Noooooo! It was Day 6! I wasn’t ready for it to be over!
The most exciting thing that happened that morning is that I got a free bag of Stoked Oats. This is seriously the best oatmeal I’ve had in my life. They are one of the race sponsors and I had it for breakfast there every single day. I asked about them midweek and was told that they are from Canada and that the only way to get them in the US was at a Costco in L.A.
I was told that if there were leftovers at the end of the week I’d be able to get a bag….and I did! I am finishing it up now but I just ordered a new one on Amazon because they are available there now! These are worth every penny in my opinion and I’ve only tried the Stoned Oats flavor.
I honestly have to say, I was bummed that it was the last day. I tried to stay as present as possible the entire week so I could keep as many memories as possible in my mind. Today would be another long day of 22 miles with 5300 ft of elevation gain. Because the sunrise was later, the early start was only about 30ish minutes before the regular start. I started on my own and even though I was bummed, I was looking forward to my last day on trails that I had never been on before. This was one of my Why’s for this race and it propelled me every day. It’s almost as if I couldn’t get enough of seeing new trails this week!
Where had the time gone? Were we really already on Day 5 of 6?
I wasn’t sure whether to be happy or sad….that’s really not true though…honestly I was sad.
Sure it had been a tough week but I wasn’t really ready for it to be over yet! I had to remind myself to stay as present as possible.
Stage 5 was sponsored by Mammoth Creameries. We had the option to have this tasty, keto friendly ice cream every single day! Check them out!
This was the longest stage with 24 miles and the 2nd most elevation gain (see the elevation profile at the bottom of the picture below).
I was amazed at how good I felt! Between ChiRunning/ChiWalking, my training, the poles, using the Elevated Legs the 2 days prior, I felt great!
“The creek was redirected so there won’t be anywhere near as much water as there normally is”…..they said the night before during the race briefing. I never found out if they said this on the purpose (I think they did!) but several people boood this comment that night. I was actually bummed too because there was supposed to be a long water crossing that I (and many others) were looking forward to.
Stage 4: Sponsored by Kahtoola 15 miles/23 kilometres with 3600 ft/1100 m gain
This was another “short” day (only 2 days under 20 miles!) but there was a good amount of steep climbing even though our highest point was “only” 11,700. But our finish line was at Mango’s Bar and Grill in Red Cliff. 😁
We started in Nova Guides where we spent the previous night. It was nice to stay in one location for two nights so we didn’t have to pack. We also didn’t have any service during these two days which was a blessing in disguise. I kept my phone turned off during this stage as they told use when we got a bit higher we may have connection…..I really didn’t want to get bombarded with notifications or be back in the “real” world again.
Several people have asked me what my favorite stage was….It’s so hard to say because they all have their own unique character about them. However, I do believe that Stage 3 may have been my favorite.
We had spent the night in Leadville, in a WET baseball field. It had rained and they kept apologizing for the conditions like it was their fault it had rained. You just roll with the punches! I hadn’t been sleeping well the past few nights so this time I opted to do the regular start even if it was the longest stage. I checked the elevation profile and knew I could finish in time. Joan left early. I knew I would be by myself most of the day which was absolutely fine with me. My goal for this week was to enjoy this vacation and recharge…although I am mostly an extrovert, I have introvert tendencies and really love alone time in nature.
This was the longest stage at 25 miles. As I’ve said before, my Why for this race was so strong that I started every day like a giddy little kid on Christmas morning. I couldn’t wait to see what the trails had in store for me. Since I had volunteered, I was also excited about getting to Nova Guides as it’s one of the most beautiful locations I’ve been to. I also knew we wouldn’t have service for a few days but that was a blessing. I was happy to be as disconnected from the outside world as possible while I was reconnecting with nature and myself.
BTW I forgot to mention in my Hope Pass blog that I forgot to wear my Garmin! I ended up downloading Joan’s profile since we were together 95% of the time.
This was possibly the day I was most excited for! We were doing Hope Pass! “Only” a 13 mile day but a tough one!
