Belinda's Leg Reviews

Now that I have showered a few times and had 2 good nights sleep I can say, "That was so much fun!" I was NOT prepared for this Ragnar. I will know better next Ragnar that I must train seriously. Here are my leg reviews

Leg 9- 7.4 Miles, Very Hard, Thousand Oaks
Being in Van 2 was a different experience and I was very anxious by the time 6 p.m. came and it was finally my turn to run. I was nervous for this run because I knew I had a big climb the first 3.5 miles. It started out not too bad but then I turned onto Westlake Blvd and the big climb began. There were huge mansion houses that I just looked at most of the time- coveting really- and that helped me keep my mind off the climb. After the 3.5 it was mostly down hill from there and the rest of the run seemed to go well. I felt pretty good. I think Ragnar was playing a dirty trick on us all with the "one mile to go" signs. I think I had about 2 miles to go when I saw the sign. I was very disappointed with my time on this leg. 1:16:08, 9:48 pace.

Van 2 headed straight for Santa Monica Pier after our legs where we ate dinner at Bubba Gump Shrimp Factory (I don't eat seafood but they had some nice little BBQ pork sliders on the menu) The boys in Van 2 were very nice to me, being the only girl, and they gave me the back seat of the truck to sleep. So we got a few hours of sleep before we were up at about 3:30 to get ready to start our second set.

Leg 21- 5.8 miles - Moderate Hermosa Beach
Keeping with the norm, my second leg was my favorite. But wait till you read this review and you'll know why. I was extremely nervous for this run. I was on a trail most of the run and the van had a alternate route most of the way so I knew I would be on my own and it was dark when I started. The guys were great and found a spot they could pull off and cheer me on. My run started on the boardwalk at Manhattan Beach. I had several places for about a mile where there was sand all over covering the boardwalk and it was hard to run through. After about a mile and a half I got to Hermosa Beach where I got to run down to the end of the pier, turn around, and run back to the boardwalk. The sun was just starting to come up so I could see a little better and the white caps on the waves looked almost as if they were glowing. For a little bit I ran on the street before returning to the boardwalk and into a parking garage. I ran through the paring garage and then as I came out it looked a lot brighter and I knew I was running right at sunrise. I stayed on the boardwalk for the rest of the run with the sand and water on one side and nice beach houses on the other. (One of my favorite things to do at the beach is walk the boardwalk and look at the houses - this is fun for me because the dream I once had of being an architect) It was a perfect spot, perfect time of day, with the nice cool morning air. This was by far my favorite run. My Nike plus told me I did 6.18 miles, 56:44, 9:10 pace.

Leg 33 - 6.5 miles - Hard - Irvine - Oh so very hard!

Wow, I really let this one get to my head. I was dreading this run before van 1 even got through their final legs. I was exhausted from my first leg and I knew this one was going to be long, hot and uphill. I started off and actually was surprised at how good I felt. It was definitely hot but my legs weren't quite as stiff and heavy as I expected them to be. again I was on a trail that my Van was not able to get to and so I was alone the whole way. It was a paved trail, a black asphalt paved trail at 2:20 in the afternoon. The trail was lined with trees, however they weren't close enough to the trail to provide shade. There was a lot of wild life. I saw 2 white cranes (the big white birds with he really long neck) 2 chipmunks and a rabbit. I went along this trail feeling pretty good. Then we crossed a bridge over to the other side of the freeway and I hit a big huge tall and wide wall. Not literally a wall but I was finished. My legs were screaming at me "No, I don't want to do this anymore!" I would come to a spot where there was about 3 feet of shade and I would walk. This happened a few times and then a girls from another team catches up to me and says "Come on, we're almost there. we just have to get to that bridge." That bridge was about 1 mile away and I started running at her pace and thought
Ok, she's keeping a nice, slow steady pace so I'll just stick with her." Well, just getting to that bridge was a big lie." We went about 2 miles past that bridge but I stayed with her. I tried talking to her to keep my mind on something else but i could tell she wasn't wanting to talk. When we got to the park where the exchange was I told her to go ahead of me because she deserved it. She told me she wasn't going to pass me because I saw ahead of her the whole way and that i should finish first. I was going o stay with her but she had slowed way down and I couldn't wait because I wanted this over with so I moved up the path and finished. I'm sorry Aaron, but I snickered in my head when I slapped that bracelet on your wrist knowing that I was finally DONE! I am really embarrassed by my time and pace so no comments please. 1:12, 10:39 pace.

Big ups to the guys in Van 2 that treated me well and kept the vulgarities and that's what she said jokes to a minimum (we'll work on it with you in another zip code Aaron - JK!) Thanks for giving me some privacy in the back of the truck after my legs and for the good sleeping spot. I'd run another Ragnar with you anytime! Jordan always does an awesome job at working out all the details and seems to know great people to put together a great team. I am amazed at the speed that some of these guys can run, the hills they can climb and the distances they can go! Phenomenal Job Chasquis!