I knew it wouldn't be long before I saw him flying around the corner to hand me the bright red baton our team would pass from runner to runner. Sure enough, nineteen minutes later there he was on the heels of the front runner for the 7:45 pack. He handed me the baton, and I took off for my first 3.6 mile leg.

It was a flat, easy leg with many scenic spots along the way. I ran hard with the excitement of starting the relay and fresh legs to carry me along. My goal was to run my first leg at a sub-8 minute pace and then to hold the rest under 9. I finished in 26:55, running a 7:31 pace for my first leg. I passed the baton to Valerie and off she went. One leg down, three to go.
With everyone running close to a 5k each time, it wasn't long before it was my turn again. Jason and I were splitting up the legs of our missing runner 8 and so he was doubling up on his second and third legs, giving him a little over a 10k each time.

As I waited at the next exchange zone, I thought I had more time and after visiting the port-a-potty station, I was headed back up to the car to put on a tank top when I heard, "JANE!" I turned to see Jason racing up the hill. I met him at the exchange zone and took off running once again.

I didn't remember until too late that I'd turned off the GPS function on my Garmin. I told myself I didn't need to know my pace...only to quickly decide otherwise. So while running as hard as I could, I messed with my watch until I had it giving me all the necessary information. Once I had it, I told myself to focus, and picked up the pace. It was hot by this time and I had more hills during this leg, but I only had 2.85 miles to go and it went by quickly. My watch said 20:33 for this one, but I added two more minutes for all the Garmin issues.
When we weren't running, we were munching on the goodies we'd brought, drinking water and gatorade, talking, laughing, and cheering on our current runner. A light rain showed up, but left shortly after leaving us to run in peace. The sun stayed hidden behind the clouds, however, and that was fine with us. It was chilly between sections, but perfect when running.
My third leg was my longest at 3.75 miles, and the hardest I'd encountered thus far in my race. With several steep hills to climb, I pushed, but not as hard as I had before. Weariness was beginning to set in and I needed to save some energy for my final leg, which was THE last leg of the relay. While running this third leg, I mistakenly thought it was 3.3 miles and so when asked by a fellow runner how much we had left, I told him less than half a mile...which was off by another half. Oops. As I passed another fellow runner on one of the steep hills, she said, "You go girl! Look at you go!" I meant to say, "Good job," or "you too" but I lost it somewhere in between and just said, "You...."

I decided after that, I should quit talking and just run. I finished that leg in 31:43, giving me something around an 8:30 pace. I'd hoped for better, but I'd take it. I had one last leg to go and I'd need all my reserves for that one.
As I waited to run the final leg of the relay, I watched my teammates run their final legs. Jason ran his last 6 miles like a wild man, as if it were the first time he'd run that day. Valerie conquered some of the meanest hills in the relay with gusto, despite the lack of time to prepare for them. Mom ran her strongest during her last leg, finishing with such strength that even the teammates of other teams were cheering for her. Gary flew down the last part of his final leg holding nothing back. Matt's final leg was the hardest leg of the entire relay and he conquered it in no time, facing some ugly hills head on. Angie's last leg finished with an uphill climb and she did not slow her pace as she ran to the exchange zone where I was waiting to take the baton on it's final leg.

In preparation I had put on my bright orange racing shoes and my running skirt for good measure. I'd stretched out the kinks and the muscles that had been slowly tightening throughout the day. This leg would be my most difficult, and I meant to run it as hard as I could, keeping in mind the amazing team that had run so well to get me there.

I took off up the rest of Angie's hill, with the cheers of my team spurring me on. I said out loud, "Let's do this. Let's DO this!" I climbed those Southern Illinois hills as fast as I could, racing down them with wild abandon. I knew from the map that once I turned on Hwy 146, it wouldn't be long before Main Street and the finish line. I heard the cheering before I saw the sign. I picked up my pace more and more drawing from any strength I could find.

