In case you missed it: Cape Relay Recap: Part 1 and Cape Relay by the Numbers. I’m feeling wordy!
After finishing this first leg of the relay, Van 1 spent all afternoon lounging around. By late afternoon, we were more than ready to run!
Around 6:00 PM, we received word that Van 2”²s last runner was en route, so we prepared ourselves to run again. A little while later, we saw Kristie coming down the hill to finish off Leg One.
Once again, the race organizers held us (until 7:20 PM) before we could start the second leg of the relay.
Leg Two
Christine kicked off Leg Two for us!
By the time Christine finished her leg and it was Lauren’s turn to run, the sun had set.
Running at night meant that all runners were required to wear a reflective vest and a headlamp. A bunch of runners also ran with flashlights in their hands.
Lauren and Evan both blew through their legs, so, before I knew it, we were at Scusset Beach getting ready to send Esa off on her next run.
It was really dark!
And cold!
And then Esa was off!
With such a long wait between my first leg and second leg, I went from having a sweet runner’s high to questioning why the heck I agreed to do an overnight relay. It was cold, dark, and scary outside, so the last thing I wanted to do was run. But, I sucked it up and prepared for Leg 17.
Somehow, I lucked out with one of the best legs of the entire relay, which included running over the Sagamore Bridge onto Cape Cod and along the Cape Code Canal Trail.
I thought I would hate running at night, but I absolutely loved it. I went from being tired and cranky to absolutely ecstatic about the whole experience. It was so cool!
The run along the canal was actually pretty creepy since it wasn’t well-lit and the van couldn’t follow me, but I ended up sticking close by another runner, so I wasn’t totally alone for the 2.9 miles. The other runner was cruising along, so I really had to push myself to keep up with her. I ended up finishing in 22:54 (7:53 pace), which was insanely fast for me. I didn’t want to run alone in the dark, so I kept my legs moving as fast as they could go!
Becky finished Leg Two around midnight and handed off to Van 2. Our second leg was done!
There were several hours before Leg Three started, so I changed into some comfy clothes and cozied up in the van with Lauren and Becky for some sleep. Christine, Esa, and Evan slept outside in tents.
I slept for about 4 hours and woke up feeling like a million bucks. Who knew sleeping in a van would be so restful? Don’t I look psyched to run?!?
When we woke up, it was about 6:00 in the morning, so we knew we’d see Kristie coming pretty soon.
Leg Three
Kristie handed off to Christine, and Van 1 was at it again for the final leg of the relay.
A few fours later, it was my turn to run Leg 29, which was 3.2 miles along the Cape Cod Rail Trail.
My final leg flew by”” it was flat and fast, and I rocked out to music.
Becky finished off Leg Three with a quickie 1.8 mile run.
Once she finished, we were all so happy to be done with our part of the relay.
Wahoo!!!
The Finish
Once we passed the baton onto Van 2, we drove to the finish line in Truro to wait for the rest of our team.
While we waited, we celebrated with a round of beers!
Hooray!!!
Around 1:30 PM, Kristie brought it home!
We joined her and the rest of the team to run across the finish line together.
We finished the 189 miles in 30:15:10, which was an average pace of 9:36! Pretty amazing, huh? I’m so proud of us!
Even though the race was pretty disorganized overall, the Cape Relay was one of the coolest running experiences of my life. The stories and memories that came out of this single race are ones that I will never forget. I’m already itching to do another one!
