Wasatch Back Rockstars

The Wasatch Back Rockstars Soundtrack

2010-03-14T20:19:00.000-07:00

Hey ladies! At our meeting we talked about putting together a race soundtrack for our team. I would love to have your input on what you'd like to have on that soundtrack. So start commenting away with your input! Otherwise you're going to be submitted to my whims. Tee hee.

A Little About Me!!

2010-02-11T17:51:00.000-08:00

Greetings and Happy Valentines!!

I am Kathy, and I have wanted to run the Wasatch Back for a couple of years, and now I am!!! Thank you for letting me join your group.

I am married to John for 11 1/2 years and have 2 wonderful twin girls Summer and Whitney, who are 4 1/2. We love to be active as a family and we enjoy rafting, skiing, camping, hiking, 4-wheeling, and riding horses. John has taught me to work hard to play hard. I am a Dental Hygienist and have the wonderful schedule of working one day a week, just to get"out". John is a geotechnical engineer, and works in Salt Lake.

I have ran most of my life, with a long break while I was in school and for a couple of years afterward. I love to run, but I am hot and cold with training, but I am always happier when I do run. I ran the Ogden half marathon for the last two years, and this year - proving I am growing crazier with age - I signed up for the full :)

I am so excited to get to know everyone, and experience this race. I am PUMPED, hope everyone is excited too!!

Taking the girls skiing at Snowbasin

My favorite picture of my favorite people

John and I backpacking in Canyonlands

Whitney left and Summer right

Greetings from me!

2010-02-11T12:36:00.000-08:00

Hello! I am Lisa and I am excited to embark on this new adventure called "Running for Fun!" I am the wife of Trevor and the mother to four insanely busy, but wonderful kids. I have been athletic all my life and have played competitive sports, but never have I just ran for fun until mid-September after being on "not-quite-bed-rest" for about 6 months. I ran my first race on Thanksgiving at ORMC and thoroughly enjoyed it. I have found that running is quite addictive and theraputic! I actually took a break from running in January but am ready to get going again. I have known Amanda and Carla for a long time-in fact, I used to scoff when Amanda started running at 5ish AM-and now that's my favorite time to go! I am a self-proclaimed dork who likes to read, work out, eat and sleep! I look forward in getting to meet all of you!

a bit about me

2010-02-09T14:03:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone! My name is Sabrina, and am associated with this group through being in the same book club as Kristin, Trina and Kathy. Last year I heard so much about this race, and I thought it would be an awesome experience, so I am super excited I got the chance to join you all! I started running after my daughter was born, and have slowly gotten my endurance up, though I still have a long way to go. I have finished two triathlons (not open water) and am currently training for a duathlon in St. George at the end of February. I have two kids: Lily is 3 years old and Jackson is almost 18 months. My husband Adam is an accountant and we have been married for 5 1/2 years. I work a few hours a week giving dietary recommendations at a rehabilitation center, even though it has nothing to do with my English Literature degree. Besides running, I love reading, cooking, road biking, gardening, and watching Hulu with Adam after the kids are asleep. My family blog: The Birds

Hey there!

2010-02-07T20:39:00.000-08:00

Hi girls! I'm Trina and am really excited to run the Wasatch Back again this year. I love running but it often scares me to death :) . Running the Wasatch Back last year was an incredible experience. It took some serious coaxing, but it was so, so worth it. It was one of the hardest, yet most rewarding experiences of my life. I had so much fun in our van and made some super great friends. So gear up….it’s going to be a blast!

I have been running for about six years now. I am 36 years old and running is something I NEVER dreamed in a million years I would do, and grow to love. I run with Kristin, my very best friend, and thanks to her I make it out of bed in the morning for our long, or NOT so long, cold runs. I am quite certain I lack the willpower to do it on my own, so we keep each other going and that works great! AND she tells me all sorts of interesting and scholarly stories while we run! She is cool like that. :)

In our family we have four great kids, Michael (10), AJ (8), Sam (5) and Rachael (2), two very spoiled dogs and a cat. I love watching them grow and change (my kids…the animals, not so much). My husband, Dave, works at Weber State University and I work part-time at Prevent Child Abuse Utah.

I am very excited to get to know all of you. This will be a fantastic experience!

Hi Everyone

2010-01-27T20:55:00.000-08:00

Hey there everyone! I am Kristin.

I am so excited to run this race! I ran the Wasatch Back last year and it was amazing. It was a fantastic experience in SO many ways. I love the physical and mental challenge of this race and I love the great friendships I made while running it.

It sounds like we have an awesome team this year. I know about half of you and I am looking forward to meeting everyone else. I have been running off and on since high school, but I started running more seriously 6 years ago. My best friend, Trina, and I have run lots of 5K races and three half marathons. We ran the Wasatch Back last year after calling/emailing Lori ~~at least a thousand~~ several times to ask if she thought we could really do it. And, after she assured us that we'd be fine, we joined the team. And we are so glad.

I am 35 years old and have a great husband, Jeff, four happy kids, Sophie (10), Elisabeth (8), Jillian (5) and Reed (2) and one whiny cat, Viola. I taught Jr. High English and History for a few years, but have been a stay-at-mom home since my oldest was born. Recently I went back to school to get a Masters Degree in English. I spend a lot of time studying, and sometimes Trina is lucky enough to get a rundown of Shakespeare or Chaucer while we run. Ha. Ha. Lucky Trina! :) I have a really hard time going to bed before midnight, so my early morning running schedule is sometimes painful. But, on a night that Jeff and I really want to stay up late watching TV, I just consider the next day's run as Ragnar Training. So, since 24 just started and Lost starts in a few days, I'll be getting a lot of Ragnar Training in the coming weeks. Ha Ha!