Once I turned on Main Street, I could see the finish line. As I raced toward it, I heard my mom calling from behind. I began to slow in order to let my team catch up so we could cross the finish together, only to hear Jason say, "Don't you dare slow down!" I picked up my pace one final time and flew through the finish line. Our team, The Tortoises and Hares, finished in a little over 11 hours, and we were ecstatic.

We took pictures, congratulated each other, and quickly made our way to a well deserved dinner. We celebrated with 17th Street BBQ, talking and reliving our favorite relay moments. We parted ways after that, all of us pleasantly exhausted and longing for showers.

The week before the relay, I had no idea if we'd even be able to run it. But close friends and family stepped in, regardless of the short notice, and they gave their all. It was wonderful to meet some of Jason's friends and to see his old stomping grounds. He is from Murphysboro, IL, which is very close to Marion, and I got to see his house, his church, and many of his old running routes.

The relay turned out better than any of us had dared to hope and as we parted ways, I can say for a fact that all of us had plans for next year's relay dancing around in our heads...

Relaying

My husband and I enjoy a good running adventure. Whether it is happening upon a 5k amidst a short trip somewhere, or planning a marathon in a faraway place, we love it. Last year we experienced a brand new running adventure, which was the relay. We ran the Blue Ridge Relay with four friends, and while it was one of the hardest things I think I've ever done, it was one of the best.

After Blue Ridge, Jason told me of a relay he'd always wanted to do that was near his home town. He wanted to run the River to River Relay, which consists of 80 miles between the Mississippi River and the Ohio River in Illinois. One has to register the day registration opens and still may not get a spot on the relay roster. I was game for another relay, and so Jason sat poised to register our team as soon as he was able.

Sure enough, our team made the cut. We were so excited! The next step was finding 6 other people to go on this adventure with us. Each runner would run about three 5ks, averaging about 10 miles each. We thought it would be easy to come up with six running friends, especially here in Huntsville with such a big running community.

WRONG! I don't suppose it helps that the relay falls on the day of the Boston Marathon, or that two smaller races are taking place here in Huntsville...but finding runners turned out to be much harder than we'd thought. We asked friends and family. We asked people far and wide. Everyone had other races, other plans, no money, no time, no training...things weren't looking good.

As the relay drew nearer, we started to get a little worried. We needed 8 runners, and we'd only had 4 commit (two of which were ourselves). Jason posted an ad on the Miss Lonely Feet page of the relay, and two runners responded. Bob and Julie were subs for another team and with the relay so close, they didn't think they'd be needed. We happily accepted them, bringing our team to 6 runners.

Jason and I figured we could make this work. The two of us would double up, running as two runners each instead of 1. We assigned all of the runner placements, everyone agreed, and we were ready to run!

With a week and a half before the race, Bob and Julie backed out. The team they were subbing for had some injured members who could not run. Bob wrote Jason, apologized, and wished us luck.

We were back to four runners. We did indeed need some luck! I began to reach out to everyone I could think of who had ever run a step. Jason did the same. It was very short notice though, and many already had plans. We decided to ask my mom and Gary Harris, a family friend. Mom had a marathon the very next weekend, but she said yes. Gary also said yes, and we began to feel better about things.

Alas, it was too soon to get comfortable. One of our original four backed out...and we were back to five. But wait! Gary's daughter, Valerie has joined our team! We are back to six once again.

That brings me to today, the Tuesday before the race on Saturday, and six committed runners. We have one more who might be interested, but with such short notice, I can't blame her for saying no. We were told there are often runners hanging around packet pick-up looking for teams to join, and if that is the case we will gladly snap them up!

Either way, Jason and I are willing to double up if needed, and we believe we can finish our 80 miles with the team we have.

After the fiasco that was finding and holding teammates, I am hoping for a wonderful experience. I am grateful to Matt, who is willing to fly from Texas to run with us. I am grateful to Mom, Gary, and Valerie for being willing to just pick up and go on such short notice. I love that I get to share this experience with my husband, my mom, and some good friends.

