Wasatch Back 2010 – The Whole (LONG) Story, Part I

Last Fall I got completely fed up with myself. I was just done with the same old bad habits and weaknesses that I had been far too hospitable to for far too long. I knew what I had to do but I had proven to myself so many times that I couldn’t do it. I knew I needed help and guidance so I went to the Temple. While I was there I had one of those thoughts pop into my head. Ragnar. I needed to do the Wasatch Back. Ragnar is a company my cousin, Tanner, and his friend started. The Wasatch Back is the first of now many of their relay races. This particular one goes from Logan to Park City, 188 miles. A team of 12 runners each run 3 legs over the course of about a day, a night and the next day.

A few years prior to last Fall, we happened to be vacationing in the area of the race during the race and saw many of that year’s runners. The thing that struck me then was how varied the runners were. I expected all the participants to be the typical marathon runner -- a lean, mean running machine. I was shocked to see all shapes and sizes and a lot of them were even walking. Had I not seen that there’s no way I would have let that little thought I got in the Temple stick around and get comfortable inside my head.

It did get comfy and it did stick around. I didn’t talk about it at first to anyone, but then I knew I had to start setting things in motion. I told Brennan and he laughed. Not in a mean way, but in a way that I honestly think he thought I was joking. That motivated me a LOT. Making it social would be a big help so I called my aunt Jan, who lives nearby and who has a baby just a few months older than Joshy. I knew she would be a dependable and fun companion and when I told her my scheme she was ready and willing to sign on. We wanted to take it very gradually so we started walking together just three times a week. I think we started in November. Joshua was almost 5 months old and not even close to sleeping through the night. 6:30 came really early and I never could have done it if I didn’t know Jan was there waiting for me. Even though I was exhausted, I looked forward to our chats as we walked and started to feel a little more in shape.

December came and so did Winter. It was freezing. I remember several mornings literally having our hair and eyelashes frozen stiff. Christmas was a whirlwind and we got a little off track. We tried to get it back together in January but it seemed like one of us or one of our kids was always sick. We struggled along usually only going once or twice a week. Both our babies had one ear infection after another, both eventually got tubes. Neither of us was sleeping much but we still tried to go walking whenever we possibly could. We were supposed to start running, but we were so sporadic we never felt quite ready. It was rough and my goal was seeming more and more impossible.

After Jan had agreed to be my partner we had talked to my other aunt, Kristen (Tanner’s Mom), who has run the race every year. She was so encouraging as I talked to her about the possibility of being on a family team she put together. Her daughters and Tanner’s wife, Kristin, and another cousin had done it last year and there were several other cousins interested. The team came together and two of those cousins, Mandolin and Tiff, came to my rescue. They started joining Jan and me on Saturday mornings and helped us start running. Jan realized she would be selling her house right around the time of the race so she gave up her spot on the team but still joined us when she could. I started running when I could by myself and then on Saturdays with Mandolin and/or Tiff. Sometimes I ran with my cousin Megan who was also kind of a novice runner. I loved getting to know all of them better.

I think it was in February when I ran my first mile straight through. I was thrilled. That soon wore off when I couldn’t seem to run much past a mile for what seemed like forever. I tried to get out consistently, but Joshua was still battling ear infections and finally got tubes the end of March. Finally one day in April, I managed 2 whole miles without walking once. I started sobbing as I finished that run. Then I started laughing at myself for sobbing and then I finally pulled it together. I walked to my car where there was a note from Kristen and Tiff who had driven by and seen me running. They wrote some sweet and encouraging words on an envelope they had in their car and put it on my windshield. I found it, read it, and sobbed some more.

Things got really busy at home, Brennan was swamped at work and with the school year winding down there seemed to be 14,000 places to be all the time and a baby who wanted nothing to do with consistent naps. I was getting buried. I finally battled it out with Joshua and got him on some semblance of a schedule, and eventually got him to sleep all through the night. I quit trying to get up in the sixes to run and went at 7 about 3 times a week. It seems like there was always an obstacle and yet with a little determination and a lot of heavenly help, I was able to keep training and toward the end of May got up to 3 miles. The next two weeks I pushed up to 4. My longest leg in the relay was 5.2 . I really wanted to be up to 5 before the race, but the most I’d run was 4. We had the last week of school with all it’s insanity and then the first week of Summer with all it’s insanity and then Nate’s birthday party and on top of that some crazy weather. I was out of time and had had a few really frustrating runs on Monday and Wednesday. Thursday was my recovery day and Friday morning was the big day. Brennan gave me a blessing Thursday night which I will always be so grateful for. It helped me stay calm and put aside my worries about leaving the kids, especially Squashy. It reminded me that this had been blessed from the very beginning, that every obstacle had been overcome and already I had accomplished way more than I ever thought possible.