Can't wait to meet you! Happy running!

10 things about me

2010-01-27T14:27:00.000-08:00

1. I'm Lesa
2. I'm 30,or will be in a week, so I'm rounding.
3. Wife of Brian for 8 1/2 years, mother of Bradley (3) and Daniel (9 months). I'm outnumbered, but have been most of my life.
4. I'm a stay-at-home mom, but was a Corporate Accountant for Flying J in what seems like another life.
5. I graduated from Weber with a bachelor's in Accounting in 2004.
6. I've run for fitness on and off for 15 years, but I am a racing novice. I've only done 3 5Ks, and the Thanksgiving run at Ogden Regional last year.
7. My favorite color is green.
8. I only eat one hot dog a year.
9. When I'm not chasing my boys (or in the midst of chasing them), I read, listen to talk radio, cook, clean, do a Sudoku puzzle, watch my favorite show Chuck or our latest movie from Netflix, and blog occasionally (I like to read other blogs better).
10. I love sweets, especially baked goods like cookies, brownies, and cake.

That's me in a nut shell. I'm excited / scared about Ragnar, but I think it will be fun. I'm especially looking forward to putting one of those stickers on my car showing the world that I'm crazy, I mean tough!

Hi, my name is Carla.

2010-01-27T09:05:00.000-08:00

I have been married for 12 1/2 years to Stephen. He is totally wonderful! We have 4 children-2 girls and 2 boys. Girl #1 is 12, girl #2 is 7, boy #1 is 6, and boy #2 is 2 1/2. We have a black lab/weimareiner named Jake. I like to read books and other peoples blogs. I love movies. I like to go hiking and camping, but only because my husband needs to do this. I am a soccer coach to boy #1 and I love having that time with him. We have blog so, if you'd like to learn more about me and my family, click here.

I haven't always been a runner, in fact, I never ran until a year ago. There are several reasons for my running; health, didn't want to embarrass the kids at soccer or school, want them to have the healthy lifestyle that I didn't, many personal issues, and my mom got breast cancer. Due to the last, I have been doing the Susan G. Komen S.L.C. 5K since 2008. I walked (with a little running) it the first year. The next year I ran 2/3 of it with a goal to be running a 5k all the way by Thanksgiving in 35 min. I ran a lot of 5K's last summer, running the whole way, but never under the time limit I set for myself. I completed my goal 2 days after Thanksgiving at the Ogden Santa Run 5K. 34:50.1. My new goal is to run a 5K in 30 min. or less. I am signed up to run the Ogden Marathon Relay because I was so slow to sign up for the 1/2 marathon.

I've been friends with Amanda since they bought the condo next to ours in 2003. I'm really glad to have her as my friend. Last year I knew Amanda was running ragnar and when someone pulled out of the team, I was really, really tempted to sign up and race with some of you. My husband nicked the thought due to obligatory-camping-with-family plans. We were in Morgan and I watched many runners go by and my kids helped me cheer on the runners. I told Stephen I was going to run it next year (I caught the running bug), so he'll have to camp without me. Maybe the kids and he will be cheering on our runner. I think it will be a runner from van #1.

I'm still not a great runner, but I will be. I want to be a healthy (physically and mentally) person and this is the best way for me. I'm totally stoked to run with all of you and to get to know you all better. I'm happy to have friends and a sister who will be running with us also. I love this. I am really and truly excited!

A little about me

2010-01-25T12:49:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone, I am Celeste and I am running too. I am Amanda's little sister. I am 23, married to the best man ever, and have a cute 10 month old named Jackson. I grew up in Utah even though I was born in Canada. I did all of my education here and graduated with a BS in Dental Hygiene 2 years ago.
I keep myself busy telling people to floss (at work AND at home), chasing after adorable little boys, and looking at clothes online that I wish I could buy.
I'm excited to run with everyone and just enjoy this experience, it sounds like a blast.

Welcome Team Rockstars 2010

2010-01-18T22:11:00.000-08:00

Welcome ladies to our blog! Here I will be posting updates about the race, things to be aware of, random thoughts that cross my mind and so forth. Tee hee. Get excited. You're going to be soooo glad that I'm the team captain. Uh huh. Moving on.
As the team captain I just wanted to take a moment and introduce myself. I know that I know most of you, so I will make this breif. My name is Amanda. I am 27 years old and have been running for the last 5 or so years. My BFF Lori (who is flying in all the way from ATL to run this race with us!!!) was the one that got me into and addicted to running. I blame everything on her. Haha. I am a part-time nurse, and a mom the rest of the time. I have one beautiful little boy, a fantastic hubby, and the most chill dog you will ever meet. Our little boy came to us through the miracle of adoption, and we're currently trying to adopt again. I have run 2 marathons, lots of half marathons and I did Ragnar for the first time last year. It seriously is the best race ever! I love running, being a mom, playing soccer, photography, and music. I hate early mornings, but that's when I have the time to run, so I have this weird love/hate relationship with them. I'm super excited to be doing this race again this year. I really am looking forward to getting to know all of you. So please post a little about yourselves!

My cute little fam.

If you're just dying to know more about me, you can read my blog here.

Look forward to hearing from you!

Anyone Refinancing? Buying or Selling?

2009-08-31T09:58:00.000-07:00

Hey ladies,
I got this email from Ragnar a few weeks ago, and thought I'd post it to see if this applies to any of us. Apparently if someone on our team refinances, buys or sells through this agency within the next, well 60 days now, our registration fee would be refunded. That means it would be free for us to run! I don't know if this applies to any of us, just thought I'd check and see. Here is the letter!

