One of the palpable shifts in the relay event is fully in place: the night running is entirely on. This is the part of the event where its serious. Its dark. People are smelly, hungry, and amped and/or tired. They are either loving it, or not. They are either loving their van-mates, or they are not. Its pitch-dark in the porta-pots. Its windy on the road. Youre finding out how ready you really were and how badly you really wanted to do this...and the later it gets, the more all of this intensifies, the more endurance is required, the more encouraging is a cheer from a total stranger, the more a great song in the parking lot suddenly sparks your energy. Its that dichotomy of being powerful and vulnerable, and sometimes we swing wildly back-and-forth in feeling between the two. Its a time when your mental state has at least as much impact as your physical. People depend on their teammates in the dark, and have to be self-sufficient out on the road – or rely on the kindness of runners near you - and basically, they are kind. Were all out here doing the same thing. We paid to do this. We chose this challenge and the sense of community, of this distilled, condensed, extenuating time where everything else in life falls away except running, drinking, eating, eliminating, staying together, staying safe, and staying awake… It really does bring out instinctive best, great humor, heart, and team spirit. We all are in the dark--always so much metaphor for me w/running--sharing our headlamps and reflective vests and blinking lights. Some of us run a 6-minute mile and some of us, a 12-minute mile. But were all in this together – just for one night, sharing our food, water, equipment, and compassion. This is my 8th relay since 7/2011 and every time I think, Oh, if only regular life were more like this… Ive slept only 2 1/2 hours since Wednesday night and I still feel this way.
Posted on: Sat, 23 Aug 2014 04:48:25 +0000
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