Hope Pass is known as the iconic climb of the Leadville Trail 100 Race. Those runners have to do the race up and over and then back again as part of the 100 mile course. It’s at 12,508 feet of elevation, steep climb on both sides (Outbound runners tackle 3,200 feet of elevation gain over 4 miles, and an average grade of 15%. Inbound runners will face 2,400 feet of elevation gain over 2.5 miles for an average grade of 20%~from the Leadville Race Series Facebook page), with promises of outstanding views.
Thankfully we “only” had to do it once….but the weather was not good that day and there was concern about lightening and safety for runners.
Stage 2: Sponsored by Elevation Culture (they made our buckles!) 13 miles/21km with 3300 FT/1000m of elevation gain. The elevation gain was all in the first 2.5 miles so an average grade of 20% (you can see this in the picture within the picture at the bottom). I have a few quick short videos in my photo gallery.
Course map of Stage 2
My ONLY goal for TransRockies Run was to finish ALL the mileage. I wasn’t worried about how fast I would be but I wanted to do all 120 miles of the race. This plan failed on Stage 2. 😥 But it was a decision that I made mindfully so even though I was bummed making it, it was for good reason. I planned to do the early start already because they were really worried about the weather/lightening and the first 2.5 miles are the hardest and take the longest. I was good with that but then I found out that they were dropping the Dawn Patrol people (early start) 1.7 miles into the course already so we would start on the trail right away. This meant I was missing that mileage of the race. My ego was crushed. It may not sound like a big deal, it’s only 1.7 miles but since speed was not my goal, and my only goal was doing ALL the mileage, this really bummed me out. At first I debated doing the regular start but that was at least an hour later putting me at higher risk of hitting the worst weather. Then I thought, maybe I’d have them let me start 1.7 miles before the trailhead because they drove back some early start people to let them do that. I could hear and feel my ego getting in the way (I thank my meditation practice for this “superpower”! I always say self awareness is a bitch but it’s always for good reason.) I went through the pros and cons and tried to be as detached from the outcome as possible. Then I let it all go and really listened to my gut while trying to put my ego aside. Hard to do but then it hit me like a slap in the face!
“What was I thinking?! 1.7 miles? Come on Pozzoni, I would get that mileage just walking around camp….and did it really matter? It was 1.7 miles of road and I was still doing epic shit! So off we went……. My other faux pas of the day, more importantly, was since I was so preoccupied about the issue above, I didn’t put 2+2 together. The first aid station was at mile 1.7 before the big climb….duh, it wasn’t ready yet because we did the early start (we are told to provide for ourselves so my bad here!) so I didn’t have enough fuel with me. Thankfully there are always friends on the trail willing to share so I was able to get more food in me but that could’ve been a dangerous situation between the weather and difficulty of the trail.
Stage 1 was changed from the previous years. I am not sure exactly why but we moved the start location.
Stage 1:
19.5 miles/31.5 kilometres & 2300 ft/700 m gain. Note the elevation profile at the bottom of the picture. Great visual of the course from a few views.Before we started the race on Monday though, we had a few days in Buena Vista. We learned it’s not pronounced the way you would say it in Spanish but ““BEW-na Vista”. The town’s name has been pronounced “BEW-na Vista” instead of the Spanish “BWAY-na Vista” ever since it was founded.” Apparently this is still debate about this but….we learned this because every night after the race briefing, we’d get to hear the history of the stage we were doing the next day. I loved this!
We got to do a shake out run with Trail Sisters and hang out with Gina (the founder), get all of our goodies at the expo and then pack all of our stuff in our TransRockies duffle.
Tents were our home away from home for 5 nights to add more challenge to the run.
PINCH ME!
It’s been a week since I crossed the Stage 6 finish line and I still can’t believe I finally did it!
Finish line Stage 6!
What is the TransRockies run?
120 miles in 6 days, in over 8K+ feet of elevation with 20K+ feet of elevation gain!
“The route of the Run will take place at elevations between 7,400 and 12,600 feet above sea level. Based on the preliminary route proposal (subject to change and approval by the U.S. Forest Service), the percent of distance at various elevations is as follows:
7,000′ to 8,000′ – 3%
8,000′ to 9,000′ – 31%
9,000′ to 10,000′ – 28%
10,000′ to 11,000′ – 27%
11,000′ to 12,000′ – 10%
12,000′ to 13,000′ – 1%”
Here is the 6 day course!