The Ragnar Relay Wasatch Back 2009 was an amazing race...maybe the best one yet...even that sprinkling of rain at the finish line didn't put a damper on anyone's spirits and ended up bringing people even closer together.
We can't wait until The Ragnar Relay Wasatch Back 2010 and it looks as though many of you can't wait either as the race is already over half full. If the thought of being left out of the race next year doesn't motivate you enough to sign up check out the great deal we have for you...it even applies to all of you who have signed up already.
As you know, the Ragnar Relay Series has made some great partnerships over the years. Rob Wathen and the Salt Lake City based Red Rock Mortgage is no exception. In addition to helping us make the Wasatch Back a reality, Red Rock Mortgage has also arranged a very unique offering.
Anyone completing a refinance, purchase or selling of a property within the next 90 days with Red Rock will have their team entry fees paid in full for the race of their choosing. Don't worry if you have already registered for an upcoming Ragnar Relay, Red Rock will refund your entry fee.
Several of us here at Ragnar have used Rob, owner of Red Rock refinancing and can personally vouch for him and his agency.
Rob is also a multiple Wasatch Back Relay runner and avid triathlete. Please contact him directly at 801-230-LOAN (5626), email him at robert@rrmortgageinc.com or apply directly online at www.redrockmortgage.com .
Best,
The Ragnar Promotions Team

Please Come Run With Us This Year!

2009-08-26T14:39:00.000-07:00

We still have room on our team for runners for the 2010 Ragnar. We want you to run it with us! We're a super fun group of girls running because we love it. We just want to finish this race. We don't care how fast or slow you are. So if you need any more convincing read my post about this last years race here. Then email me about how much you want to do it. You know you wanna!

Thanks for a great race ladies!

2009-06-25T09:55:00.000-07:00

It was an awesome race. Loved it. Web albums are circulating through emails, so look for them!

Amanda is taking over as team captain for next year, so I'm deleting everyone as an author except her... she's in charge now. :)

Enjoy the rest of your racing season!!

Even MORE to read. Yipee.

2009-06-12T19:01:00.000-07:00

The Team Captain Minutes.

Read it over and then we'll all be informed. :)

Discuss below if you have concerns or questions.

General Concerns

2009-06-11T09:49:00.000-07:00

Seems like there are some logistical questions...

On Thursday night we're meeting in Ogden to pack the vans for the race. It will be determined that night where each set of 6 runners will meet the next day. Van #1 runners will most likely meet somewhere between Davis County and Ogden and all pile in the Van to go up to Logan together. I am going to meet you also and trail up to the beginning so I can show them required head lamps, vests, etc. Also to pick up the swag bags for Van #2.

Van #2 will meet somewhere between Ogden and Liberty about 1-2 hours before Van #1 reaches Ogden Valley. We'll all pile into the van and wait anxiously to hear from Van #1 how things are going.

I have found a calculator online that will project our team pace. Which will be helpful for the big exchanges for us to know roughly plus or minus 45 minutes when the van's will be meeting. I know I've asked you a million times. But if you could all leave a comment what your pace is, what you think you'll realistically run next week (7mm, 10mm, 15 mm) then I will input it. The calculator (I think) takes into account the very hard runs and slows you down for those. So just give me your regular 10k or 5k pace.

Okay, looks like everyone just wants to bring their own food. So look at the list of food, know what you eat and we'll go from there. Also remember please that there will only be one cooler per van so don't bring an ENORMOUS about of food, but enough that you'll be fueled for 30 hours. I think that's it. Any more questions??

Go. Team.

Forgot To Mention

2009-06-09T07:39:00.000-07:00

You'll want to bring at least two running shirts, one pair of shorts, some running tights or warm up pants, gloves, a hoodie, and a long sleeve running shirt. You feel much better after a change of clothing in between runs. We are running in a desert so in the middle of the night it gets really chilly. Make sure and bring warm clothes to run in and even warmer clothes to stand around and cheer in.

Also, bring flip flops or sandals or something to wear when you aren't running. Wearing you running shoes for 30 hours is fun and all.... but.....

Important Info

2009-06-08T21:10:00.000-07:00

Brief update, Jill is no longer going to be able to run the race with us. I've found another runner, her name is Beth Harrop and she's super fun. Van #1 you're going to love her. I'll add her to the blog soon so she can introduce herself.

If you weren't at the meeting go HERE and print off a Race Day Checklist. This is where we're getting the majority of the topics from.

Aside from your personal items these are the assignments we have come up with so far:

Two headlamps -Lori & Sharlynn
Two reflective Vests - Robyn & Trina
Race Bibles (2) - Trina will print them off
Cooler - Kristin & Robyn
Music - Lori & Amanda
First Aid Kits - Amanda
Money ($10-$20) - Everyone
Medical Information - Everyone needs to email me any special needs. If you are diabetic we need to know, if you're allergic to bees, etc. a) what the allergy/special need b) what to do or what to tell EMT if anything were to happen.
2 way radios per van - still need
Cameras! - any takers?

Food List Per Van (please add if you think I'm forgetting something)

2 cases of water
gatorate/GU
cheese
bread
deli meat
vegetables
fruit
granola bars
Ice
peanut butter
jam
yogurt
munchies
baby wipes

Van update

We still need a Van for Van #1. A mini-van will be okay, just a little smushy. If anyone knows someone with an expedition, suburban, navigator, etc will you ask them if we can borrow it for two days? :)

Volunteer Update

Manda will let us know if those are covered or not.

