Once all 6 of us completed our final legs of the the relay, we were free to go eat and/or head to the condos where we were going to stay before going to Seaside to wait for Kelsey, our 12th and final runner.
We were all tired, happy, somewhat stinky and hungry. Not sure about the order...!
We went to Fort George Brewery in Astoria. They have several kinds of beers there and it was hard to resist. I am not supposed to drink beer, makes me really sick but I almost cheated...I mean I had just ran Hood to Coast! I needed to celebrate but I decided not to because I did not want to miss the Finish Line events! It was nice to relax a bit. Mason had a few words for us and Mason; if you are reading this...Thank you for what you said about me. It meant a lot to me. Really.
We ended up not having time to shower before going to the beach where the finish line was.
We just had time to get our bags in a room and put on our team jacket. Again NUUN had spoiled us and we were staying right on the beach just a short walk from the Finish line.
We wanted to be there in time to see Kelsey arrive!
To get to Seaside and see everyone on the beach was a great feeling. I remember seeing it in the movie and now I was THERE! Another pinch me moment for sure.
We found a good spot by the finish line to wait for Kelsey. We had an idea around what time she should arrived. That time went by and then another 15 min and another...and we started to wonder what happened...(I was getting cold and wishing I had shower). We kept looking for pink sparkles and nothing....
This is me with Harmony waiting for Kelsey to make that turn...
After a while we finally got word that a bunch of runners had made a wrong turn and that is why they were so late. Poor Kelsey..I was worried about how she was feeling..knowing we were all waiting and not knowing if we knew that she ended up adding many miles to that last leg. I knew she had to be so tired and also probably very emotional. And she was.
Finally we saw her!
She is one tough young gal.
She was smiling and crying all at once. I can only image the emotions she was feeling.
It was time to actually cross the finish line as a team! We ran through it all 12 of us! And we got this:
We also took the official Team Night picture. I bought that one also (with my ind. one you can see on the leg 1 post).
Back Row: Emily, Sarah, me, Robyn, Megan, Katie and Mason. Front Row: Harmony, Vanessa, Susan, Kelsey, Shanna and Lauren.
We finished 4th in the Open Women div. and 372 out of 1038 teams overall.
We had the chance to be invited to the NIKE tent for the festivities on the beach.
Back Row: Susan, Lauren, Robyn, Vanessa and me all from my van!
Front Row: Laura, Molly, Sarah, Laura and Kelly.
By then I was so cold that I could not feel any of my toes anymore. I also had to get my stuff ready because I was in the first van to leave for Seattle in the morning. Wake up call was 3:15 am! I wanted to stay longer but I really needed to take a shower and warm up.
I did not want to leave without saying goodbye to my teammates and also I needed to find Mason to thank him one last time. He managed to make me cry. AGAIN. (good tears of course) . Thank you for believing in ME.
I was sad to leave everyone. I was leaving with new friends and full of memories from this adventure. I felt proud to be a Hood to Coast Finisher. I felt so grateful to everyone who made this possible.
I do have a lot of people to thank for this extraordinary experience.
First of course is NUUN; Mason, Caitlin, Kim, Cassey and everyone else at NUUN who worked hard to make this possible. We could not have been treated better..they thought of EVERYTHING and MORE. Thank you for this great opportunity.
My job is to raise my kids. I had never left them before. It would not have been possible for me to go to HTC without the TOTAL support of my husband Bill. He has a very demanding job and he took 3 days off to take care of our kids while I was gone. He was very supportive of me being on the NUUN team. I am so lucky that he gets how important running is to me and what it meant to run HTC.
Also need to thank the members of Team Afternuun Delight Team NIGHT Van 1, THE best team ever no question. Susan, Vanessa, Lauren, Shanna, Robyn and Mason, I am so lucky to have shared this experience with you. You were all so kind and supporting and I learned from all of you. I thank you all with all my heart.
I need to thank all the sponsors. I have mentioned several already in previous posts.
