Epicurious Runner

Nuun Hood to Coast Recap Part 1

*Disclaimer: I thought I was going to be able to recap this whole trip in 2 posts, but I just have too much to say! I’m not going to change the way I write or the way I want to post these recaps because people get annoyed by multiple recaps. These posts are for me too, so this is just the way it’s going to be.

The van 1′s were on schedule to leave at 8am Friday morning and luckily all of my roommates were also in Van 1! So we all got up around 7am and finished packing up our stuff and headed downstairs to the lobby to meet the rest of our teammates.

Roomies: Lauren, Me, Vanessa, Jocelyn

Also, notice our pretty sweet Nuun HTC jackets?! They are Nike jackets that were provided to us by Nuun and I LOVE them! I wore mine all weekend and I may still be wearing it all this week took too (and without washing it). Don’t judge.

We piled into our respective vans and set off for Mt. Hood, but not without stopping like 6 times for bathroom/food breaks. I was very glad I wasn’t the only one who had to pee every 3o minutes. TMI?

Once we arrived at Mt. Hood, it finally hit me that the RACE was actually here. We were about to race the ‘Mother of all relays’!

Seeing the top of the mountain was breathtaking! It was beautiful and I felt like we were so close to the top. Like, I could literally just go run to the top and touch it. Also, crazy that it had huge patches of snow.  It was definitely the perfect picture opportunity.

We hit up the “Honey Buckets” (best name ever), got ourselves tatted up, took group pictures, including this amazing one of all the van 1′s; Team Morning, Noon, and Night ready to go!

Probably my favorite picture of the trip!

Team Night started at 2:15 and we all cheered as Caroline took off on their first leg. Team Morning (my team) was next at 2:30 and we screamed our lungs out as Tricia set off representing our team! Team Noon was next at 2:45, but before they started, we jumped in our vans so we could make it to the first exchange in time.

Corey was jumping out of her skin because of how excited she was for her first leg! She could not wait for Tricia to get back, since she was up next. We sent her off with a giant smile on her face! Her enthusiasm definitely rubbed off on me and I was a mix of nerves and excitement while I was waiting for my first leg (Leg #3) to begin.

I almost forgot to put my bib on! Jay ran back to the van to grab it for me! I put it on and anxiously stood on the sideline waiting for Corey to come in. I had no idea what to expect! I just wanted to be running and in some sort of groove, so I could put these nerves to the side and be on my way.

Ready to run!

I loved the Team Sparkle Skirts! I’m not ashamed to admit it, but of course not everyone has to like them, but they totally helped us spot our runners coming in for the exchange and they of course unified us as a team. We also got some really great socks from Thorlo and they were super comfy and were way better than the socks I brought and my awesomely bright shirt is from Target that I bought like 2 days before flying out to Seattle.

I’m literally cheering as I took off on my first run. Such a fun picture!

Not sure who took this picture, but I stole it from Corey‘s blog, so thanks Corey

My path through the exchange was very narrow and there were lots of people walking in it, which was weird and made me feel like I was going the wrong way. I had to kind of yell at one lady because she wasn’t paying attention and was walking right towards me as I was flying down the mountain. Once I got out of the exchange area, I felt much more relaxed.

I was literally flying! It was all downhill, but an easy downhill, so it didn’t destroy my legs. Maybe about a mile into the run, Laura passed me and we both gave each other a shout of encouragement. I was hoping to run this leg in under 8 min/miles and after the first mile, I knew it was more than possible!

If you read my blog, you know I don’t run like this! Here are my amazing (for me) splits:

Mile 1: 7:28

Mile 2: 7:29

Mile 3: 7:36

Mile 4: 7:48

Mile .26: 1:56 (7:21 pace)

• Leg #3
• Distance: 4.26 miles
• Time: 32:20
• Avg. Pace: 7:35!
  

Elevation profile from my Garmin

I finished my run feeling like I was about to puke, but I still had a huge smile on my face! That was literally the fastest I’ve ever run, EVER! Yeah, it was all downhill, but that doesn’t mean I wasn’t pushing and fighting to hold that pace till the end.

I handed off to Jess and we were off to the next exchange. Jess handed off to Caitlin, who was the rockstar #5 runner with the  hardest legs overall. Nicole was our last runner in the van, she waited for Caitlin with a brownie and she handed it off as she grabbed the slap bracelet and took off on her first leg.

Brownie exchange

Then we arrived at the first big van exchange. We saw the rest of our team (van 2) and they were pumped to actually start running. We hung there for a while before we decided to head into Portland for some much needed dinner.

Up next: Dinner, and Leg 2!

Pre-Hood To Coast: Team Bonding Activities

I’m not going to drag my recap out, but it’s definitely necessary to have it in 2 parts! So, lets start from the beginning…

First of all, I would just like to thank everyone at Nuun, you were all so amazing and everything exceeded my expectations! I honestly can never thank you enough! I am left with memories of one of the best weekends of my life!