Sponsorship

No one has lucked out. Any updates on that from anyone else? Even if we can get $100 that will help us cover the cost of gas.

What do I need to be doing NOW?

Make sure you get at least one multiple run day in before the race. Which means you need to run 2-3 times in a 24 hour period to make sure your body doesn't revolt when the race comes. Make sure you are getting very hydrated. The day before the race you're going to want to drink at least 2 liters of water. Trust me.

Also, you need to go to THIS LIST and make sure you have everything for the race. If you have ANY questions please leave them in the comments. We chatted a lot about race logisitics and other issues. What questions do those who weren't at the meeting have. Any concerns? Next week I'll be getting the team captain minutes. I'll post them here. They will go through the race in excrutiating detail and help you understand the race even more. Okay... I'm getting excited... go team! 1...2...3.. Break!

Things Have Been Crazy

2009-06-06T20:59:00.001-07:00

I have the minutes from last Saturday's meeting. Which are VERY important for everyone to read. I'll get them posted hopefully by tomorrow night. The post will cover things like:

Basics of the race
What to bring
Start Times
Food Assignments
Misc Assignments
Clothing suggestions
Gas Money distribution
Medical Information Needed.

Life here has been insane this week so I apologize for delaying the post. If you have specific questions you want answered and weren't at the meeting please leave them in the comment section. I will address them in that post.

One important piece of business. We really really REALLY need to know if any of you are dropping out. There are some of you that we haven't heard anything from since you paid your registration fee. The same 4-6 of us have been at each meeting/run since January. This is a team relay and if we don't have all 12 runners we can't compete. I need to hear from everyone, yes everyone, with a definite confirmation. If not we need to get sub runners in place. This is a time intensive race and not something that we could find a replacement for the night before. Please leave a comment if you're planning on running. If you don't know how to leave a comment email me or someone on the team and have them leave a comment.

Thanks!

Knee Trouble.

2009-06-02T15:55:00.000-07:00

Hey Everyone,
I need some advise. I am so worried. I did a six miler this morning and my knees are killing me this afternoon. I can barely walk down the stairs. I have had problems with my Meniscus before but this is weird. It feels like someone hit me with a baseball bat on the outside of my both of my knees. I'm not sure what it is, but it hurts. I'm so worried about our race. So any ideas on what it might be and how I can prevent it? I already try to only run on grass and blacktop, I ice after every run, and I take an anti-inflamatory. Please let me know if you have any other ideas for me.
Thanks
Diana C

Training Runs

2009-05-24T14:16:00.000-07:00

A great question was brought up in the comments on the last post, and since Lori is on an internet fast, she asked me to address it. The question was regarding training for Ragnar and if in your training you should do more than one run in a 24 hour period to train.
The answer is YES.
In your training for the Ragnar, at least 2 separate times you should run twice in a 24 hour time period to help your body get ready for running your respective legs. So a run in the morning and a run in the afternoon/evening that same day is definitely recommended. Tally ho! It's going to be great!

Vote Vote Vote

2009-05-18T20:00:00.000-07:00

check out the new poll.

leave comments on this post if you click "can't come" or "want to reschedule" with other options and times that would work better for you.

Upcoming run/meeting

2009-05-17T15:58:00.000-07:00

Hey all, does the 30th work for everyone? We need to get together not only for a fun run but also for a meeting to talk about the following things:

sponsorship
volunteers (their shift would be Friday June 19th 4-8:30pm in Huntsville, we need two more)
transportation (we need two suburbans or expeditions for the race)
food assignments
clothing (do we want matching shirts or visors? does any one have hookups?)
how the race works/logistics
leg changes
other concerns/questions

How does 7:30am work on the 30th? We'll go for a nice 6 miler and then have a meeting promptly following at 9am. For those who can't make the run hopefully can make it to the meeting. Kristin would it be okay to meet at your house again? Do any of you have questions right now that you'd like to me find answers for? Anything thing you think we need to cover at the meeting that we haven't yet?

Oh, and ps, I'm going on this random internet fast for the next 3 weeks (May 20-June 10). While I'm offline I'm passing my "captain" torch to Amanda in case anything of importance comes up. I don't think any major things take place for Ragnar between now and then but if so, don't worry they will be covered. If you need to get ahold of me please don't email me. Call me or text me. If you don't have my phone number leave your email address and I'll email you my number. Thanks!

Finishing up Registration

2009-05-02T16:17:00.000-07:00

You should be getting an email soon from Ragnar in which you'll have to accept a waiver. You HAVE to accept in order to be able to compete in the race. So please do it. :)

Also, I don't have the registration info for the following:

Liz

Diana C

Trina

If you DID send it to me somehow it got deleted because all of my super magical searching in gmail results nothing. So sorry if you have to retype it. I'll need the following information:

Name

Address

Phone Number

10k pace

Shirt size

Birthday

Also, Heidi Nelson, runner #6 informed me today that she's not going to be able to race. Amanda is already working on her replacement, we'll let you know who our new team member is. We're sad to lose Heidi but hope she can join us next year (yah you read that right..,... you'll want to do it again, I promise..)

Thanks!

Changes to the Course

2009-05-01T12:34:00.001-07:00

I emailed you all. But in case you check this before the email, they have made significant changes to the race course. It effects legs 16-31, which means BOTH vans. Check out the new race bible, if adjustments need to take place we can adjust. Take a deep breath and try not to freak out.

Personally, I'm WAY pumped that my second leg went from a 6 mile "moderate" to a newly improved 7.7 mile "very hard" climb up canyon. Who wouldn't be? hee hee.

