Blue Ridge Relay (Ultra Team)

So I don't know what the deal is this fall, but I'm now running on two relay teams in two weeks after my recent invite and decision to be on an ultra team in the Blue Ridge 208-mile Relay Sept. 11-12. The first is the Hood To Coast 197-mile Relay in Oregon Aug.28-29, and though these seem to be similar relays, there are several differences that need to be addressed.

Hood To Coast details
The H2C team is made up of 12 runners who run three legs a piece and average aproximately 16.5 miles each. My leg consists of 14.9 total miles (leg 4 - 7.18 miles, leg 16 - 3.52, and Leg 28 - 4.20). The first leg will be my toughest and is the fifth longest distance of the 36 legs of the race. Or goal for this relay is to win the overall crown. Wish us luck!

Blue Ridge Relay details
I will be running on the team "Shaving More Time," which won the ultra team division last year, holds the ultra team course record, and was the fourth overall team out of the 80+ 12-runner and ultra teams. They ran the course at a 7:10 average pace last year, and this years team will be much faster. Now I don't know which leg I will be running yet, but the first major difference between these two relays is that there are only six runners on this team. We still have to switch off at every exchange station like 12 runner teams, which means we will be running twice as often (we will have to run six legs each instead of three times like the teams of 12 run). This translates into running 5-to-7 mile legs every 2-to-3 hours for approximately 24 hours. Each team member will run an average of 35 miles at a fast pace with no time to sleep. The second difference between the two relays is the terrain. The Hood To Coast relay is downhill throughout the first part of the race and relatively flat as we make our way over to the ocean. The Blue Ridge Relay on the other hand consists of rolling hills throughout most of the course as we make our way along the Appalachian Mountains in Virginia on down to Asheville, NC. Another factor is the weather conditions. West coast weather will not be like the nasty humid conditions we will face in Virginia/N.C.

More updates to come as these races approach and I know more. As for right now, I've got a lot to think about as I train for these two different beasts.