I think I have not mentioned these 2 yet: GoSportID and Endorphin Warrior.
On my way back I had a 2.5 hours layover in Phoenix and my Arizona friend came to see me at the airport...how great is that? Thank you EMZ for coming to see me and for all yout txt during the relay!!!! I was so happy to see her! (She is making me look short with ther 14" heels)
When I arrived home, Bill and the kids were at the airport to pick me up and as I was coming down the escalator I could see the boys were holding this sign:
Isn't that the best? I think so. Made me cry...of course.
Finally the day after I came back home...these were delivered
From NUUN.
To let me know how sorry they were about what happened during my 2nd leg. (story of that HERE). Made my Day.
In case you missed it.....I am so very grateful that I got to be a part of this.
I really am.
I cannot help but wish I get to do it again...(Leg 13 and your demons: I'd love to come back for you)
Thank you to all of you who have read my HTC journey and commented and have supported me.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Coming up.....
A Giveaway (the price is in one of the pics from this post)
I ran a race since I came back and it was the worst race I have ever done so far...so recap of that coming your way....
I met some pretty great people since I got back also.....
and I have been running also...
18 comments:
What a wonderful post of celebration and gratitude! I am so very glad you got to be a Nuun Hood to Coast runner!
I loved this post! It sounds like such a great experience (even with leg 2!).
Is a Ragnar SoCal in your future?!
Very emotional post. I could feel all of them. Congratulations on being a HTC finisher and your team did an excellent job! I hope to be able to do this one day! It is great to have such a supportive husband behind you. It really does make a difference.
I am reading. And you are more than welcome. The van would not have been the same without you. As I said, every one of you was a warrior and impressed me immensely. I cherished every moment. Thank you for the many kind words. We were lucky to have you there.
aww I loved this post to! I read them and even had to go back again to see what I missed about leg 2 (ugh!) but I'm glad you enjoyed your first time away from your kiddos!
I really enjoyed reading your H2C recap. Despite all that happened, I hope you enjoyed Oregon and fingers crossed you come back next year. Maybe our paths will cross next year! :)
what fun!!! Minus the lost runners moment and yet that's the kind of thing that makes memories last forever :)
I can tell how much the race meant to you, I'm glad that you could have that experience.
And that sand sculpture is awesome!
That sign that your kids and husband made is awesome.
I'm so glad you had a great experience.
It was so great to meet you! You were amazing. Your husband is also amazing. Tell him THANK YOU from me for letting you come play with us!
What an amazing experience for you! I loved reading all of your recaps. Congratulations!
You are simply amazing and extraordinary. Congrats on such a great race! I'm so happy to have met you!!! You are so brave!
Thank you for the memories!
Great post. :)
Congratulations. I wish I had a chance to comment on each of your posts - my apologies. But, I'm so happy for you and am so glad you are able to celebrate the experience in spite of the challenges. And, I'm so glad you are safe and happy and were able to fulfill this dream of yours.
CongratulationS!!!!
I've loved everything you've had to say about the whole experience - before, during, and now after. Your gratitude and enthusiasm is contagious and a great reminder to all of us to truly enjoy the opportunities we've been given, big or small. I'm so glad you had such a terrific time, and am excited for our next meeting. xo from a few miles away :)
Love this post, it gives me goose bumps!!! So happy you got the chance to do HTC!!
What a memorable finish! You got to be part of it all- and I can imagine the feeling of being on a team of ladies like this.
What I am impressed most with is your attitude of gratitude. I need to go back over your older posts now so I can catch up!
Such a wonderful and inspiring story! I love the fact Nuun sent you those flowers and your boys made the sign. It is just so great to see us "moms" being supported! Congrats on finishing this relay and coming out strong!!!
I am so late in commenting, but I just wanted to say that I love this post. Love your passion, love how strong you were during the relay, and most of all - love that I got to be in a van with you for over 24 hours. We really did have the best van ever! I am so lucky to have met you and really hope that our paths cross again someday!
Post a Comment