PART 6 (Day 4 - THE FINISH!)
When I woke up in the Jeep on Thursday in the early morning, the rain had stopped, thankfully, and my crew had gotten all my important gear dry (heroes). What might have been a tough wake-up (70ish hours and over 220 miles of running) became easy because I was about to get to see my wife! My crew offered me a range of breakfast options and we joked about the bed & breakfast, Chateau le Jeep, that they were running. I’d give it a 5 star review for sure. Full breakfast, a laundry service, and a very cheerful staff.
After a quick mile, I finally got to hug Maggie & Denali. Their arrival was a huge boost - so much fresh energy from two people who I love. Maggie and I headed out while Ashley, Halle, Alyssa, and Denali got to work attempting to get the car unstuck from the sand.
After a few joyful miles with Maggie, we saw a single set of headlights bobbing towards us. The other car had stayed stuck and everyone was piled into our trusty Jeep. After running with Maggie, I ran a section with Denali. It was fun to get to share with both of them the ups and downs of the race and the adventure that is running along Powerline Road. I rotated through pacers and trudged up some steep hills that seemed to go on forever. Finally, we emerged to a view of Primm and got to run down towards where the RV would be. The sunrise was a huge boost, as was the downhill trail.
I wrapped up the final miles of Powerline with Ashley, who had started the very first section Powerline off with me on Tuesday, about 150 miles earlier and what felt like a lifetime ago. My crew presented me with a ‘Dundie’ Award (the Office is my favorite show) for completing Powerline and I took an hour to rest in the RV and eat McDonald’s hash browns and a McGriddle. Today’s theme was Jazz Fest, my favorite New Orleans festival so my whole crew was decked out in Jazz Fest shirts.
The weather was beautiful and I only had 37 miles of road running until the Vegas sign. I was feeling good, all things considered: I was 250+ miles into the race and only had one blister the size of a dime on my toe. I also had a blister on my hand from the poles. Surprisingly, the most discomfort was in my mouth, which was torn up (probably from eating weird things for days), and my lips, which were really chapped from the dry desert air. I was also still moving well. Lauren and I set off together and had 2 sub-10 minute miles, which I felt proud of given the distance that I’d already traveled. I knocked out those 8 miles way faster than planned.
With about 24 miles left, I got to talk to the folks at TSP on their instagram live, which was really fun. It was clear I was going to break the record by a significant amount and people were excited (I was, too).
At this point, I felt pretty tired of running, especially on such a monotonous road, (dare I say.. I missed Powerline?) but my crew pushed me with the run/walk strategy. With 8 miles to go, we paused at a gas station and I resisted the urge to just keep going rather than refuel. Instead, I ate 10 oreos in about 3 minutes and continued on.
As the distance between me and the Vegas sign dwindled, I tried to take in all that I (and my exceptional crew) had accomplished. It was hard to process the experience in the moment. The journey had started nearly 7 months earlier. It wasn’t simply the nearly 85 hrs that we had been running or the few minutes we spent celebrating at the Vegas sign, but so much more than that:
It was hours of planning and researching the route.
It was team dinners and discussions about worst case scenarios.
It was miles and miles of running with friends and alone.
It was days of feeling tired and sore but running anyway because that’s what I’d have to do during the race.
It was time taken away from work, life, and family that everyone who supported me made the choice to take.
It was an adventure with friends and time spent outside doing something a little crazy together.
It was encouragement when I felt tired.
It was reminders to eat, even when I was nauseous.
It was a hug when I felt scared about what was ahead.
It was consistent feelings of love and support throughout the entire race.
AND it was also so much fun.
At the end, my arrival at the Vegas sign was just a small fraction of the experience. Sure, I had dreamed of running in ahead of the record surrounded by the women who helped make it possible but I had signed up to do this race for so much more than that: I wanted to do something really hard. I wanted to have a great adventure and play outside with my friends. I wanted to share an experience with a group of women who signed up to help me achieve a crazy goal. I wanted to show people what’s possible when you’re surrounded by people who believe in you and when you believe in yourself.
I don’t know how I got so lucky to have the support of such an incredible crew but I’m so thankful for each of them, and for all the love that I felt from afar. This event might be called TSP Solo but, for me, it was an incredibly communal experience. The community and connections are why I continue to run.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Running is a team sport and I’ve got the best team.