Our Team is Complete!

2009-04-11T11:19:00.000-07:00

Welcome to all the new runners in Van #1. If you get a chance post a little diddy about yourself with a picture; we'd love to get to know you. (I sent an "author request" to your email acct, accept it and then you can write on this blog). If you haven't paid me I need the money ASAP... please. You can mail it to me, wire it to me or spray me with cash.. whatever.. I need your payments please. Heidi, just let us know in the next few weeks how you feel about running the race. We're cool either way. Of course we'd love to have you, but we totally 100% understand being Mom's too. The race will be here next year, so just let us know!

It looks like Saturday May 30th is the best day for everyone for a little run. Put it on your calendars and we'll go from there. I also want to set aside a day the week of the race to meet one evening go over the race logisitics and maybe even pack our vans. Any thoughts/feelings/objections to that?

Oh... so I've been lax in actually registering everyone on the team. I know I know. So in light of that I need you all to email me at lori (dot) aston (at) gmail (dot) com with the following info:

Name

Address

Phone

Birthdate

Shirt size

I know some of you already did this, which I really appreciate, but if you could resend it it would help me out a ton. Thanks everyone!!

Saturday's Run & Some Random Business

2009-04-01T18:35:00.004-07:00

Hey Everyone! We had a great coooold run on Saturday. The cinnamon rolls were fabulous and the company awesome. We missed everyone that couldn't be there (which was about 80% of the team..haha). The 4 of us had a spectactular time, we'd love to do it again. We're thinking mid-May. Will that work for everyone? I'm going to throw up some dates on the sidebar. Please vote.

I just got an email from Ragnar having them request our start time. I need everyone to please leave a comment leaving me your 10k pace. Once all the times are added together then I'll know what our average pace is, they will base our start time on that projected pace. I need to put in our time request by next week. Please submit your time by Saturday, if possible. If you don't I'll guess, but I'd much rather have it be accurate.

Also, how are we doing on sponsors? Volunteers? Any leads? How is everyone's training going? Personally, I need to start running hills a LOT more. Yes yes I do.

Parking request for tomorrow

2009-03-27T17:54:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! We have a TON of stuff ready to go to our ward's DI drive tomorrow morning and it is all in our garage. So, I am wondering if you would mind parking on Mt. Ogden Dr. and just walking up the driveway to my house. That way the Elders can get into our driveway and take the stuff out of our garage.
Thanks! See you in the morning!
Kristin

I have Issues

2009-03-18T14:49:00.000-07:00

My running is sucking, royally. When I do run I give-in to the treadmill. At times the thought of getting pregnant to have a real excuse when I suck during the race (other than I just plain suck) has crossed my mind. I need help. I really want to do this, I won't back out. I'd rather walk the whole thing than quit. Any suggestions?

Sincerely,

The weakling

P.S. I'm really not going to have a baby just for an excuse. It was a desperate thought. And I know pregnancy and babies are serious things, not to be joked with. Please don't be offended.

New Route for March 28th

2009-03-06T15:31:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone,
Since Trina has a form of acute tendinitis (the tendon running along the outside of her foot is fraying), the doctor told her she cannot run on trails. So . . . here is another route suggestion for our 6 mile get to know you run on March 28th. It basically goes from my house to 20th street, running along Polk and Fillmore. It is a pretty good mix of hills and flat. It ends on a lovely hill called Baker Dr. :-) We love that whenever we run north from my house we get to end on that particular hill. Here is a link to a USATF map of the route. (I hope it works; I have never actually saved routes on USATF.)
6 Mile Get to Know You Run
Does this sound OK to everyone?
Thanks! It will be a fun time for everyone
Kristin

Welcome Jill Shepherd!

2009-03-02T12:03:00.000-08:00

I am excited to announce one of our new members! Some of you may know Jill (previously Stevens), or at least her face. She was Miss Utah 2007, and now she's that gorgeous face on the Ivory Homes ads. If some of you are thinking "eww wimpy pageant girl?" ....just wait til you see how she kicks all of our butts :) I know her from when I started teaching SPIN 10 years ago. She was the only teenager I knew that would wake up at 5:00 a.m. to come to my classes before school! She'll be a FUN addition to the team! I've only gotten verbal commitments from both Jill AND Liz, but they're not the type to back out. So I'll nag them about getting official, by paying registration and posting a picture on this blog. :)

Runner Position Available

2009-02-13T20:57:00.000-08:00

Julia B has decided not to run in Van 2. Sharlynn, you can tell those ladies that the slot count is now up to three. Unless anyone else has a friend/family member that wants to? Speak up or forever hold your peace. hahaha.

Go Rockstars!!!

2009-02-09T17:54:00.000-08:00

Hi Wasatch Back Friends. I hate that I'm missing all the training fun. I wish I could join all of you. I started the training schedule provided on the ragnar relay website and I feel pretty good so far. I was excited to see the legs that I have been assigned. I really can't wait! Training so far has been great, I made the goal to run in the early am and not take my huge jogging stroller out with me. I have been a little concerned about safety. It's not like I live in the ghetto, but I am surprised how many shifty looking characters seem to be out and about at 6:30 in the morning. So... any ideas on how to feel safer? I am trying to recruit some friends to run with me, but so far no one wants to get up that early, so it's just me. It will be nice once the weather is warmer and I can run with my kids. The stroller is not my favorite thing to push, but I love the strength it builds in my arms. Anyway, I'm rambling now, so I just wanted to let you all know that even though I can't be at the meetings or any of the runs you do between now and June, I am there in spirit!

Welcome Liz!

