Running Shorts

500 teams. 420 kills. 196 miles. 24 hours (+1 minute, 55 seconds). 12 runners (or, you know, 9...) 3 hours of sleep. 2 vans. 1 Keg of Gatorade. That's a Ragnar. But in all seriousness, a Ragnar Relay is a long-distance, non-stop team relay race. A team of 12 people (or 6, for an Ultra team [or 9, if you're us and couldn't fill out a full 12]) passes a bracelet from one runner to the next, continuously, until you cover the entire distance. The teams are split into two vans, so that each person in van 1 runs a leg of about 3 to 9 miles, then passes off to the next person, and so on, until everyone in the van has run once -- then you pass off to van 2 and they run their legs. Then repeat the process two more times, so that everyone runs a total of three times. Ragnar is just one of the companies that hosts races all over the country (ours was in Washington state). One of the most well-known long-distance relays is Hood to Coast in Oregon. Closer to home,

I'm not a cyclist. I'm not a cycling fan. I've never ridden in a cycling race, and I couldn't name many of the top cyclists in the world. I spent no more than $250 on a used road bike, which I use more for commuting than training. For 49 weeks out of the year, I could care less about cycling. But for the other three weeks, it's all I have on TV. The Tour de France is awesome, and NBC Sports Network's coverage of it is fantastic -- enough to make a fan out of me, at least for a few weeks. For four to five hours a day, for 21 straight days, they broadcast and cover each stage live. And you're telling me we can do the same thing for two-hour footraces only three times per year? (Chicago, New York, Boston) Here's what, to me, makes the Tour so compelling to watch: 1. The commentators are incredibly well researched and knowledgeable about the race course and the riders in the field. They know everyone and their results (and they let you know), not jus

Damn. This was a fast field. The course isn't really all that fast...it's four loops with one deceptive hill each loop (which seemingly gets bigger every time around) and one 180-degree turn (which kills all momentum). And yet...the winner ran 14:00. That is quick. About 30 seconds quicker than the winner usually is here. This was by far the deepest field in the Blast, and (with the exception of the Chicago and Boston marathons) one of the fastest fields I've ever raced against. Which, of course, is the reason I love the Blast. Because the field was so fast, I can't say I'm too disappointed with my race. I ran 15:20-something to place just outside the top-10 (I can't say for certain, because I can't find the official results anywhere). As the leaders took off crazy fast, I ended up running most of the race on my own. I did finish in sight of 2:13-marathoner Craig Leon , so I can't feel too let down about this one. That said, I really wanted bet