(all the pics at a video at the end of the post)
i have always heard such great things about long team relays, so when we started putting the feelers out early this year and were able to get a team together for the popular bay area one i was so excited!
“the relay” runs 200 miles starting in calistoga, winding down through wine country and marin county, crossesthe golden gate bridge into san francisco, goes south through the peninsula, climbs the mountains to the coast, and finishes along the ocean in davenport.
we got 12 friends together, came up with a team name, put the logistics to work, raised money for an awesome cause (organ donation) and ran our way through northern california!
we were team “that’s what she said” (twss) obviously based on the show the office and we went all night long, got hot and sweaty, and finished strong. i am sure you can imagine the number of twss phrases that occurred this weekend.
the logistics
find 12 teammates, assign them to 12 legs (legs are ranked based on overall difficulty, 1 being the hardest and 12 being the easiest), runners 1-6 are in van #1 and runners 7-12 are in van #2. van #1 starts off first, while van #2 is “off duty”, then when runner 6 is done with their first leg, they hand off the bracelet to runner 7 and van #2 is “on duty” while van #1 can rest, eat, sleep, etc. repeat this cycle 3 times.
van #1 was maritza, tara, julianne, kristen, katie and mark.
i was in van #2 and runner 12 (last runner!) with a difficulty of 5. i knew there were going to be some tougher runs but i was up to the challenge and hoped my legs were too since i had just ran a marathon the weekend before. also in my van were my husband chris, kristin, her boyfriend stephen and their friends dave and sima. we had a great vibe in the van, we were excited and pumped but weren’t stressing about anything either. i think we had a great mesh of low key personalities, which can be key when you are together for 36+ hours on no sleep.
the relay eve
we all met at my house and had a carb loading potluck! yum this was a great idea. the vans were there, so we loaded them up with materials, wrote all over them with twss team phrases, and discussed the agenda for the next day. we also passed out our awesome “california runner” shirts courtesy of the punk rock runner himself. pretty soon it was already past 9 and we knew we had to get some sleep or we would really be struggling that weekend. we all said goodbye and went to get some sleep.
the relay!
we all met up at 8am (after kristin and i had dropped off our pups at camp… i was awake at 5:30am – key for sleep calculations later), finished loading up our stuff and hit the road to calistoga! even though my van wasn’t going to be on duty for quite a while, we wanted to go to the start, get registered and cheer our team on!
we got there easily, got everything ready and waited around for our 11:30 start time. maritza was runner one so pretty soon it was her turn to get going! after a quick photo op and chat with dean karnazes (this is the relay he runs by himself in the book ultramarathon man), she headed to the start and was off!
our van went and got some lunch and headed to the first van exchange where we relaxed for a couple hours on the grass and tried to keep our fueling and hydration up for our leg that would be starting later. it was a very warm day out too so we managed to stay in the shade and just relax. i wasn’t able to nap but figured the relaxing would be key later. we were texting with the other van every time a runner would finish so we were able to estimate pretty easily when our exchange would take place. time went by pretty slow during this rest period.
our first exchange happened around 4pm and chris was our first runner up. pretty soon katie came around the corner and chris was off! we drove the route and stopped a couple times to cheer him on and offer water and then headed to the next exchange. the route was so beautiful through the back roads in napa and there were vineyards everywhere. it was a beautiful day and i loved getting to see these parts of the bay area i hadn’t seen before.
our second exchange was literally in the middle of fields of vines and was so pretty! pretty soon chris came through and dave was up next! we met him a couple times along the route as well and continued on to our next exchange where sima would run. her route wasn’t quite as pretty and along some busier roads, but there were still lots of things to look at.
she handed off to stephen which was the most difficult leg of the whole relay and goes up and over some mountains and on trails, so we couldn’t see him until the end. it has a huge climb but i hear it was worth it from the amazing views from the top. the sun was setting so we all busted out our reflective gear and by the time he was done and handed off to kristin it was dark.
she ran through the streets and petaluma and into the back roads. we stopped a couple times to cheer her on and make sure everything was ok, then headed to the next exchange which was my turn – eek!
our exchange happened around 9pm and it was definitely pitch black at this time, so i was a giant ball of reflective gear. the guy volunteering at this stopped warned me before i started that this was the most dangerous leg of the relay since the roads were narrow and winding and it was dark, and make sure to pay attention to the cars. not necessarily the thing you want to hear most before heading off into a pitch black run, but i just knew i needed to be careful.
