Napa Valley Ragnar Relay

Oh Ragnar, how do I get talked into doing these races? :)

I ran the Wasatch Back Ragnar a few years back with a group of my pacing buddies. It was definitely an experience tackling 200+ miles in an overnight race, but after that race, I swore when it came to Ragnar, I was a one-and- done type of gal.

Then my sisters-in-law asked me to join their team.

Sure! I thought it would be a great way to familiarize myself with the Bay Area. Our Star Trek-themed team (which is funny since I've never seen Star Trek before) ran the 200-mile relay through San Francisco, Napa, Sonoma, etc. one week after the Big Cottonwood Marathon.

It was fun, but I really mean it this time--I am done running Ragnar. :)

Big Cottonwood Marathon Results

Big Cottonwood was a fast weekend trip for me. I flew in Friday evening, picked up my packet, and headed right to bed. After a bus ride at 4:00 AM and catching up with old friends at the start, we began our descent down Big Cottonwood Canyon.

I've ran this race every year since it started three years ago, and every year they change the course. With the addition of the Wasatch Blvd. out-and-back, I didn't enjoy the 2014 course as much as I did the 2013 option, but it was still a spectacular run. I shaved four minutes off my course record, caught a quick bite with family, and boarded an early afternoon flight back to Cali.

San Ramon 5K

To celebrate our fresh start in California and Troy finally having a regular 8-5 job, we spent our first weekend here at the San Ramon 4th of July race. Troy surprisingly opted to do the 10K distance since  the 10K and 5K were the same price. I don't share that rationale, and stuck with 3.1. :) It was technically my day off from running so I kept my pace rather conservative and finished in 25:05--only a few seconds behind the 3rd in AG gal. Shucks! Troy rocked his race, though, and placed 3rd in his group!