Borrowing from our Blue Ridge Relay team name, we are the Tortoises and Hares. There is no telling if we will run with our current six or if things will change again, but I'm excited, hopeful, and ready to run all the same.

Reliving the Relay

As always, it seems so strange to be back at work, sitting at my desk, with all the usual day to day things going on as they always do. Once again I’ve spent a little over a weekend on an adventure unlike any I’ve been on before, and I find it difficult to focus on the mundane as if I’m not a little changed by what I’ve done.

My adventure started Thursday morning as Jason and I rose early to pick up Eric in Knoxville. The three of us drove to Boone, NC where we spent the night before heading to Grayson Highlands State Park in Virginia on Friday. The drive was gorgeous. I’d never been to that part of the country and so my eyes couldn’t get enough of the scenery as we wove our way through the Carolina mountains.

Arriving at the entrance of the state park, I could hardly contain myself, and Jason and Eric seemed to feel the same. We stopped to take pictures and we laughed as we foresaw how our feelings then would probably change as the relay progressed.

We met our three other teammates and their two drivers, received our t-shirts, took pictures and got ready to cheer for David as he started us off at 9:00.

And then the waiting commenced! I was impatient and starting to get anxious. Not a bad anxious – an excited kind of anxious. But this anxiety I felt, whether good or bad, started to put a stone in my stomach that didn’t go away until I passed Eric the bracelet for the last time.

Finally it was time for Jason to run. I was after him, so Eric and I hopped in the car and headed to Exchange Zone 5 where I would start my 5.15 mile leg. I pinned on my number, found my watch and my sunglasses, tore out the directions for my leg, and walked to the exchange cone to wait on my husband.

Leg 1

He arrived, slapped the bracelet onto my wrist, and my relay began. I ran with all I had, and I was surprised at how hard my first leg was. It was labeled “moderate” but with the steep hills, it didn’t FEEL moderate! I ran through a small town (Jefferson, I think) and the sun beat down on me. I pushed hard anyway and finished my leg in 43:40, giving me an average of 8:28 per mile. I was content.

Leg 2

My second leg was my favorite. Even though it was one of my longer legs, at 6.05 miles, it was mostly along the Blue Ridge Parkway, and I had shade, birdsong, and breathtaking views to accompany me as I ran. Toward the end, I heard footsteps behind me and I raced these footsteps until the end when they overtook me on the last hill. I fought hard, though, and finished my second leg in 56:10, giving me an overall pace of 9:17 per mile.

After this leg, the wait was a bit longer before we would run again. The other three members of our team had longer legs this time, one of which was a 10 mile run up Grandfather Mountain. I tried to eat in order to sustain the energy I’d need to keep running my legs…but all I could handle were salty baked lays and a few Danish wedding cookies.

Leg 3

When it was time for me to run again, it was dark. I put on my head lamp, a flashing light on the front and back of my shorts, and a reflective vest. When Jason ran up to the exchange zone, he handed me the bracelet, but did not stop as we took off on a 4.9 mile leg in the dark.

I have never in my life experienced such darkness before. It was pitch. Blacker than pitch. All I could see was a little circle of light at my feet where my head lamp shown for me. I hated it. We climbed and climbed, and I couldn’t see where the hill was going to end. I started to get stitches in my side and even though I took deep breaths, I could not get them to subside. This became a problem when the uphill turned downward and I could hardly take a breath. I didn’t want to put on the breaks, but I couldn’t get the oxygen I needed to run at that down hill speed.

Eventually we reached the exchange zone and I happily gave Eric the bracelet. I completed this 4.9 mile leg in 48:10, giving me an average pace of 9:49 per mile.

After Eric finished, we were all weary and ready for sleep. I caught some in the backseat, but awoke several times cold, damp, salty and sticky. It was uncomfortable and only going to get worse as I ran two more times before I could do anything about it. I tried not to wake Eric and Jason as I stepped out of our vehicle and made my way to the port-a-potties.