my leg was 4.8 miles hard and i knew it had a big climb in it. i took off pretty fast and then definitely slowed down as i hit the climb. i was having deja vu of hurricane point at this point and was glad that this leg was only 4.8 miles. i had had enough hills the weekend before, i didn’t want to see anymore so soon! once i made it to the top of the 3 mile climb, i had a nice downhill to fly down for the rest of the run. i passed a couple people in the last mile and could see the lights from the exchange point in the distance. i couldn’t see much else so when i got to the exchange i was calling maritza’s name to find her and she was right in front of me. i handed off the bracelet and she was off! our van was now off duty and ready to get some food and some rest. time goes by so much faster when your van is on duty!
leg one: 4.78 miles/39:38/8:17 avg pace
(nutso splits from the giant hill: 7:30, 8:48, 9:41, 7:39, 7:44 (avg))
it worked out great that we hit our rest time not too far from chris’s mom’s house, so we headed there, took hot showers, ordered some pizza and tried to get some rest. we estimated when we needed to head to our next exchange, set the alarm for 1:00am and tried to sleep. i think i had my eyes closed for maybe an hour, i don’t know how much sleep, if any, i got, but at least we were rested. i woke up and checked my phone and van #1 was already halfway through their runners so we frantically rushed over to our next exchange and ended up making it there with plenty of time to spare. our exchange was the parking lot right after the golden gate bridge so we got to hang out there and enjoy the views of the bridge all lighted up.
around 4am katie finished up her leg and handed off to chris. he was running another hilly route (very similar to the nike women’s marathon course) through the presidio of san francisco and down to the great highway. it was pretty awesome being one of the only few cars out on the road and seeing the runners scattered along running through the streets of SF in the dark. we stopped a couple times to cheer for him and then went to our next exchange. chris handed off to dave who had some more hilly miles. the sun was starting to peak up over the mountains when dave handed off to sima and she got to see the sun come up on her route. once she handed off to stephen the sun was completely up and we said goodbye to our reflective gear. we were winding down the peninsula at this time, and running along some beautiful reservoirs and running trails (hello new running spots!). stephen handed off to kristin and then it was my turn!
i knew i was tired since i had barely slept and my stomach was a mess. the weird eating and not sleeping and running close together was wreaking havoc on my digestive system. my second leg was 5.9 miles moderate. i grabbed the bracelet from kristin sometime after 7am and was off! i started off feeling pretty good, but this faded really fast. my legs were SO heavy, i was so tired and everything was definitely catching up to me. i just kept counting down the miles and knew i would be done soon. it was already getting really really warm out and i was just hot and cranky. finally i knew i was getting close and was able to pick up the pace a little bit. i saw maritza ahead in long sleeves, warned her to take them off and handed off the bracelet. rest time again!
leg two: 5.93 miles/49:27/8:20 avg
(nutso splits from rolling hills and dead legs: 8:03, 8:13, 8:20, 8:41, 8:45, 7:57 (avg))
we immediately started heading towards our last van exchange point so we would have time to relax but found a perfect place to stop and eat first. it was a beautiful day and we were able to sit outside and enjoy some hot coffee and food. my stomach was still really mad at me, but i knew i needed to eat if i was going to make it through another leg. we made it to the van exchange around 11 and figured we would have 2 hours to relax before being back on duty. we found a grassy field and hung out getting some rest and relaxing. i got not sleep here at all, but enjoyed the down time.
around 1:00 katie came up the giant hill and handed off to chris. at this point the route was running down highway 9 which is a windy highway that is lined with huge redwood trees. there was tons of shade it was absolutely gorgeous. chris killed his last leg and was so happy that he was done running (and i was very jealous). we were starting to get pretty delirious at this point, but just enjoyed the ridiculousness of the situation we were in. the handoffs kept on going and it was really warm out, but our runners were doing awesome! pretty soon it was stephen’s turn and he had a very hard leg to conquer with some insane hills, so we made sure to be there to support him on the way. he then handed off to kristin who also had a very hard leg with some insane hills, but we were winding through some back roads that were covered in trees and it was soooo pretty. it really reminded me of running trails through the oakland redwoods, except we were on paved road. i was hoping my run was going to be that pretty!
finally we were at our last exchange and i waited for kristin to come up and over her last hill. my next leg was 6 mile moderate, but all that elevation that kristin and stephen just gained (~1200 feet), i was going to lose in 3 miles. i knew this was going to thrash my already thrashed quads, but whatever i was so close to being done! i got the handoff about 5:30pm and was on my way to the finish!