2009-02-09T12:25:00.001-08:00

My new sister-in-law Liz just joined our team. I'll have her post something so we can all get to know her.

First Meeting Wrap-Up

2009-01-28T08:58:00.001-08:00

Thanks to everyone that came last night. It was good for most everyone to meet. Diana, we missed you! Hope everything is okay!

We chatted about the following things:

Race Basics - I went over the general idea of how the relay works. Diana, Di, et al, if you have questions just post them in the comment section and I'll address them.

Volunteers - our team is required to provide 3 volunteers or pay $120. Amanda and Lori are working on securing volunteers. They'll let everyone know if they aren't able to find them. The volunteers need to be 16 and older.

Vans/Suburbans - Trina is going to talk to her family member that has hook-ups with a car dealership to see if we can borrow two suburbans for the race. She'll let us know.

Headlamps - Amanda and Sharlynn are providing headlamps.

Reflective Vests - does anyone have a reflective vest? We need two.

Sponsorship - If we each bring $50-$100 sponsorship to the table we will have our registration fee covered (registration total was $980). Talk to local businesses, family members, co-workers, whoever might benefit from having advertisement on a Van from Logan to Park City (Diana E, Julia might have some really good hook-ups for sponsorship).

Payment - If you haven't sent me your $85 yet please do. Hopefully you'll all get it back, but my credit card would appreciate being paid off. :)

Legs - Di I never got an email from you and Diana you weren't here at the meeting so we went ahead and assigned Vans. Diana C, we figured since I was the only person you knew you'd probably want to be in my van. We tried to pair people with people they knew and what they felt comfortable with. Like Heidi's leg needed to be #7 since she'll have just had a baby and it's the most post-baby friendly leg. Anyway... here are the van's.

Van 1

Diana E

Julia B (??)

Katy B (??)

Sharlynn

Sharlynn's friend

(legs were not assigned because most of you weren't at the meeting... look over the legs and post your top 3 choices from van 1)

Van 2

Heidi - runner 7

Diana Caffee - runner 8

Kristen - runner 9

Lori - runner 10

Trina - runner 11

Amanda - runner 12

Di, if you don't feel comfortable with legs 8, 20, and 32 let us know and I'm sure one of us would be willing to switch. The only one for sure that can't is Heidi's as runner 7.

Okay. I think that's it. Tally, ho friends!

Sharlynn

2009-01-28T08:03:00.000-08:00

There we go. (My family)

Sharlynn Jones

2009-01-28T07:18:00.000-08:00

Hi I'm Sharlynn. I'm a cyclist, not a runner. Well, I used to be a runner until 8 years ago, when I discovered how much FASTER you can go with wheels! So now I only run for cross-training or to train for my recent interest in triathlons. I AM excited for this race, though. I've taught and trained at Gold's Gym for over 10 years, so I know a lot of athletes, and have heard much talk about the Great Wasatch Back Relay. (I have one friend who did the entire thing by himself!!) So for me, it was like the ONE marathon I ran: just wanted to put it on on my "did it" list, so I could relate with my clientele. Now I'll be able to do that with Ragnar and make some friends in the process. Cool.
I'm a stay-home mom for my 2 little girls (4 and 2 yrs). When I'm confined to the house, I like to cook, do gardening, photography and scrapbooking. I love all "extreme sports" (climb, bike, swim, hike, ski, paddle.......) just don't hand me a ball!
I have a proposal for the team: I'm also a nutritionist, and write personalized plans (normally $40). If at least 8 of you on the team wanted to get a plan, and could all meet at the same time, I'd do it for $10 each. (And yes, Kristin, I'd let you set some calories aside for candy) No offense at all if you guys don't want to do it-- just a thought.
How do I add a picture to this thing?!..........

I'm really sick of this dang inversion

2009-01-21T23:57:00.000-08:00

I have a love/hate relationship with indoor cardio...

and it's rapidly approaching disdain and resentment.

Anyone else ready to kill the inversion?

I hear all we need is a really big bucket of water....

Just noticed

2009-01-14T12:56:00.000-08:00

Totally spelled "Wasatch" wrong in the blog title. So... the blog will be changing places. hee hee. It will now be runwasatchback.blogspot.com instead of it's current, really cool title Run Wastach Back. cool, wonder where Wastach is...

WRC 10k?

2009-01-12T18:23:00.000-08:00

Amanda brought up an idea. What if we all ran the WRC 10k together.

February 21st

8:00am at WSU (Dee Events Center)

$30

For those running the half or full Ogden marathon it's worth just signing up for the entire WRC Series ($100 for 5 races).

What do you guys think?

Maybe, Maybe Not?

2009-01-09T14:59:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone, I'm Heidi Nelson. I'm really excited/nervous for this race! Ever since reading Lori's blog post about the race last year I have thought, that is a race that I want to do someday and then when Lori started putting together a team and invited me I jumped at the chance. However, life took one of it's little detours and I surprisingly found out I was pregnant last July. I am due March 25th with our 3rd little boy. I have twin boys that just turned 2 right before Christmas. So I'm really hoping that everything goes well and I will be able to run by then!
I ran my first race when I was 10, my dad had really gotten in to running that year and had just ran the St. George Marathon so I ran a 5K with him, my brother and a few friends. My running has been very sporadic through the years, but last winter I really started doing it consistently again and like many of you I have a love/hate relationship with it. I love it when I'm done and how good I feel, but I hate getting up and getting out there (especially when Lori made a running plan for me last summer and introduced me to speed training!). I had only run 5K's before, but last July I ran my first 10K and loved it! Since being pregnant I have been forbidden to run by my doctor (because of complications with my last pregnancy), so I'm really out of shape now and miss it terribly! Besides being a mom I am a nurse in the Pediatric ICU at Primary Children's where I usually work 1-2 night shifts a week, even though I'm often sleep deprived I love my job. I also love playing with my kids, sewing, crocheting, reading, and playing outside. I can't wait to meet all of you and I'm really excited/hoping to run this race.