This was one of the most epic and memorable experiences of my life!
Although I had it on my bucket list for years, it wasn’t until February of 2019 when it started becoming a reality. It was definitely out of my budget (totally worth every single penny!). My friend Joan sent me an email asking if I knew anything about this race. They needed volunteers for 6 days. I was beside myself as I would be able to get race credits for volunteering and finally do the race! I wrote about my volunteer experience here. We were supposed to do the race in 2020 but….
COVID. 🙄
2020 came and went and it finally got approved for 2021! It was finally happening! 😊
The AZ Girls (as Houda, the race director, nicknamed us while volunteering), started training in early April. We followed a plan that was recommended in the TransRockies Facebook Group. As you might imagine, the training was not easy. It was a decent amount of mileage but we also had to do it in the heat. Not only because we didn’t have a choice with our AZ summer but also because they recommend heat training to replace elevation if you don’t have it available.
Because this was a 6 day stage race, there are too many things to share and I don’t want this blog to be a bazillion words. I am recapping here. I plan on writing a blog series which will include a recap of each stage of the race over the next 6 weeks (hopefully! 🤞).
What went well….
I can’t believe how great I felt overall over the 6 days. We averaged 20 miles a day with some days being harder than other depending on the elevation gain and elevation we were in. I attribute feeling great to:
ChiRunning/ChiWalking: Technique is always one of the biggest factors that contribute to MY running success. I am pretty sure I power hiked over 50% of the race due to the elevation gain but technique was always at my forefront. Not only does it make it easier to move when you are in proper form but your recovery time is less because you are moving more efficiently. I only took 4 Advil during the entire week. One of them was for a headache and 2 of them were on the last day when I could feel a twinge in my left knee (more on that below)
Training: This is not a race you can get by without training. We found a training plan and I was able to complete 86% of the mileage in the plan. Ideally this would be higher but happy that I was able to get this in considering my crazy schedule lately.
Poles: I’ve always thought of getting running poles but never did. They were recommended for this race so I finally got some and trained with them. These were a game changer. Poles definitely helped with efficiency. I also had some great technique aha moments with them. I can’t help it, I geek out on technique. 🤣 I didn’t have a great way to store them when I didn’t need them. I held them horizontally (still full length) and kept my arms at a 90 degree angle as I swung my elbows back. I couldn’t rotate my upper body (waste of energy and a lot of people do this) so my arms actually swung freely from my shoulders while staying stable. The length of the poles must’ve assisted in balancing my movement because I could really feel my pelvic rotation happening. This was fantastic for some fast ChiWalking but even more effective when running down hills. I was flying! I used the Black Diamond DISTANCE FLZ TREKKING POLES – WOMEN’S.
Elevated Legs: They were one of the race sponsors. I did some stretching in the evening but on I decided to use these on Day 3-5. I did 10 min on Day 3, 20 min on Day 4 and 30 min on Day 5. The idea is that the compression increases blood flow and helps to clear fatigue causing metabolites and reduce inflammation.
My Why?: I always have my athletes write down their Why? when they start training for an event. It’s important to know why you want to do something. It must be a strong Why too…..one that will help you get motivated when the going gets tough. I had 2 major Whys. Both of these motivated me to complete that 86% of my training plan (I am sure it would’ve been a lower percentage) and also helped me through some rough spots while on the course:
I wanted to see 120 miles of trails I’ve never been on before!
I wanted to push outside my comfort zone. The longest I’ve ever done is 100K in one day but I’ve never done this much mileage at this high of elevation in this amount of time.
Altra Running Shoes: I am an ambassador and these are the only shoes I wear for all my running. I brought the Timps 3 (first time using this model and loved them!) and the Lone Peaks 5 (a regular shoe for trails). I love everything about my Altra shoes.
