**** Rate the Race- RAGNAR Florida Keys February 2015

Recreational runners do it for a lot of different reasons. For a lot of us, it has to do with staying fit. Some of us include running as part of our lifestyle so we can fully enjoy another part of our lifestyle- eating great meals at home and in some of the restaurants listed in this blog.
Perhaps one of the more significant benefits of running is the social component. Personally, I enjoy going to a race and absorbing some of the "good vibe" from the crowd of happy and fit people. I especially like planning and attending races with my friends, both local and those from out of town.
Generally though, the races you do with your friends means you all show up and leave together. Of course there is encouragement and you may even run with someone if it is there first.
But if you want a more team oriented race, participating in a Ragnar could be viewed as the "Mother of all Relay Races".
So what is a Ragnar race? It is a relay race you will do with 11 of your friends, starting in the morning and running all day, all night, and finishing the following afternoon. Each runner runs 3 course legs. At the end of the 30+ hour ordeal (some elite teams finish much faster- but that was not us!) you and your team will have completed a 200ish mile course.

The course, from Miami to Key West. Our team - "Emerald Coasters, Runners with a Drinking Problem"

The sum of each runner's legs will total anywhere between 12 to 24 miles. And because the total distance for each runner is broken up into 3 legs, your team can include runners with different abilities and distances under their belts.
This race began in the Miami area and finished in Key West. We ran through portions Coral Gables, some of the neighborhoods, farm lands through the everglades (there may have been some alligators) and then- the overseas highway.

In terms of sweeping views, it would be hard to surpass this course. Key Largo, Islamorda, Big Pine Key, Boca Chica....and all the ones in between. If you have ever driven the Overseas Highway, you know how beautiful the environment is. Imagine the additional detail you'll enjoy during a run?
Ok, this is not a race you will decide to do a week before after Googling races in your area. This one takes planning, organization, and a few coordination meetings with your team at the very least. Some things you will have to plan for; 2 vans to carry everyone down, and to drop off and pick up individual runners, hotel accommodations at the beginning and end, drinks, snacks for the trip and the run, lots of extra short, shirts, and shoes (and body glide), reflective safety vests, headlamps for night runs, and the list goes on.

Runners from van #2 and runners from van #1, yes bring hygiene supplies

Sounds like a lot, and it is. We began our planning in April, 2014 when we registered for the race. But the payoff is huge. This is an experience we'll all talk about for years. It was epic. How many runners can say they participated in a 200 mile relay race?

Teams pimp their vans, and tag others with magnetic stickers. Romeo Kilo's stands for road kills, or the people you pass on the course. Our van finished with 45!

But be cautioned, it is demanding. While the area is flat, running up a bridge at 1 AM in the middle of a leg nearly the length of a half marathon will challenge you. As will completing a leg in the middle of nowhere, at night, near the glades and irrigation ditches that you just KNOW have alligators in them watching you. Especially if you are kind of scared of being eaten by one (Go AMY!).

So what the payoff? Bragging rights about completing a 200 mile course with friends, the incredible views, facing your fears in the middle of the night and testing your endurance crossing a multi-mile bridge in the heat of the day with only the water you can carry. Probably the most significant payoff is less tangible. It's what happens to the team. It's what some people call "bonding through shared adversity".
If you think about doing this run (there are actually lots of them throughout the US- see their website http://www.ragnarrelay.com) be sure to schedule an extra day or two to enjoy Key West. Enjoy the Hemingway house, see 5 foot tarpon being fed under the docks, and Duval street at night is legendary. Be safe and get lodging within walking distance, or wind up like this...

So was this a "once in a lifetime"? Maybe, but probably not. We have already begun planning our next run, October 2015. Join us? Never know, we may need an extra for the team!

Chattanooga to Nashville!