I got on a plane Tuesday night with the other NYC ladies; Jocelyn, Laura, and Susan and we arrived at our hotel around 10pm Seattle time. Eventually, Lauren‘s flight came in and we all crashed in a tiny hotel room where most of us slept horribly. I was too giddy with excitement and was wide awake at 5am!

After being picked up, we started our morning with a (fast for me) 4 mile run. It was beautiful out and it was nice to just explore Seattle a bit by foot. We ended at Pike Place Market where we met up with Caroline and she so graciously bought me one of the best cappuccinos I’ve ever had, so thanks for that Caroline!

Next up was the Mariners baseball game at Safeco Field. I was excited for the game, but ended up paying absolutely no attention to it since I was now surrounded by so many wonderful ladies that were full of excitement and nerves all trying to get to know each other. I had a couple of good beers, including a Pyramid and Elysian. Not everyone had arrived at this point, but it was nice to talk to everyone there and sort of ease my way into the group. I’m not going to lie, it was definitely a bit intimidating, I am constantly fighting back my shyness and awkwardness, but I think I did just fine

We ended the night with food (and beer) over at the Pyramid brew house, which was conveniently located across from our hotel. I ate a delicious garlic-y pizza, but actually skipped out on the beer and drank some water instead. We were in bed by 9pm and I finally had a good nights sleep.

We were down in the lobby and ready to go at 7:45 the next morning. We were off to the Oiselle headquarters!!! I was so excited for this, I have recently become obsessed with their clothes and I was pumped to meet the wonderful women behind the business. Sally welcomed us with open arms, showed us around, and talked to us about the history of the company.

We then went for a group run around Green Lake, while a few others went swimming. It is a beautiful area, so while I got left in the dust, haha, it was still really nice to run along the water and soak in the surrounding area. I’m not a fast runner and I surely didn’t want to destroy my legs before the relay, so I took it nice and easy and was thinking about how nice it would be to live around there.

After about 4+ miles we returned to the Oiselle HQ where they had amazing shirts waiting for us! So sweet and unnecessary, but I was so thankful and also excited to have the opportunity for all of this.
We came back, enjoyed some Jamba Juice smoothies (Thanks Jennifer and Jamba Juice!) before heading up to our rooms to shower. At around 1pm we  showed up at Nuun and we received our ridiculously awesome swag bags! Then we were split up into teams and sent off on a scavenger hunt around Seattle.

I don’t know how we did it, but my team won! Maybe these pictures had a little something to do with it

Our scavenger hunt team: T, Vanessa, Harmony, Nicole, XLMIC, and me!

We each won a bag full of glow necklaces/bracelets, some bubbles, and a roll of toilet paper, ha!

Everyone was exhausted after the scavenger hunt! We shoveled down our pasta dinner and then headed outside to do some van decorating.

Before heading to bed, a few of us decided to go out and grab a beer at Pyramid to help ease us into our last night of good sleep before the big day! And of course, Gatsby was there

Thoughts: I loved having these 2 days of group activities! It really allowed us to get to know everyone and gave us a chance to mingle with people that weren’t going to be in our van. I felt like I got to talk to everyone at least a little bit! It really was a good team atmosphere and I never felt like I didn’t belong because everyone was so friendly and open to meeting everyone else. And I mean it when I say EVERYONE. It was a fantastic group of women that I was incredibly lucky to be a part of!

Part 2: The Relay coming up next!

Hood To Coast: Runner #3!

Nuun announced our legs for Hood To Coast on Tuesday and I am so happy to report that I got my first choice! I am runner #3 in Van 1 and I will be running Legs 3, 15, and 27.

It feels so real now! It’s getting closer and closer and I am unbelievably excited!!!

Here is a more detailed look at the legs I have to run.

Leg #3

3.93 Miles

Ranked as Easy

Leg #15

7.25 Miles

Ranked as Hard

Leg #27

5.79 Miles

Ranked as Moderate

Nuun’s Hood To Coast Relay Team Application

Today is the deadline to enter the Nuun’s Hood To Coast relay team.

I have no idea what my chances are, but I like to stay positive and think that I will make it! I am so glad I entered! I learned about last year’s relay through a few different blogs I read and I have been keeping my eye out, so I wouldn’t miss it this year.

I was struggling for ideas at first, but eventually came up with this with the assistance of my husband. If you haven’t seen Wet Hot American Summer, go watch it NOW! Seriously. It’s nothing short of hilarious.

I knew I would regret not applying to this. It’s an amazing opportunity and looks like a crazy amount of fun. I’ve also been wanting to run a relay for the last 2 years and just the fact that Hood To Coast could be my first one, is amazing!

Wish me luck!