Daily strategy: I was not in a hurry to get through the day! I had no to do list other than get the mileage done every day! It took me 46 hours, 18 minutes and 31 seconds. I came in 9th to last....and I don’t care! My plan was to enjoy all those miles of trails that I’ve never been on. I probably ChiWalked/Hiked 50% of the run (note it’s called the TransRockies Run and not Race. Although it is a race, they are strategic with that title). I have no interest in racing. As a matter of fact, 4 of the 6 days, I did Dawn Patrol. This was created for people (thank to Mirna the Mirnavator) who wanted some extra time. I was able to start earlier and not worry about the daily cutoff. I ran on flats and the downhills and ChiWalked the hills. I just wanted to enjoy this different nature landscape and I wasn’t in a hurry to get through it.
What I could’ve done better…
While I am very happy with how the week went because I felt so good, there is always room for improvement:
Specific Training: While I followed the mileage on the plan, and did a decent amount of hill training, I could’ve done a better job doing steeper hills (up and down). On Day 5 I felt a slight twinge in my left knee. I am great at body sensing (we teach this in ChiRunning) and I knew exactly what it was. It was overuse of the steep downhill technique. Even though I had my poles and ChiRunning to help me, I didn’t do enough of this movement in my training so I wasn’t used to all of it. While I wasn’t able to get it to go away, I was able to alleviate it by focusing on my alignment, increasing my cadence and focusing on pelvic rotation. The training also called for Stairs. I did the elliptical a handful of times but could’ve used more hill work and stairs.
Strength Training: This is one of my weaknesses even though I am a personal trainer. I did more than usual but more wouldn’t hurt.
Camping Prep/Weather: Part of the race is camping out for all 5 nights (there is a hotel package option as well). While I enjoy camping, this added a level of difficulty. It really wasn’t necessarily the camping but the weather during the 1st few days. I managed to keep my stuff mostly dry but the grass was wet and cold. I didn’t sleep as well as I would’ve liked and waking up in the middle of the night to use the porta potties when the ground is wet and cold is no fun. But I sucked it all up because I was living my dash!
Be more social? One of the things I love most in life (and about TransRockies) is community. I am an extrovert in general and I LOVE people. I got to see a lot of people I met in 2019 as well as meet some new friends. I used a question mark because this was fairly strategic for me too. I love running but it’s also what I do a for a living. I love cheering on my athletes and helping them celebrate finish lines they never thought possible. I issue a lot of energy with my job and this was my time to renew before my Fall programs started. This race was all about me and for me. I was in a much more self reflective mode during this week…I couldn’t believe it was finally happening. While I spent several miles with friends, I spent many miles alone. I didn’t listen to any music and tried to be “in the moment” as much possible. These were some of my most enjoyable moments during the race.
Bottom line
This event helped me realize that I can do anything I put my mind to. I can’t even explain how driven I was every day to get out there and enjoy 7ish hours of new trails, even with bad weather! It was almost like I was in a weird trance.
This race strengthened my love for trails and endurance running. It’s one of the best well run events that I’ve been part of (as a volunteer and runner). Huge props and thanks to the TransRockies team! Kevin “Houda”, the Race Director, is one of the best leaders and coolest humans I know! Also a HUGE thanks to all the volunteers!
So the big question is…….. Will I do it again? 🤔
It’s honestly too early for me to say. 2022 is the 15th Anniversary and it’s already sold out! I could still volunteer? I can’t really make any commitments right now but I am pretty sure that this year was not the last time I’ll be there…whether it’s as a volunteer or a runner, who knows but I am sure I’ll be back!
I still can’t believe that I did it! In retrospect, I realize that this is the most miles I’ve ever done in this short period of time and the longest I’ve gone without taking a day off! It’s one of the hardest things I’ve done and yesterday I turned 49 and 1/2! GO ME!
It’s been on my bucket list for about 5 years. When I heard about it and saw the pictures, I wanted to do it. It’s not a cheap race though so I wasn’t sure when I’d ever have the chance.
This was my bucket list and A race this year. (While I absolutely love what I do for a living as a running coach, I have learned that I need at least one major event a year for me). But then COVID19 happened…and of course they had to cancel the event.
They announced a virtual option for either 60 or 120 miles to be completed in the 15 days and I had to sign up!
