I just can't keep my mouth shut anymore! :)

Work has been busy, which has in turn been keeping me away from blogging. Do any of you ever feel so time-crunched that you can’t get to the things that you really want to? Especially blogging? It makes me sad. I miss reading blogs and most definitely miss writing on my blog. But, I can’t do much complaining because work has been fantastic. It’s busy, and hectic, and a bit stressful at times, but it’s definitely been cool to see how these races are put together.

I won’t leave you hanging any longer. If I happen to not get the job permanently, I’ll still feel okay about the company, and still run in their races, and such. And just in case that happens, my ego may be slightly damaged, but I know you’ll still support me in whatever happens. Plus, it’s just so awesome and I can’t help myself...I HAVE to tell you where I work!

This company is obviously based out of Utah, and if any of you have even remotely heard of this company or heard me talking about them in previous posts, you’ve probably already put 2 and 2 together and made a pretty good guess. I mean, I literally talk about them all time and rave about how much I love their races. Still haven’t guessed yet? ...Jeopardy music playing in background... If I were Alex Trebek I’d make you answer in the form of a question. Okay, okay! I’ll tell you. It starts with an “R” and rhymes with Bagnar. (sometimes I amaze myself with my stupidity...um, I mean cleverness)

That’s right, folks! I now work the Ragnar Relay Series!!! squealing with joy right now…literally In case you’ve never heard of them, they’re the company that hosts the Wasatch Back relay, the one I’m currently training for. They also did the Florida Ragnar Relay which I ran, and so did Morgan and a whole list of other FL bloggers. And they did the Las Vegas Ragnar, which LB ran. They’ve also got lots of other relays located across the country: SoCal, Washington D.C., Washington state, Minnesota/Wisconsin (along the Mississippi River), New York, New England, Florida Keys, Tennessee, Boston…..and coming to you in 2011, the relay race that I’ll be directing…CHICAGO! (squealing for joy again!!!)

I’m actually in a plane right now on my way to Chicago with another race director. Ever heard of the MC200? In a nutshell, that race is now (I mean, in 2011) part of the Ragnar Relay Series. I’m flying out there because the MC200 is happening this coming weekend, and I’m going to help out on the course, learn everything that I possibly can from the current race director, and then once the MC200 is over, it'll be will be turned over to me to transform it into one spectacular Ragnar Relay! I know y’all want to come to Chicago in 2011, right?! Right?

I’ve only been working there for a week and already I’ve been as busy as ever. I never fully understood what it takes to make a race happen, especially an overnight 200 mile relay. Holy geez! These race directors work HARD. But they love it. They’re passionate about running, and they’re passionate about the participants. I can see why the company makes “must be a runner” a qualification on the job description. Because if they weren’t passionate about running there would be no race. I’m pretty sure this goes for all races, from 5Ks to marathons, too.

Don’t worry that in the entire job search hullabaloo I haven’t forgotten to run. Last week I ran a total of 21 miles (which, if you’ve been reading my blog you’ll know that 21 miles is quite an accomplishment). Granted, 12 of those miles were done at one time, but miles are miles, right? All joking aside, that 12-mile run was brutal, but also really amazing. For a while there I was having doubts that my body would even remember how to run double-digit miles. I didn’t pick an easy course, either. Most of it was uphill (loving the mountains for this very reason...good training), and not just easy uphills either. I’m talking 5-7% grades at certain points. If I remember correctly, MapMyRun even showed an 8% grade. Yikes. I finished it in about 2:08, and was pretty proud of it.

I haven’t been running since then, but I started a new job and then I immediately decided to get a really nasty cold. Awesome. I’m finally feeling better (how is that for a first week on the job?!), and I plan on a little 3 mile run tonight in Chicago. Fantastic.

Well, that’s all for now. Wasatch Back in two weeks!