Kristin and Trina

2009-01-09T11:49:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone!
We decided that since we run together (and do most everything else together) we would write our introduction together. We have been friends for 10 years and running together for about 6. Last May we completed our first half marathon (Ogden). We are running the Ogden half again this year and are excited to run the Wasatch Back in June. It will be fun to get to know everyone and we look forward to meeting all of you.

Here we are after last year's Ogden Half Marathon--Kristin is in black and Trina is in green. We know we look really cute after running long distances, but we figured we'd give you all a heads up. :-) And then we have a picture on a normal day--not looking quite so "13 mileish."

This is the most current picture I could find of my (Kristin's) family. It was taken with my grandfather around Thanksgiving. My husband, Jeff, and I have four kids--three girls 9, 7, 4 and a boy (20 months). My life is good--and always busy. I taught English and History at So. Davis Jr. High school for a few years--until my first baby was born. Now I spend my time taking care of my kids, going to the store, running errands, cleaning my house, taking pictures, doing church and PTA jobs, watching "Desperate Housewives," "Lost," "24" and "Grey's Anatomy," etc. I also love cooking with Trina--or, as in today's case, watching Trina cook while I blog. Trina is a good cook. :-) This semester I started in the English Master's program at WSU. I now spend lots and lots of time reading and writing. Running is my sanity saver. I started running in high school, but I didn't truly start to love it until 5 or 6 years ago. I love running because I don't feel like I have to compete with anyone but myself. Running has given me a great appreciation for the world around me. My favorite place to run is on the foothill trails in Ogden. It is easy to be distracted form the pain of running when you are surrounded by such beautiful scenery. I have also developed a greater love for the city of Ogden, having run all over--from the foothills to the inner-city to the crowded streets of downtown. And, finally, because I run, I feel free to eat all the candy I want. And I can really eat a lot of candy. I can't wait to meet all of you--and, for those of you whom I already know, I can't wait to get to know you better. The Wasatch Back will be great!!

This is me (Trina) and my family. I have four children ages 9, 7, 4 and 20 months. I keep really busy taking care of them and working part-time. I've worked for Prevent Child Abuse Utah for more than 12 years as a grant writer and conference director. In my spare time, (which does not come along too often) I love to cook, watch all of the shows Kristin records on her DVR, read, run, do pilates and bike. Like others doing the Wasatch Back, running and I have a bit of a love-hate relationship. I love it because it allows me to conquer my fears and face my own greatest challenges, as well as gives me a great stress relieving activity. I hate it because the whole process is usually somewhat painful! :). I am excited and scared to death about the Wasatch Back. I really look forward to getting to know everyone and sharing this fantastic experience.

Okay. Only 4 voted, but the majority rules.

2009-01-08T17:44:00.001-08:00

First Meeting:

Tuesday January 27th, 8pm

Get excited. :)

Diana's comment made me wonder if any of the rest of you have any other questions, even regular running questions. I know some of you are newer to running... so I'm opening it up, just leave a comment with whatever question you have. There are enough seasoned runners on our team that I bet we'll come up with an answer to almost anything.

D, were you meaning your lungs are killing because of the cold air?

Meeting Update.

2009-01-07T09:57:00.000-08:00

Okay. I've narrowed it down to two choices. Tuesday January 27th at 8pm or Tuesday February 3rd at 8pm. Let me know by the end of the week what works best for you (poll on the side).

Look through the Race bible. Check out the race legs. We're going to try and keep the people that know each other in the same van's. Unfortunately we can't all be in the same van and most likely you'll be in a van with some people you don't know. I know people like Trina and Kristin will for sure be in the same van as well as Diana and Ann. Last year I knew ONE person in my van (from random association..) and I still had a good time. It's what you make it so don't get too worried about it!!

Okay, vote on the meeting time and once it's decided I'll email everyone the directions to my place! Oh, and Amanda had a great idea. Would you guys be interested in running the WRC 10k? Then we'll be able to know our projected 10k pace AND get to know each other better. Thoughts?

Last thing, if you haven't paid me please pay me soon. Thanks!

January Meeting

2009-01-01T23:08:00.000-08:00

Thanks to everyone that has posted their introduction. We'd love to hear from the rest of you eventually. If you haven't received an invitation to contribute let me know and I'll email you the invite.

Alright. So far it looks like weeknights after 8pm works best for everyone. If you all are okay with holding the meeting at my house that would work for me at night. Van works evenings so I could put my kids down and then we could meet. Would that work? Here are some possible dates for January/February. I put a poll up on the side where you can let me know what dates work or you can comment.

Things I need you to think about before we meet in January: (Diana C. and Anne just email me this info)

The leg you're willing to run

make a list of your top 3 legs. Click on the race bible (on the sidebar) and it details the legs in serious detail. There are a few of us that are willing to run the major stuff in Van 2 (Ragnar hills) so don't worry about those unless you really want to do it.

Possible businesses or people you can talk to about sponsorship

the more money we get donated to us the more our registration costs go down, gives us extra money for gas/food/etc.

Names for the few slots left.

We still have 4 slots left. Possibly only 3.

How much fun we're going to have.

Yes, it's going to be THAT fun.

