So many emails have been flying today.  Here is a summary:


Here is what we should expect to see for van ...

I know this is bigger than I thought we were getting, bonus!!!

Tonight, Ben or myself will move the information from Amelia's spreadsheet to a google doc spreadsheet that can be updated during the race.  Some folks will bring iPads (there should be at least 1 per van, and ipad charger, if needed).  That way when Ted gets lost if something changes, we can update the anticipated start times for each leg as we go.  

Meghan has a bike rack that can attach to a hitch that can carry 2 bikes ... this would mean van 2 has both bikes .... Laura & Ben have 2 bikes, but they are hybrids, not road bikes.  They are not the most friendly bikes for hills/racing.  But since the runner will prob. be slower than a biker, we should prob. be fine w/this?!  anyone else have road bikes they want to bring?  Do we want the bikes?  If we decide on the bikes, Van 1 will have to squeeze the bikes in van 1 until leg 7, when we can move the bikes to van 2's bike rack .... is this worth it?!  what do you guys think?? UPDATE:  Greg will bring a bike for van 2.  van 1 doesn't have a bike rack, so unless someone feels strongly, we can leave the bikes at home.  Van 1 - you ok w/this?  I'll send an email so we can discuss.

Lawn chairs can be nice.  Preferably ones that fold up real small.  For example, Ben and I have 2 camp/stadium chairs that will fit under the seats.  We also have these types of lawn chairs - they fold up and will prob. fit under the seats, as well.  

Each van will have a cooler (Greg has this under control for Van 2, Van 1 is covered from Laura & Ben).  each van should work out their own food situation.  Van 1 is having everyone bring their own food for themselves/to share.  

You need to arrive to your starting leg 1 hour before your start time to allow time to check-in, show off safety equipment, get race numbers, and take a safety course.  

We're looking for "race/bib number attachment thingys" (yes, that is their official name, I swear).  It'd be 

great to have 2 per van.  Otherwise we'll be fiddling w/pins, and who wants to do that.

Greg had some advice for moving the drop off location for the van.  Van 1 may try to change the drop off location ... to be determined.

REMEMBER to bring your reflective vest (we need 6-7 per van) and head light/butt light if you said you had one.  

Alright ... that's it for now.  T-28 hours until some of us start this road trip!

~Laura

Captain's Meeting

Go here to read the notes from the captain's meeting.  You probably also got the email that included all this information, but in case you didn't, or you didn't read it, here's another reminder! =) 

~Laura

Packing List & Welcome to Newest Members

Alright ... so a few things ... 

We have a full team!!! Can you believe it?!  Amorette & Meghan have both joined our team - as of yesterday!  So welcome them, hug them, kiss them, and cheer very loudly when they run b/c they are saving us from running MORE than we are already crazy enough to volunteer to run. =)  (PS: you may also want to hug, kiss, and cheer loudly for Erika who found both of these wonderful additions to our team!)

I will send out a group email to everyone so we have everyone's information.

Now - onto the packing list.  This was kindly forwarded from Ted - it's been used in years past.  So if you want to add any other suggestions, go ahead.  Our race is in just a few days - some of us leave Thursday.  Ahh!!!

PACKING LIST

EACH van needs:

-6 reflective vests (7 in van 1)

-2 head lights 

-2 tail lights 

Each Van Captain will make sure we have the following things:

-Cooler with ice 

- Water/sport drink/prefered beverage 

-Vehicle GPS with ALL exchanges preprogrammed in 

-GPS charger

-Binder with up to date race bible

-First aid kit - instant cold packs, mole skin, tape, ace bandages, band aids, pain pills, etc.

-Phone number list 

-2 Flashlights (other than the running head lights)

Ragnar recommends that each person pack (minimum):

o Warm coat

o Running jacket

o Sweat pants

o Two pairs of shorts

o Three shirts

o Change of underwear

o 3 or 4 pairs of socks

o Toothbrush

o Toothpaste

o Running shoes

o Comfortable shoes

o Any medications

I would say bring

-2 full sets of running clothes (in addition to the ones you will wear the first leg)

-Running shoes

-Your running gear (Garmin, watch, etc.)

-Deodorant (Please!)

-Body glide 

-Toothbrush (your call)

-Towels (at least 1)

-Off time clothes

-Off time shoes

-Extra socks

-Cell phone

-Cell phone charger

-Camera and charger

-Video camera and charger (if you've got it)

-Snack food

-Sleeping/Camping stuff (if you're deluded enough to think you'll sleep)

- eye mask and/or ear plugs?!

Ragnar recomends bringing fun stuff too:

o Blow horn

o Cow bells

o Frisbees

o Rubber chickens

o Van decorations

o Costumes

o Noise makers

o Candy

o Music

o Hula hoops

o Other Fun Stuff

OTHER NOTES

-Each person is responsible for bringing their own snack food!  