i knew i had to just let gravity take control at this point. if i tried to slow myself down at all it was just going to be harder on my quads so i did that. the road was really narrow with no shoulder at times so i really had to pay attention to the cars driving by. these miles were flying by and i was laughing at the “steep downgrade” warning signs for cars. there were a couple that said 10% so i knew these were some steep downhills! finally i was at the bottom at mile 3 and had a couple little hills to climb to get to highway one. my legs were toast at this point. i honestly don’t know how i even ran those last 3 miles. i knew that there was no other way to do it though, because if i would have tried to go slower down the hills they would be hurting just as bad.
around mile 3.5 i turned right onto highway one and was greeted with a MAJOR headwind. i wanted to stop and crawl into a ball on the side of the road at this point. i felt like i was running in place but i knew i was so close to getting this relay over with! i kept on pushing just concentrating on one mile at a time. around mile 4 there was another hill i had to climb and i almost started crying. yes i was being dramatic at this point, but i had been awake for over 36 hours, my stomach was on day 2 of being pissed, my legs were toast from my marathon and from my previous hilly legs and i was cursing the wind.
with about 1.5 miles to go i see a van ahead and a girl with a blue shirt jump out. it was tara! i was SO happy to see her. she crossed the street and asked if i wanted company and i nodded. she asked how i was feeling and i said i was ready to be done. i think those were the only words exchanged as we powered against the crazy wind and ran to the finish. if you know tara, you know she despises the wind, so the fact that she was out there with me meant even more. eventually we saw the turn ahead and our teammates waiting for us and we climbed another tiny hill to get up to the road that led to the finish. we all ran together and crossed the finish line as a team… just under 31 hours from when we began this crazy journey.
leg three: 6.25 miles/52:10/8:20 avg pace
(another set of crazy splits from the insane downhills to running straight into the wind at an incline: 7:10, 7:16, 7:18, 8:58, 9:14, 9:44)
i was greeted with a beer and a blanket and headed to the van to put on some warm clothes. my legs were so sore i could barely climb into the van. we got our medals, recapped some stories and celebrated our finish together, but not for long. it was 6:30pm already and we had a 2 hour drive back to the bay area! we were exhausted, smelly, hungry, so happy to be done, and so proud of our accomplishment.
my total running: 16.96 miles/2:21:15/8:20 avg pace
even with all the crazy splits somehow i managed my overall pace to be almost the same every run, for the same overall avg pace 
official results:
200 miles/30:53:14/9:16 avg pace
overall: 134/212
co-ed division: 42/70
200 miles done!
overall i am really happy i did this. i had so much fun and it is definitely something i think every runner should experience! i got to see so many parts of northern california that i had never seen or really knew existed and it makes me want to go explore! at this point, i don’t know if i really would want to do it again, but i think that is just the after effects of anything as exhausting at this. maybe next time i should try it without running a marathon the weekend before! i am sure it will be on my list of things i want to do again sometime in the future, but for now i am happy with this being my relay experience
congrats to my awesome team, you all did so great out there!!!
Awesome race report.
I have never done one of these.
It looks like so much fun & I'm thinkin' you are right . . . . it is something every runner should experience!!
What an awesome event!!! Congrats on your great run! I would LOVE to something adventurous like that one day
I <3 RELAYS!!!
YAY!!! Great job, Team TWSS! Thanks so much for the wonderfully detailed report and slide show! It was great to have an idea what it was like… you guys rock!!!
Hahahahaha. I so don't want to do this now. Sounds like a mess. But a fun mess. Good job my friend.
WOW – great job, Aron and Team TWSS!
Aron, that was so fun! Loved re-living this weekend's highlights!!! Great race report, too!
And hello, great job finishing up the last FINAL leg of the relay!!!!
Congratulations! What an awesome experience! You ran so strong and pulled for the team. I would love to do a longer relay too.
I was just scoping out your pics on FB.
What an experience!
I don't know if I could survive on the lack of sleep… you are all troopers!
CONGRATS!
wow–congrats!! I LOVE relays! Sounds like a great time and a memorable experience! And nice choice for a team name
Awesome job to you all! Congrats! I can't believe you were able to do that the weekend after a marathon. Sounds like such a fun (though tiring) weekend!
Congrats on an awesome race!!!
congrats to everyone! i really want to do a relay…like right now
What a great recap! I'm so glad ya'll had fun! It totally made me excited to run Ragnar this year!!! Rest up girly and take some time off!!!
