PART 1 (Planning, Prep)

Turns out, it’s challenging to sum up an experience like breaking the Speed Project Solo record. I’ve spent the last week feeling proud, loved by my community, sad it’s over, and uncertain about what’s next. Just like during a 300 mile race, the feelings come in waves. One of the things I’ve been excited to do is recap the entire journey for myself and for everyone who is curious about what it’s like to take on 300 miles of running. 

The unsurprising headline: running is a team sport, and I’ve got the best team.

Before I toed the starting line at the Santa Monica Pier, I think I had seen as much of the route as possible from my desk in New Orleans via Google Maps street view. If there’s one thing I love as much as running (maybe more than), it’s planning. I started by imagining how I wanted the race to go, set priorities, and then set some big goals (because why not?). With all that in mind, I built a team of nine incredible women, researched and designed my route, applied for the Ciele grant (and won!), designed a training plan, and got to work.

Here’s a snapshot of what I wrote back in October, to hopefully be made reality in March (spoiler: we did it):

I’m hoping that I get to run into Vegas with a crew of people who have helped me accomplish something huge and that I’m able to do so safely while still pushing the limits of my running ability. I hope that between the Santa Monica pier and the finish at the Vegas sign, everyone on the adventure has a ton of fun, feels like a valued member of the team, feels like they play an important role in the success of the mission, and enjoys themselves. I hope to share a lot of miles with different people, especially overnight. I hope that the crew works together to solve problems. Most of all, I hope that the crew has a ton of fun together and that when I’m running, I’m counting down the miles until I’ll see them again.

I put in hours of planning, training, and prep in order to hit the goals I set for myself and I had an incredible of team of women who believed I could do it. When I told them my ‘A’ goal was to break the men’s record and that my ‘B’ goal was to break the women’s record, they simply said: “tell us how to help you do it.”

This race has shown me the power of surrounding yourself with people who believe in you. With a few days remaining before my departure, two friends surprised me with a collection of videos from people across the country, all wearing Lucy TSP Solo hats, and all sharing their love and support for me. It was a reminder that I would have nine women next to me during the race but dozens of other folks across the country who were sending their love. 

Running is a team sport, and I’ve got the best team.