-Plan on stopping to eat during your off time.  

-I also highly recommend topping off the gas tank while you're off.

-Please select one person from your van to pay for gas - and they can save the receipts and we will add it to the accounts payable spreadsheet

READY!!! BREAK!!!

RUN. DRIVE. SLEEP? REPEAT.

Getting the details organized

2 weeks away!!!  

So there have been lots of emails going around.  And I'm finding it difficult to keep track of. So I thought I'd lay some stuff out here in a blog post - so people can go back and reference. 

First off - a little disclaimer about money.  So as we get closer - more and more people are helping to pay for things.  I think that it is only fair if we all split everything equally among all 12 runners.  If you spend money on anything for Ragnar (including on the days of the race) - keep your receipts.  I will put it in the spreadsheet after the race and make sure we are all even.  I know that is what some of you guys did in years past.  Let me know if you have any questions or concerns with this method. 

Ok - now that money is out of the way ....... here's a run down of what's going on.  

1. DECORATIONS/TEAM SPIRIT!!!!

Ok - I'm most excited about this.  I can't run, but I can cheer - LOUDLY!!!  

**So Amelia threw out the idea of bacon sweatbands - awesome!!  I'm going to let Amelia take the lead w/that - email/comment below if you need any help w/that.  

**T-shirts!! Nicole threw out some design ideas.  Head over here if you need reminding.  Let us know which design you like better ... option 1 or 2.  So Nicole and I plan to make these shirts in ~ a week - so send us your t-shirt size so we can start to get materials.  

**Van decorations - Ted mentioned that he has markers from years past.  So I think we will just use these to decorate our van.  I'm not an artist - but I can draw bubble letters.  Some people have brought up concerns w/cleaning the vans in time to return them - so we should definetly be mindful of this when we decide how much writing goes on the vans.  

2. VANS!!!!!

That brings us on to vans.  I think from all the emails it sounds like both vans have been rented.  I think we are still working out details for returning the vans?!  Are we all set w/who's picking them up?

3.  VESTS/LIGHTS:  

We need 2 headlamps, 2 butt lights, and 6 reflective vests PER VAN.  We need to show these when we check-in at the initial leg for each van.

Here is how the situation works out ....

Van 1: 4 head lights and butt lights and 4 vests - from Laura, Ben, Nicole, & Ted

Van 2: 4 head lights (Laura F., Amelia, Greg, & Erika), 1 butt light (Laura F.), and 2 vests (Amelia & Greg). 

So basically - we're covered in head lights/butt lights but we need more vests.  Do we want to just make it a BYOV ... bring your own vest?  Amazon, Target, etc. all would have vests.  Please email the me or the team to make sure that we know we are all set w/vests.  

4.  VOLUNTEERS:  Paid $360 to cover all 3 shifts.   So we're good to go w/this.

5. RUNNERS - - we are still short 2 runners.  Sounds like there are some potential runners on the horizon ... more of the Russ family may be joining along =)  But keep your ears open in case that doesn't work out.  I have posted an ad on the ragnar website, facebook ragnar page, my facebook page, and sent emails to ~15-20 "runners looking for teams" via the ragnar site.  No luck yet. 

On the horizon ... 

we still need to figure out 

- - logistics - car pooling to the starting line, places to sleep Thursday night (is van 2 going to sleep anywhere or just head over Friday afternoon?), etc. etc. 

- - organizing supplies to bring ... what each runner needs for themselves and what we will want to share

- -getting phone numbers and organizing how we want to communicate on the day of the race

- - what to do if we run into problems on race day (e.g. can't find your runner, we get lost, etc)  

I plan to start these discussions and more this weekend. I just wanted to get this out tonight so that we are all up-to-date.  In the meantime, please correct me if I misspoke about anything.  

HOMEWORK: 

1. Send me or Nicole your t-shirt size

2. Buy a vest - if you don't already have one

3. Let us know if you have a design preference for the t-shirts

Our Race is in 3.5 weeks!!!!

Ahh - our race is in 3.5 weeks!! Can you believe it?!  So here are a few things/updates.

1. I need your pace.  Can you please email me whatever your pace is for the average 10k.  I need this info to fill out the pace calculator.  It should be whatever you said it was on your ragnar profile.  This is going to help us get a finish time. 

2. RUNNERS - we need 2 more runners.  As you guys saw, Jessica is out.  And unfortunately, so am I!  :/  I have been injured for a few weeks. I'm finally on the uphill - but I don't think there is enough time to get the mileage in to finish training. I'm so super bummed about this!! But - if it's ok w/you all - I still hope to come and cheer you guys on and offer support in anyway that I can/help manage the team.  Poor van 1 is falling apart!  SOOOOO - help us fill our team - I already posted on the ragnar facebook page, the website, and my facebook wall .... but please ask around!  We need a full team again!!