My original plan was to do the 60 miles because I’m in the middle of a few big projects and I knew it would be hard for me to try to make 8 miles a day happen with the 120 miles. However, the AZ Girls (last year’s volunteer crew) were all doing 120 miles and twisted my arm pretty quickly. I also had been averaging 25 miles weeks and I wanted this to be a challenge….and IT WAS!
If you follow me on Instagram, you’ll know that I posted an IG Story for just about every walk/run of the challenge. You can see the highlights here if you’re on IG.(tap on each story to move forward faster).
What did I learn while doing one of the? Here are a few of my key takeaways….
I will be forever grateful for ChiRunning/ChiWalking. I never recommend doing mileage you are not trained for…but if you do, having good technique under your belt makes a HUGE difference. Although I walked about 60% of the mileage, I doubled my weekly mileage for 2 weeks. While I could feel a bit of tension (I stretched just about every day too) and fatigue in my legs, my body felt great the entire time.
FOMO is real. I’ve blogged about this before too. Many of my TRU TRIBE teammates had signed up for the Great Race Across Tennessee (1000k to be finished from 5/1-8/31). I really really wanted to join them but I knew it would not be a good decision. I had too much on my plate and I really didn’t want to burn myself out (which I’ve done before and learned from that experience!) before this virtual race as it was my priority this year and I didn’t want to get distracted. I was planning on the 60 miles but as I mentioned before, between some arm twisting and a wee bit of FOMO, I decided to go for it. I don’t regret it even though I had a breakdown on social media in the middle of the challenge. (more on that below)
I had a plan and followed it. As much as I would’ve liked to simulate the real race and do the 120 miles in 6 days, I knew that was unrealistic for many reasons. I planned to do 8 miles a day which was the daily average necessary to complete the challenge. I looked at my calendar for the 2 weeks and saw some days where I’d get more in and vice versa. I started tracking on my Fit Bit but that was using passive workouts which were not intentional and didn’t count. I switched to tracking with my Garmin mid race to get more accurate results. I was adding and averaging daily to see how much I had left as I progressed. This worked well for me. Although apparently on the TRR page, my totals ended at 118.3 because someone messaged me late on the last day to let me know this. I get in freak out mode but checked my Fitness Rankings totals. I sent a FB message to Houda (the race director) with pics and he said I was fine! Phew!
Multi tasking and getting creative was necessary to get mileage done! Managing my time was probably my biggest obstacle. I had to get creative to get my mileage in:
while I was walking, I used some of that time making phone calls and listening to podcasts
I was able to schedule some of my mileage with friends and my TRU TRIBE. Some days I got one walk done and on some days I broke it up into 3 different workouts.
I woke up before my “work” group runs a few times and ran 1/4 mile loops in my apartment parking lot just so I could get it done before it was a bazillion degrees
It always boils down to mindset! While I am not a believer of mind over body (I’ve seen too many people get injured with this mind frame), I do believe in mind with body. Another principle I’ve embraced from ChiRunning. There is a big difference between ignoring your body and pushing through until you get injured VS. pushing through to overcome your mental setbacks.
We’ve had the hottest summer on record in Arizona and this challenge was from 8/3-8/17: prime summer heat. I had to try and schedule runs early morning or after the sun went down. This was not always possible. Although I could not make the heat disappear with my mindset, I could certainly embrace it and know that “it is what it is.”. I had several days that I had to go out when the sun was beating down but I was safe by minimizing that time and being prepared for it and I embraced it. Constantly repeating how hot it is will not make it go away, as a matter of fact, it makes it worst. Accepting the heat and driving to my runs with my windows down rather than going from the AC cold car to the blazing heat really helped me acclimate. Here is my recent blog about how and why to run in the heat.
Once I had my mid race melt down, I was able to dig deep and remind myself of my Why. This is a question I ask all the athletes before they start training for a race with me. Even more important now that we don’t know if races are happening. This was going to be my big bucket list A race this year and I would’ve been training for 4 months leading up to it. That opportunity was taken away from me by COVID19 so I replaced it with the virtual event. I was going to finish this race no matter what it was going to take. Here is my IG post about my meltdown and the IGTV video that I did later that day.
