The what relay? The Great Lakes Relay 2015!!!

 

Sometimes one just has to be open to the totally unanticipated and unexpected!  I didn't plan on running this race, in fact, I had never even heard of it before I got a message from most awesome MSU alum and former Sparty's barista Andrea Zuchora asking me if I were interested in running and being on her team.  They had a few people drop out because of injuries and it seems they were desperate (they had to be to ask me).  I thought about it for a bit, checked my schedule to see if there was anything pressing on Friday, and then said YES!  Actually, I have to admit, I had no idea what I was agreeing to... except that I was going to run.  Didn't know with whom, how far, where, etc.  but heck, I needed a break from the daily stress of preparing materials for the upcoming ABET review, trying to catch up on research, and dealing with the emotional roller coaster of having one's oldest child cut off all communication with the family. 

 

And so began an amazing weekend of running.

 

Thursday

 

I met Ben, Lauren, and Andrea in Flint where they picked me up at a Starbucks.  (Don't we tell our kids not to meet up with random people one meets on-line? But they seemed like a safe group of Buckeyes!)  And off we were... 

 

Crossed the Mackinac Bridge, continued on to Paradise, MI, where we stayed at the Grand Hotel.... the Magnuson Grand Hotel Lakefront Paradise, a nice little hotel with a very welcoming staff, a great view of Whitefish Bay and Lake Superior, and very convenient to the first legs of the relay. 

Reality hit when we met as a group and were told which legs we were each running.  In the morning, I would run A-8: Soldier Lake Continued, described as "a beautiful 5.9 mile run on the North Country Trail (NCT) with some open field running in the leg." 

 

Friday

 

Now when I told Andrea yes, I didn't think about the logistics. Yes, our days started at 4 am as the first runners had to be out at the start before 6 am; although some of us got to sleep in as we would not be running for several hours.   Andrea took A-1 Leg, described as "a beautiful leg with views of the river" and "an ankle buster if you're not paying attention."  So yeah, a beautiful leg with great views that one couldn't view because one had to watch the trail incessantly so one didn't kill oneself on the roots.  Is that about right, Andrea?  

 

Met the Vassar sisters, Emilie and Erin, and Kevin at breakfast, and then headed out to find the Whitefish Bay Scenic Byway and A-5 where we met with our fearless leader and crew chief, Ben, switched drivers and passengers (the logistics are quite complicated), ate some lunch

Notice the notebook in Ben's hands... this gave us detailed (and sometimes correct) driving directions to each of the legs and for each of the running routes.

and headed out to Soldier Lake Campground and Picnic Area, where Emilie (or was it Erin; sadly, I got them confused all weekend) would pick up Kevin and I would head out on the NCT.  My leg of the trail started with a slight drop into what looked more like a ditch, and then across a field.  I wondered if I'd have a clue of where I was supposed to go - but it was pretty easy navigating the trail as long as one paid attention to the blue blazes and the markings for when the trail turned right or left.  Was passed by numerous runners, but just ran at a pretty steady pace, through the fern forests, some pine forests, and fields.   The ferns were amazingly high and thick; often the trail was just a narrow path and one had to push the ferns out of the way.  I was glad I had worn capris and knee-high compression socks.  All in all a great first leg with a steady 11:49 pace for 5.65 miles (although officially it was 5.9 miles).   Felt good at the finish and now it was on to A-13, where I was to run the "East Lake Run".  Headed to the start only to hear Jackie call my name.  What was she doing here?  Well seems there was some confusion and Erin had headed off on A-13 (we were running concurrently by now).  Wait, but she was to run A-12.  Ok... time to regroup... I would drive Kevin to A-12, he would run A-12, I'd go back to A-13, wait for him, and then he would take me to A-18, with very little time to spare to finish by 7 pm.  So on to A-12, to find the gravel pit.  Walked Kevin to the start and headed back to the car.  Wait, there was Andrea; what was she doing here?  Turns out she ran A-11 and was to be picked up there (but not by me)... talk about luck!

Finish at St. Ignace (with Pusher - a pharmacy student - from another team. Pusher got left behind by his team and was transported to the finish by one of our cars.

Headed back to A-13 (I think... yes its all too confusing... somehow got dropped off at A-18 to run into St. Ignace.  Nice easy run... bit of rolling terrain.  Tired but I maintained an 10:58 min pace for the 4 mile run.   And we weren't the only team to get confused and leave a runner behind! 

 

Finally gathered everyone together, tried to finish documenting the run times/legs before the race crew left (didn't succeed, would have to wait until the morning), took a few photos, and then headed to the hotel in St. Ignace.

Learned something new... there is a thing called a selfie stick.

We were all beat and figured it was easier to order in food and eat in the lobby, while we worked out the logistics for Day 2.   Showered and logistics worked out (hopefully), it was time to call it a day.