3.  Greg is now the official team captain of van 2! =)  

4. We are working on getting vans and paying for volunteers.  A few other things that will require money - supplies for the vans & t-shirts/van decorations - I'm hoping we can divide and concur these items. 

5.There are prob. a few other things I have to get done, too - I'll get back to you soon w/more info.  Past veterans - feel free to email me any ideas of things to remember to do/if you think I'm forgetting something.

Be prepared for more emails/blog posts now that we are in the home stretch.  Can't wait for the big day(s). 

~Laura

Status Update

Hey Everyone! 

Our race is in 8 weeks and a few days!!! Can you believe it?!  

Just wanted to say boo!  It's been awhile since I've reached out to our team.  How is everyone's training going?  I know I had a rough July w/the heat wave that seems to be lingering and life in general, training has been difficult to fit in ... but I'm back on track.  Hopefully your training has gone more smoothly than mine.

10k Dash Sunday 7/29

Ben and I are seriously thinking about doing the 10k Dash on the Ragnar schedule this weekend.  It is this Sunday @ 8:00AM.  At this point, registration is $40/person ... packet pick-up is available @ the event.  Check out the website for further details. 

As far as housekeeping for our team ... 

Anyone know anyone who wants to volunteer?!  If not, we can pay a fee donate money to fill our volunteer quota.  We need 3 volunteers or $120/volunteer slot.  From what I hear, it isn't a very glamorous job and you can get stuck w/a bad location and time.  Time slots for volunteers open up 8/15, so if someone does want to volunteer I recommend we get them hooked up before then so they can have their choice of time/location.  I think most vets on our team have said that they have always paid for volunteers.  So at some point I will need to collect $30 from everyone.

Meeting up ....

I was also thinking - we should meet up ... what do y'all think?!?!!?  We can go over logistics/make shirts/hang out/have fun/etc. etc..  I'm thinking DC is prob. the best bet to get the most people - I think that is prob. the most central location, but I'm open to suggestions.  I realize some folks live way too far away to make that happen, and busy schedules prob. won't allow everyone to get together.  But hopefully we can get a lot of folks together.  If we can't make it happen in person, maybe can figure out a way to Skype or set up a conference call .... thoughts?

Possible dates for a meet-up:

Sun 8/5 (I know, it's short notice!)
Sunday 8/19
Sun 8/26
Saturday 9/1 or Sunday 9/9 (Labor Day weekend)
Friday 9/7 or Saturday 9/8 or Sunday 9/9

During the week may also be a possibility, but I know def. less preferably to me ... but I could prob. make it work.

Sooooooo - take away: 
1. let us know if you are interested in joining us for the 10k this weekend
2. anyone know any volunteers
3. let me know if you want to meet up and if so if any of those dates work!  


~Laura

Scrambled Legs & Achin'

That's right - we are registered!!! =)  It's official!

In case you missed all the emails - our team name is:

"Scrambled Legs & Achin'". 

 So of course, now we need costumes/team spirit wear.  As Greg pointed out - they should be simple and comfortable to run in.  And as Jess pointed out - we should prob. try to make sure we can wear some part of it - most of it - on our LAST leg - since we will prob. change clothes for each leg of our race.

Nicole offered to figure out a way to put a design on iron on shirts - here are first drafts! Aren't they ADORABLE!!  Nicole drew up these drawings in 5 minutes at work ....

Option 1

Option 2

Ben also found these funny shirts: http://zookyworld.wordpress.com/2010/05/31/eggs-bacon-shirt-39/.  Maybe we could do a combination of both - one on the front, one on the back?!  

And Amelia came up w/a great idea for sweat bands that would look like Bacon. 

Seriously - we are an awesome team, guys!  So creative!  It is getting me super excited! =) 

One last FUN item of news .......... we have a new and final member to our team. Please welcome KIM! =) I'll send out an updated email list to everyone.  And Kim & Laura - that means the 2 of you can fight it out chat to decide who will get leg 7 and who will get leg 8.  Whenever you guys decide, let me know and I'll update the blog.  There's really no urgency for this, though.

If you haven't already PLEASE send me your check!  The address is listed on the sidebar on the top left.

Alright - well we are 15 weeks out .... hope everyone's training is going well and everyone is feeling well. Enjoy this cooler weather this week - - P.E.R.F.E.C.T. for running outside!!!   