One of the things I loved/hated about the challenge was trying to figure how I was going to get it all done. It was so rewarding at the end to know that it all came together although I doubted myself several times!
Yesterday was 8/19, my half birthday. I turned 49 1/2 and I’ve never felt better! I know too many people that keep repeating how old they are, and how much harder things are….while some of this is fact that I can’t deny, mindset and how you take care of your body have a lot to do with this as well.
As I age, I keep surprising myself by doing things I never thought possible. This is a first time experience for me as far as number of miles in this short of time, without taking a day off….I have some pretty big goals as I prepare for my 50th year around the sun in 2021, and the real TransRockies Run is definitely on the list among a few other crazy endeavors…..stay tuned!
“I’m on the highway to hell
On the highway to hell
Highway to hell
I’m on the highway to hell”……
This AC/DC song will never be the same for me after the last 9 days of my life! I’ll tell you why in a minute….
I remember hearing about the TransRockies Run several years back. I remember talking to my friend Diane about it and I put it loosely on my bucket list. With all the new adventures in my life, I kind of just forgot about it…..until my friend Joan heard about some volunteering opportunities with the race this summer. August is my slowest time of the year and I figured it would be nice to get out of the Arizona heat and go to CO. (I always tell my peeps that they should volunteer for races. It’s just good karma and so much fun.) I usually volunteer locally but this seemed like a fun summer adventure….and now that I was going to see what it was about, maybe I’d consider putting it back on the bucket list.
In the interest of time, I will try to summarize my experience with some quick comments and photos 😉
Race Summary
A 6 day stage race in the Rocky Mountains of CO totaling 120 miles (13-24 miles daily) with 20,000 feet of elevation gain. Runners have the option to camp or stay in hotels as the start and finish line move just about every single day for these point to point runs.
120 miles!
My Volunteer Gig
I went up with some friends and we were assigned to Start and Finish Line Catering & Timing (aid station for the runners before they left that stage and at the end of it). This might seem pretty easy but consider that the start line and finish line were usually in two different locations (and sometimes so was camp!). We have all been trained and volunteered with Pati Coury from Aravaipa Running and were very confident in our aid station skills. As said by Justin, a fellow volunteer: “ It was the easiest week of working hard that I can ever remember.” I am not kidding when I say I don’t think I have worked that hard for that many days in a row EVER! We started at 6am getting the Start Line Aid Station ready, then normally drove to the finish line, helped the Start/Finish line crew put the finish line up and then set up our aid station. We were there all day until the last runner came in. Then we cleaned everything all up, loaded it back in the cargo van, maybe had time to get some dinner, attend the mandatory end-of-day staff meeting, then go refill our van with supplies for the next day. We normally ended our day at 8:30pmish.
Day 1 we went to “HQ” to fill up our cargo van
We emptied and reloaded this van twice a day and it always full (not like this picture!)
GU was a sponsor and we had plenty of products!
This is the start/finish line that goes up and down every day! (those are metal panels on the side that come apart!)
We were nicknamed the AZ Girls. We strategically brought our AZ Sole Sports shirts to represent! We had our Run Steep Get High shirts for one day too but forgot to take a picture!
Behind The Scenes I titled this blog Behind the Scenes for a reason. Never ever have I seen this big of a group of volunteers work so hard and so well together. It’s hard to describe in writing. Just about every day, the camp crew took tents down and put them back up at another location, the luggage crew moved all the runner’s luggage, and the shuttle drivers shuttled runners to and from start/finish lines and camp. And when you were done with your “job”, you just moved around and asked others if they needed help. I don’t know what the return rate of volunteers is but I will guess it’s about 80%. We walked right into a big TransRockies family. The first evening was a bit weird because it was a reunion for most of them. By the next day, we were welcomed and brought in like we belonged. I met so many wonderful people. There is no doubt that there is a very strong sense of community with this race and it felt so good to be part of it!
Back to AC/DC..and Right Said Fred The count down song at every start line (6 days in a row!) was Highway to Hell. I can play the song now and close my eyes and feel the energy of the runners. There is nothing like the energy of a start line! The other great thing you could see and feel throughout the week was the camaraderie. Not only of the volunteers but the runners too. Many of them knew each other as repeat runners as well but if they didn’t, they had 6 days on the course and in camp to become friends. The closest thing I can compare it to is my Breast Cancer 3-Day experience only this was more days and more moving around.
