2012 Blue Ridge Relay, Part I: Intro and Arrival

I was asked last year to join team Stache and Dash for what would have been my first experience at the Blue Ridge Relay. I declined, mostly because I was halfway through training for my first marathon and did not want to jeopardize things, but also because I had recently begun a long battle with bursitis in my right heel. This year, however, despite admittedly being out of shape, I didn't dare say no when I was once again asked to be a part of Team Stache and Dash.

The team would be a good bit different than last year. There would be six BRR veterans and six rookies - including yours truly. The original list included Laura Gray, Jess Bilbrey, and Chuck Player, each of whom had to back out for various reasons. When J-Bil decided not to re-enlist I reached out to my good friend and former high school teammate, Josh Brewer, and he thought about it for approximately 2.5 seconds before saying, "hell yes!" Rob Ducsay's friend, Julie Przybyla, eventually replaced Laura. We also needed to find a replacement for Chuck and one of Charlotte's faster runners - Jay Barringer - fell into our laps. Things were shaping up nicely for what turned out to be a mixed team of six women and six men. In Barringer and Brewer, we had two legit studs. The rest of our team could be described as a well-rounded and diverse group of runners, each of whom is capable of taking home an age group award at any given road race. We were, in order of appearance:

(I hope I do not offend anyone with these descriptions...)

VAN 1
1. Allen Strickland - a Blue Ridge veteran and one of the older, wiser members of our team. He also had an incredible mustache. I wish I could have shared a van with Allen as I always enjoy talking sports and joking around with him, but oh well, you can't win them all.
2. Josh Brewer - an incredibly talented runner with a knack for conquering mountains; Josh recently ran 3 hours flat at the Grandfather Mountain Marathon. He was the only BRR rookie in this van, though.
3. Siobhan Havlik - I don't know Siobhan very well but had a great chance to bond with her and her husband, David, at our "team meeting" on Lake Wylie. Siobhan is a dedicated and talented runner who frequently trains with the "My Pace or Yours" running group in Charlotte. She was also a member of last year's team.
4. Sarah Keen - too tough for the local 5Ks, Sarah likes to stick to longer races and tough mudders. She was on the team last year and frequently trains with the Davidson runners.
5. Rob Ducsay - along with Allen, Rob was one of our team leaders and more experienced veterans. He was also on last year's team and was coming into this thing having recently set a personal-best in the 5K.
6. Emily Barrett - Emily was the first person in the Charlotte running community to really reach out to me as a friend. She was on last year's team and, along with Adrienne and Rob, spearheaded the logistics of putting our team together. She was a bit concerned going in after spending a week in bed with illness, yet still fired up about having one of the tougher running assignments. She also trains heavily with the "My Pace or Yours" group.
VAN 2
7. Jason Blackwood - despite my fitness level being a far cry from where it was earlier this year, I was coming into this thing healthier and stronger than I've been in awhile. I was pretty nervous as I had one of the tougher assignments - including mountain goat 31 - but my concerns were negated by excitement.
8. Jay Barringer - Jay is a beast who ran in college at UNC Asheville, so while he was a BRR rookie, he knew the ups and downs of mountain racing better than anyone on our team. Jay is very fast - capable of running a half-marathon around 1:15 or so when fit.
9. Julie Przybyla - I did not know Julie at all going into this thing, but would soon get to know her very well and develop a great deal of respect for her toughness. We were more worried about having fun than anything else, but Rob assured us that Julie was as fast as he is - a bold statement considering Rob is pretty damn fast.
10. Lauren Tilton - I did not know Lauren at all, either, but had heard from Adrienne and Emily that she was a very tough runner. I would soon get to know her better - as we all would!
11. Adrienne Anetrini - my girlfriend was coming into this thing in arguably the best shape of her life, after recently destroying her 5K PR. She also had a large hand in organizing our team, with help from Emily and Rob.
12. John Fillette - my roommate and one of the most talented runners on the team was coming into this thing on a downswing in the training and was a bit nervous about how he would do - but hey, a slower pace from Febreezy is a fast pace for most people. We were not the least bit worried about how John would run.

Myself, Julie, and Lauren packing Van 2 as Emily supervises.

After some motivating Facebook posts and exchanging of messages, we were all ready to get going. We met at Emily's and Adrienne's apartment at 7:30 a.m. sharp on Friday, September 7. Everyone was there on time so we were off to a great start. I felt like I had everything I needed: three sets of full running outfits, including outerwear; trainers and racing flats; a pillow; enough healthy food to piss off most of America. I grabbed the keys to Van 2 and hopped in the driver's seat, and we were off! Stay tuned for more.