This looks incredibly insane and FUN!
Well done!
Wow. I can't decide if that sounds like fun or torture. Hahaha!
How fun! I would love to do a relay like that, but I don't know if I could convince 11 others to do it to. Awesome race report! Kudos to you for rocking this just a week after your marathon…girl you deserve a little break!
Sounds like you had great fun!
What a great time! I really want to do a relay one of these years . . . looks like so much fun.
Congratulations! Go Team twss! (Now, go take a well deserved nap!)
congrats! sounds like an AWESOME experience
All of you are simply amazing. Honestly. I'm in awe.
PS: Way to play food blogger for a little while there in the slide show! lol
I love the music/picture videos you make – makes me want to go race so badly! (And I'm less than 48 hours out from a marathon!)
Sounds like it was an amazing experience! Love your blog.
Sounds like an incredible experience!! Congrats to all of you! Love the race report and pics
Makes me kinda want to do one… one day!
I have always wanted to do a relay race! There are a few here but I never get around to getting a group together and such. Love the video!
really makes me want to do another relay some day. sounds like you had a great experience!! congrats to the whole team!
It looked like an awesome experience. It's always something I've wanted to do. Hood to Coast sounds like it'd be fun but it's a pain to get registered since it's a lottery and not a guaranteed entry.
Awesome pictures.
Congratulations!!! That sounds like such a great event
I hope you have an awesome day!
Congrats!
Now I for sure want to do one! LOVE the team name!
This looks AWESOME! Great Job! My school has a running team that does this 200 mile relay from Tucson to Phoenix and back. I missed it this year, but plan on doing it for sure this coming year! You make me want to run so many races, I feel crazy sometimes.
Wow, so much fun! Nice to have Chris come along, too!
What a blast! I would LOVE to do one of those. I wonder how many of those relays are held across the US? Unfortunately, I'm the only runner among our friends.
Good for you guys. What a super job and terrific fun.
What a complete blast…I am so adding this to my things to do list!
awesome race report!! sounds like you guys did fabulous and had a great time!!! love the video girl!! great job!!
nice dude! sounds like a fun time! i was amazed at your splits in your tweets all weekend. you just ran a ridiculously hilly marathon and then run 8:20 avg in a relay? you are crazy girl
Seriously sounds like so much fun! Great job on your legs! You had some awesome splits and paces for all those hills!! Congrats!
AHHH, this was so awesome to read! It was cool to hear about the race from van 2's perspective!
I am so happy I got to be a part of this with you guys. Thanks so much for letting me join your team! I loved reliving the weekend through your pictures.
Thanks for bringing us in strong.
Yay!!! Great job on the recap (much more detailed than mine!) and I love your V2 PoV slideshow! It fills in the gaps so nicely!!!!
I loved that you were my bracelet-hand-off buddy and thanks for warning me to take off that long-sleeve…it got hot REALLY fast.
That's what she said!! LOVE YOU!
Wow. That sounds like a great weekend.
Congratulations on getting 'er done!!
That looks like a blast! The downhills are always harder on my body too. You guys rock. I have to get in on a relay soon.
Damn! That was intense…but I love the name of your team
Thanks for posting this…it gives me somewhat of an idea of what I have to look forward to for my relay in June!
Awesome recap and great job. Don't know how you did a relay the week after a marathon. I definitely think that is a harder accomplishment than back to back marathon weeks.
LOVED the video!!
And I have to say it — Hot showers!? A HOUSE to stop at?! Weak!! The two relays I did we literally lived in the mini van (no big white vans for us) for 30ish hours. LOL. j/k.
congrats!!!! Man, that looks like such a good time.
I'm with you on the downhills. Blah.
These relay events always sound like so much fun. I hope to do one too someday. Great job out there in that wind and so soon after that tough Big Sur Marathon!
Loved your race report!! Relays are sooo much fun, draining, but fun! I do one in the CO mountains in the summer and we just have a blast!
This sounds SO fun! I really want to do one of these at the end of August and just have to find a team. Thanks for the great recap!
That is the most amazing thing ever and you guys ROCK!
It sounds like so much fun and I'm sad I missed it. Great job out there pushing along and encouraging everyone too. Seriously you are a racing maniac!
Sounds like an amazing time! Thanks for the recap. I'll have to remember this when I'm running next weekend on my own relay!
My van was jealous of the TWSS van at the finish. I was cooped up with boys the whole time and the TWSS jokes never stopped.