Run #1 (Red loop)
The red loop is the longest and listed as hardest loop. It was a full moon, but essentially it was 11pm and essentially pitch black in the woods. My lighting system worked well through and I took off as fast as I could. The area near the transition was a mess from all loops sharing it, but it turns out it was all a mess. The loop was single track with significantly steep sections. With the rain and all the runners, it was transformed into a 2-6in deep mud trench through the woods. Every step was icy slick and you would only get a solid step every 10 or so steps. The trick I eventually learned was to try to go edge to edge and get some purchase. AS hard and slow as it was though, it could not have been more fun. I was taking bigger risks than I should have, but it was so much fun flying down the trail, jumping off rocks and running at the edge of losing control.
They have an unofficial Ragnar tradition that you count the number of people you pass (deemed as ‘kills’) and the number of people you pass (‘killed’). It’s a bit arbitrary like the RBI stat in baseball since you have to get lucky and have someone in front of you to pass them. It still made for good motivation though and I started hunting down any glimmer of light I saw. To help keep track, I started taking lap splits on my non-Garmin watch, so I never knew for sure where I stood until the end.
The trail dropped down to an area called the ‘swamp trail’ which was just as messy, but had some cool wooden crate-like bridges for stream crossings. The time passed quickly and I finally hit the 1mi. to go sign where the trail merged with some of the other loops. I could hear the finish line and pushed hard. The last thing you do on every loop is go up and over a pedestrian bridge over the road. It’s a great view from the top and then you drop down into the tent to see your teammate (Kim B.) waiting for a transfer. She took to the bib and was off.
I was flying from all the adrenaline. I chatted with Slake (waiting for the other team) and Laura (volunteering) and looked at my watch/Garmin:
59m 49s
6.59 miles
09m 04s /Mi
88 kills, 0 killed

Run #2 (Yellow loop)
I went back and got some sleep after the red loop. I woke up starving ~3am and ate a banana. I woke up again and ate a granola bar, but eventually I got up for good ~6am and hung out with everyone eating breakfast. It was so great hearing all the stories. It was like an Ironman finish but while the race was still going on and you could do something about it! Eventually, Leger came back and I started gearing up for battle. Due to all the delays, it was now 7am and light out, so no more light worries. I put the same shirt, short, shoes, and socks back on. Kind of wet and gross, but seemed to make sense.

The yellow loop was reported to be in better shape and with the light I was able to run a bit harder. I still had to spend a lot of time going trail edge to trail edge and sharp turns were dicey, but I would say 50% of my steps were firm this time! The highlight of this loop was one of the most amazing trail sections I’ve ever seen. It was similar to a trail in Leesburg and has 50 foot pine trees with no lower branches all lined up.
This doesn’t do it justice, but gives you an idea: http://www.ragnartrail.com/files/big-pine-trail.jpg
It was a beautiful place to run and I enjoyed every step of it despite the difficulty.
37m 52s
4.49 miles
08m 25s /Mi
49 kills, 0 killed

Run#3 (Green loop)
By this point, the race was running late and they asked up to double up runners so we could finish earlier. This paired Jeff and I starting together and moved my run hours up. I was fine with it as it was noon already and I was ready to finish it off and get to some beers!
His knees were iffy and I wanted to see what I could do for the last loops, so we decided not to stay together, but it was really cool starting with him and we took some pics before we hit the trails. I was impressed he held up and finished with all the trails, darkness, camping, etc. K came up from camp with us to kick off the run and I was just so happy to be there with everyone.

I was amazed at how well my legs were holding up and with green being the shortest/last/best conditions, it was time to fly. It was deemed ‘easiest’, but I would say it was harder than yellow in that it had rolling ‘punchy’ climbs and was short and dry enough to race (vs. just surviving). So it was the first time I was spending a significant amount of time in the red zone. I had a main goal of not getting passed and giving up my 0 killed status with sub goals of 150+ kills on the day and trying to break 2hrs for cumulative time of all 3 loops.

About a mile in, I started catching a guy moving fast. It took me ¼ mile to get on his heels and then another ½+ mile before I had any opportunities to pass. I finally made the pass, but hitting the hills, I felt him right on me and worried he would pass me back. That was the toughest mile of Ragnar as I tried to stay 100% and hold him off. I finally dropped him and pushed with what I had left until the now familiar final turns and mud field finish. When I came over the bridge, a number of the teammates were on the fence cheering at this point. It was great to see them and cruise into the tent for the final handoff.
25m 09s
3.50 miles
07m 11s /Mi
26 kills, 0 killed


Total:
2h 02m 50s
08m 25s /Mi
163 kills, 0 killed


- Happy with lights, so nothing there
- Duct tape was great, but would use body glide or longer socks to avoid chaffing
-

We cheered on the other runners and in Ragnar tradition, the team came across the finish line together. We watched a good portion of the other teams pack up and hit the road, but we stayed Sat night and had a nice campfire with beers, food, and fireball. Great times.


Mud


Fantastic race. Plenty of confusion and issues, but overall for how complicated and messed up due to weather conditions, the race was amazing. Well worth it.