The other song that I will never forget now is Stand Up (for the champions) by Right Said Fred.They played this every night after dinner with all the winners for the various categories in the front of the audience. They all stood up and jumped to this song. Again, lots of good energy.
The Runners
We were there for them! Our goal was to make sure they all had a great experience. If you are a runner, I highly recommend taking time to volunteer at races. Such a rewarding experience! Since we were at the finish line, we got to see every single runner! We got to watch the elites come in with some super strong finish times and then…..my favorites, the back of the packers. I got to meet some of the coolest people! From Mirna Valerio, The Mirnavator to Gordy Ainsleigh, the “father of ultramarathoning”, to Gina Lucrezi, the founder of Trail Sisters.
As much as it was great to meet the famous runners, I also got to meet so many other runners from all walks of life. There were many international runners, elite runners and back of the packers. I really think I met every single runner but didn’t really get to know many of them as they came through tired from their run and ready to go sit down with some GU Protein Recovery Drink (which by the way was all the rage!). I watched so many people do some epic shit and that is what inspired me every morning to get up and take care of them.
Some TransRockies runners were also supporting charities: First Descents (they provide life-changing outdoor adventures for young adults (ages 18 – 39) impacted by cancer and other serious health conditions) and Mito Canada (Canada’s only not-for-profit organization focused on mitochondrial disease).
The first time I hugged him I had no idea who he was…then I found he was Gordy Ainsleigh 😉
Best photo bomb ever with #themirnavator Mirna Valerio trying to drink my beer 😉
First Descent charity guys! Love what people do to raise money for charity!
On Day 3 they added an early start for the back of the packers, led by the awesome Mirna Valerio!
Love that these 2 were a team and were giving these cards away to people coming in after them 😉 It’s never too late and you are never too old!
The Man!
HOU-DA! HOU-DA! HOU-DA!
We all shouted his name when all the volunteers were called on the “stage” at the awards ceremony: Kevin Houda McDonald, race director.
What can I say about this guy? My first impressions were his email responses when I was inquiring about the volunteer gig: short and sweet….then I had a chance to talk to him on the phone before we left to get more details and he was like a ping pong ball all over the place. I was writing as fast as I could trying to keep up as he changed his stream of thought what seemed like a million times. Even when I finally met him, he was doing 5 things at one time….but….:
he was always present when engaged in a conversation
he had no problem diving in any areas where help was needed at any time
he thanked his volunteers daily and acknowledged everyone’s hard efforts in our nightly staff meetings from the porta-potty people to the sweepers
he backed up his staff when needed
he gets a high return rate of volunteers (and it’s a long tough week of volunteering)
he keeps this huge team of volunteers motivated while there are so many moving parts to this race
I swear I am not kissing ass but as someone who has quite a bit of leadership experience from the corporate to the non profit world, this guy knows how to make it happen. This was one of the most well run events I’ve ever been part of it. There are many people who make this all happen but it requires a good leader too.
As much as I worked my ass off in those 10 days, I wouldn’t change a thing! It was an awesome experience and I have a whole new running family too! There were so many more memories and pictures and beautiful views….but the next blog I write about this race will be as a runner when I do it next year!
Special thanks to the Start/Finish Line crew who took us under their wing and the team we worked the closest with….seriously too many people to thank for this amazing experience!
Last day with our team: Big G, Rachel and Doug (missing Keon and Bruce)
Last day with our team: Big G, Rachel (missing Keon, Bruce and Doug). Joan and I manned the aid station and Elaine and Lori were timers and backed us up too.
If you want to find out more about running or volunteering, here is the website where you can find all their social media handles (go check out some of the pictures from the race!)
If you were a runner or volunteer and made it this far in reading my blog, you can find me, The Running University on Facebook and Instagram. Stay in touch and see you next year!
THANKS TO VOLUNTEERS AND RUNNERS FOR AN UNFORGETTABLE EXPERIENCE!
Edited on 8/22/19 with this video from We Run 4 Fun