Leg 4 

Around 3:00 a.m. I did my 4^th overall leg, my second in the dark. Eric had agreed to accompany me this time, and so when Jason ran up with the bracelet, Eric and I took off on my 5.6 mile leg. It wasn’t as bad this time because I knew what to expect from the darkness. Eric’s hand lamp was MUCH brighter than mine and better at lighting the way. We ran on gravel for a while before reaching a smoothly paved road. I tried to run hard, but I could feel my body slowing down, asking for rest that it couldn’t have. We finished in 58:16, giving us an overall pace of 10:24 per mile.

Eric took the bracelet and kept running, while Jason helped me change into dry clothes. The rest this time was much better, and even though exhaustion was setting in, I didn’t mind the next leg so much because it was going to be light when I started. For that I was SO very grateful.

Leg 5

My 5^th leg was one of my hardest as well. It was long and winding, but not too hilly. It was supposed to be 7 miles, but ended up being 7.5. I ran through an empty down town area and eventually followed the road out of town and back into the mountains. I ran along a babbling river and that was pretty much my only company. With every bend in the road I looked for the bright yellow Exchange Zone sign, but never saw one. Finally I saw a line of cars, and I wanted to cheer. A girl stepped out and gave me a high five as I ran to gratefully pass the bracelet to Eric. I finished this 7.5 mile let in an hour and 24 minutes, giving me a pace of 11:16 per mile.

I had absolutely NO energy by this point. My legs were so weak and I could barely take off my wet clothes for my last pair of dry ones. Once again Jason helped me change and followed that with strict instructions that I must eat.

I was already starting to feel triumphant by this point. I was weary beyond belief, but I knew I only had one more leg. It was labeled “hard” and I believed it, but as I sat in the car alone holding a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in my lap and looking at the biggest willow tree I’d ever seen, I didn’t care. I knew I’d do it. I knew I’d run whatever was set before me. It was to be a 4.5 mile leg and I knew I could do that distance.

Leg 6

Eventually my turn came to conquer that distance. It began with a steep two-mile climb, a sharp downhill and then it leveled out. The climb was unbelievable. There were actually switchbacks that were so steep, I could walk up them faster than I could run. I knew this two-mile stretch had to end and I prayed that it would hurry. Eventually I reached the down hill portion, which leveled out showing me gorgeous views of the blue ridge mountains.

When I saw Jason, I grinned from ear to ear and threw my hands in the air! He cheered for me with tears in his eyes and I handed Eric the bracelet for the very last time, saying, “Take it! I don’t want it anymore!” I completed my very last stretch in 52:25, giving me an overall pace of 11:38 per mile.

Eric finished strong giving us a relay time of 29 hours and 48 minutes. We were thrilled with what we’d done and ended up placing 4^th amid the other ultra relay teams.

I have personally never been more ready to have a shower and to eat a decent meal. I smelled horrible. I was sticky and grainy from the sweat and the salt, not to mention covered in whatever invisible germs reside in the countless portable potties I visited throughout the relay. We got to our hotel room and I bee-lined for the shower. We had a little time before we were to go back over to the finish line for the awards ceremony and after getting clean, Jason and I fell asleep, almost missing the ceremony altogether.

At the ceremony I could hardly stand. I was so tired and so weak and so hungry, it was all I could think about. Jason talked the race director into giving me a pair of socks since it was our anniversary and tradition…and the race director did! It is too bad they weren’t giving away flip flops because I left mine at one of the exchange zones and my feet were missing them sorely.

SO, that brings me to now - the week of the ordinary where great feats are left behind for the desk and the computer. I have no doubt that we will attempt something like this again sometime, some where. It was an amazing race and an amazing adventure, and I shall live on my memories of it for quite a while.

Relay Update

Our relay team has grown! Joining us on our 208 mile trek through the Blue Ridge Mountains are David Ploskonka from Baltimore, MD and Eric Charette from Huntsville, AL, and we are glad to have them! Instead of 4 people running 50+ miles each, we have a wider range of distances, starting from 44.5 to 28.5, all hitting difficult levels of elevation gain and loss.