Status Update, a Race, and Housekeeping

Status Update: Alright team - so far we have 11 of 12 spots filled.  Last Call for dragging encouraging your friend to join in and fill our last spot.  I am pretty sure that everyone has burned through their list of friends and no one else has anyone that is interested in joining our team, but thought I'd check in.  If we are out of options - I can find someone on the facebook page. It shouldn't be hard - I checked on there last week and people are BEGGING to join teams.  Any preference - boy? girl? first one I see? the one who tells the funniest jokes?

RACE:  Ben and I will be running in the NCB Capitol Hill Classic in DC this weekend - Sunday, May 20th. There is a 3k (1.8 miles) and 10k (6.2 miles).  Ben will be doing the 10k, which starts @ 8:30; and I will (hopefully) run the 3k, which starts @ 10:30.  You can register through Wednesday (tomorrow) - $30 for 3k; $33 for 10k.  Otherwise, you can do late registration ($35) in person through 8:15 on Sunday - check the website for further details.

If you have any other races you want to run/want team members to join in on/think sound fun add them to the calendar.

Housekeeping:  
1. WE NEED A TEAM NAME!!!  Any ideas?! Please post/email/send smoke signals ..... If I come up with it - it will be something like, "watch us run" or "12 people running" .... I bet you guys have waaaay better ideas!  I want to make sure we catch the 6/5 deadline to keep the cost down.

2. SEND ME YOUR MONEY!!! =) The registration cost is $100/runner.  (there may be more fees later) You can make checks out to: Laura Mott & send money to:

Laura Mott

204 S. Castle Street

Baltimore, MD 21231

I'd appreciate it if you can send it to me no later than May 31st - that way I can have time to get it in the bank and register our team in time. If this timeline is a problem - just shoot me an email and let me know (lpgaines@gmail.com). 

I think that's it for now.  Maybe we'll see some of you on Sunday.



PS: It's Nicole's Birthday on Sunday - - so you should blow up her facebook wall w/lots of messages and/or come to DC to give her lots of balloons and cake. =) =)

Please Welcome ....

.... Amelia & Laura F. to our team!!! =)  Amelia will be running leg #9 in van 2.  Laura F. is open to any leg .... Greg you and her can flip a coin! =)

We have 1 spot left!

Also - I fixed the training schedules - so now you all should be able to see them, too!  Go on over, check them out - - you know you want to! =)

20 weeks out!! =) =) =)

 Get your running shoes on!! We are officially 20 weeks out - which is when the race website suggests you start training ... some of you may already be trained up and ready to go ... but I know I will be working all 20 weeks to get myself ready for this race!

source: yourfunnystuff.com

To update you on the team .... We have 3 spots left - in van 2.  Ted and Nicole found a potential new awesome person (Amelia) and maybe her friend too - - I'm still waiting to hear back, but hopefully they are in!  Anyone else know someone who wants to join in?  We can also use the race boards that are on the ragnar website and/or facebook page to find our last team members.

I plan to register our team soon!

~Laura

PS: I put training schedules on the "training schedules" tab - but I have been informed you can't see them unless you are logged in as me - hopefully I will be able to fix that tonight.  

Our Team is Growing!!

Ok so here's the update on our team so far:

Definite yes's include:   Laura, Ben, Nicole, Ted, Erika, Greg, Brendan, Annie, and Jess.  That's 9 people - only 3 more to go!!

Check out the list in the side bar (-->) to see what legs are still available.  If you have a preference - write a comment in the post below so you can get added to the list. If you want details on how far each leg is - check here.  

Feel free to add fun races/events to the calendar.

Anyone know any one else who wants to join our team?!  We could really use some distance runners  ... 

If anyone has any team names brewing in their head - start bringing them in - once we have a full team we can vote on a team name and/or theme.

~Laura

Basics

So you want to join in on our DC Ragnar Race?  

Emails were getting difficult to keep track of - so I figured a blog would be a better forum for conversations.  Plus blogger has a feature where you can"reply" right in the comment section.  Here are the basic details .... 
 
The details: 
The deadline to sign up for early registration is 6/5/2012.  It is $100 per runner.  
The race is 9/21-9/22 (it requires you to take Friday off from work).  
The race starts in Cumberland and goes down to DC.
The race course is very hilly!!! some legs are more hilly than others 

TRAINING: 
The website lays out 2 different training schedules for beginner/novice runner (me!) and an intermediate training schedule (aka: Ben).  They suggest 20 weeks to train ... we are 21 weeks out. 


The Blog:
I figured we could create blog posts w/important information along the way.  I also am going to create pages for runner distances, important dates to remember, and since we don't all know each other - meet the runners.  We can coordinate van rentals/packing lists/etc. via the blog.  


Ahh - hope you are as excited about this as I am!! 


~Laura


PS: Once we have 12 official runners - we can start talking and voting on a team name!!