I've Always Wanted To Be A Rockstar

2008-12-30T20:27:00.000-08:00

Yessss....finally a dream come true. Well this may be the closest I ever come to really being a rockstar. So get excited for me to sing us through 24 hours of running. Tee hee. All YOUR dreams come true.

I'm Amanda, Lori's running buddy. I started running about 4 years ago, just to run a 5 mile leg of the Ogden marathon. Since then, I've run 2 marathons, a number or half marathons, and whatever other races had cool t-shirts. Although I dislike mornings, I have gained a deep love for running. There is something about it that has gotten into my blood. The Wasatch Back for me started much like most races longer than 6 miles did for me. Lori suggested that we run it, I told her she was insane, we talked about it more, and then I decided that she shouldn't run it without her trusty running partner. Well, that was the plan last year originally. That was until my husband I found out that we were going to be placed with a baby a week or two before the race. After 5 years of waiting for a little one to join our family, I wasn't about to abandon my mothering opportunity for 24 hours only 2 weeks in. So Lori ran it on her own and sent me blackberry play by plays. It sounded just as insane as I thought, but more fun than I anticipated. But what really sold me on the race was Lori's rockin' Ragnar hoodie. Tee hee. So this year I'm in for sure. Other than running, my hobbies include Jared (my hubby of 6+ years), my adorable little boy Max who is 6 months old, working as a nurse at the health department, playing soccer, photography, and starting numerous projects I rarely finish. I am very excited to be running this race this year. It seems like just the perfect crazy thing to do before my running pal leaves me for PA school. Get excited. It's going to be epic.

I live kinda far for a meeting Lori!

2008-12-26T19:17:00.000-08:00

Hello Everyone. My name is Diana Caffee and I too am very excited to run the Wasatch Back. Rumor has it that it runs through my home town and right past my parents house. I grew up in Morgan, Utah and now live with my husband Ben and two little girls Bella and Lucy, in Gaithersburg, Maryland. I love Maryland... now, but it took me a while. I miss "my mountains" and I miss the snow. Maryland is really just cold and icy and never filled with powdery white Christmas's. Still I do love many things about the East Coast. The elevation for one thing! I'm actually really nervous to run a long race in Utah mainly for fear that I won't be able to breathe. Maryland also has a much prettier fall season than Utah... so there! As far as my running skills go... running and I have a love/hate relationship. I am not fast, but I am consistent. I usually stick to 5k's, but I'm looking forward to an upcoming year of strength, and endurance. An interesting thing about my running, In high school I ran cross country and before, during, and at the end of every race I would constantly psych myself out. I allowed my mind to say over and over again, "you'll never win this race, you might not even finish, just walk, everyone has passed you anyway." I have since grown from those experiences, and now all my mind is allowed to say is "don't stop running!" See you in June!

excited!

2008-12-22T14:00:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone. I'm "the Lori" you're all getting emails from. I did this race last year, it was the gnarliest one I've ever done. I wrote about it here if you aren't familiar with what the race entails. I could go on and on.. but... let me introduce myself, since that is the reason for the post.

This is me and my cute family. I like them alot. I'm a Mom. I get to play with my kids all day (except when my oldest is at Kindergarten) and although I have my days where I think a 40 hour job where people give me actual praise (and money!) would be nice, I'm grateful I have the opportunity to be home with the kiddos. I graduated with a degree in History and English so I'm a self-proclaimed geek. My husband, Van, rocks. He's pretty much my favorite person ever. We're enjoying the next 6 months of no school and then he goes back to get his Masters at Physicians Assistant school. We like to watch movies, play Guitar Hero, tickle our kids, and pretty much do anything that gives us an excuse to hang out.

I am completely addicted to running, working out, and eating healthy. My life outside of my family pretty much revolves around that. I don't have a thyroid so I have a really hard time losing weight, so it doesn't appear like I am obsessed with that stuff. It's really bugged me in the past, but I'm getting to a point that I'm just grateful my body, lungs, and heart are healthy and am learning to love my curves. :) I've run 3 marathons and a lot of half marathons. I'm not very fast but I love this sport. Love love love it. I love writing up training plans, so if any of you need them... let me know I'd LOVE to write one up for you. Yup, that's me in a nutshell. I'm REALLY excited to have a new team, to start meeting all of you and have such a fabulous time! Yipee!!!

Nervous

2008-12-22T10:27:00.001-08:00

I was so excited to run this race, I thought it would be a fun challenge that I could conquer. But the closer it gets the more nervous I get. I used to run five miles a day, but I haven't done that for years...so my running is rusty. And the more I think about that first month of hard serious running I wonder what I got into. For me that month is pure Hell. Running isn't fun, your body hurts, and it even hurts to breath. But then one day you go out and it's fantastic. You can run all day it feels like. However getting there...

About me, my name is Diana I married Keith in April of this year. We live in Layton and go to WSU. I double majored in Accounting and Psychology with a Zoology minor. No I am not an over achiever, just indecisive - I'm 25 and still not done. We have a dog named Dallas and like to fly fish together. We teach primary (seven 10 yr. old boys next year, yikes!). I don't like ironing. I work for a Financial Planner, so if you need advice... In all truthfulness I'm really boring and not that exciting at all ;)

Hi Ladies

2008-12-21T20:40:00.000-08:00

Soon I'll have this blog up and running with links to all the information about the race, training plans, etc. For the time being once you're added as an author write us a little "intro" about who you are, where you live, if you're a beginner, total running pro, or wanting to walk the entire distance. ;) Most of us know at least one person on the team, but I doubt any of us know everyone (including me!) So, post pictures, let us get to know you!!!

YAY for the Rockstars.