For me, this is good news. The challenge of 4 runners tackling 208 miles was exciting…and daunting. The idea of having 5 was much better, giving us all 43-44 miles, and in our search for another runner, we found two, making the race and a good time two things that could more easily go hand in hand.

We will now have two support vehicles. Van one will drive Kristi, Kandi, and David. Van two will drive Jason, Eric, and myself (Jane). Van one will run legs 1-3 and van two will run legs 4-6, continuing this rotation throughout the race.

I am thrilled with our new team and more excited now than I was before. The pressure of making the cut-off time and the fear of overdoing it are issues of the past. That doesn’t mean that we won’t experience fatigue and a strong desire to shut our eyes when we must open them and run, but it means we can give a little more and push a little harder on our respective legs that are now fewer in number.

As I write, our adventure begins in less than a week. I have trained hard and I feel ready. I’m ready for the challenge, ready for the experience, ready for the beauty of unseen mountains, and ready to spend this time with my husband and our good friends.

This time last year I was getting ready to get married. I married my husband, Jason Reneau, on Sept 3, 2007, which was Memorial Day. I can’t help but think it is fitting for the two of us as runners to begin our second year of marriage this way. Maybe it will be a new tradition – to try something new together each new year.

To me, this relay is a bit like marriage. It is longer than most races and certainly not the easiest one to choose. There are moments of joy, moments of hardship, moments of rest, and moments where one has to ignore how they feel and give it all they’ve got to succeed. In a relay, just like in marriage, one doesn’t run only for himself, but for another. It is a team effort, requiring all participants to work hard to obtain the goal.

So while this relay will most certainly be an amazing personal accomplishment, I don’t run it only for myself. I run to support my team, to give my all, and to celebrate another year of life with a beloved teammate.

This has been your Cheesy Moment with Jane Tortoise (and knowing me, there are probably more to come).

- Jane Reneau Tortoise

My Flavor of Insanity

More has been done, of course, and more will be done. There have been greater and more amazing feats by people all over the world. But for this 28-year-old running gal, this is the most and the biggest and the longest event in my repertoire of great feats.

I, along with 3 other crazy heads, (who have engaged in various levels of insanity themselves) am running the Blue Ridge Relay, September 5 – 6, 2008. What this entails is the four of us sharing a 208 mile journey through the Blue Ridge Mountains. We will start at 8:00 a.m. Friday morning in the Grayson Highlands State Park in Virginia and run through South Carolina to Asheville where we will hopefully finish before the cut off time at 5:30 p.m. Saturday evening.

I am the first runner in our race, beginning with a 4 mile leg, followed by Jason then Kristi then Kandi. We have to stay in this order until the last leg has been run, and so it is really luck of the draw as far as mileage and elevation difficulty. I will, Lord willing, run a total of 50.8 miles. Jason will get the most mileage with a total of 58.8. Kristi hits midway, with some HARD elevation at 52 miles, and Kandi will be running 44.9, also with some steep elevation losses and gains.

Our drivers are Betsy and Kalon, Kristi and Kandi’s mom and brother. They will drive us in their van, dropping off runners to start a leg as another runner finishes. We will do this until we finish.

Our team is The Tortoises and the Hare. Jason is of course our hare and we are glad to have him. However, we have a strong group of tortoises as well, and I feel confident of a good race.

I have never been a part of a team before and so this adds a new dimension to my running outlook. I no longer train with only myself and my goals in mind, but for a group of others who are counting on me to do my part. This is a great motivator when I’m feeling too tired or too sore, or debating sleeping in instead of running. I remember my teammates and this grand race for which we must prepare, and it helps me push a little harder, run a little farther, and get out of bed when I’d rather not.

We have a website, and if you’d like to follow us as we get ready for this event, and then as we run the event, our experiences and pictures will be posted here.

http://tortoisesandhareteam.blogspot.com

And as always, prayers and thoughts are greatly appreciated, as we hope to have a fun and safe race.

-- Jane Tortoise