The relay race is a staple in F3, and F3 Gastonia is no different. Among the best of the relays is Dam to Dam. It’s got the local convenience and small town atmosphere with no bells or whistles. Just a bunch of F3 guys putting on an event for their friends. As the race has grown over the years, they’ve done a great job of scaling it up and giving back to the local churches that make Dam to Dam what it is. It’s always on the calendar, but this year was a little different, as I got curious about goin Ultra.
I got to training, running every chance I could with anyone I could run with, putting in a couple “3-a-days” and just trying to keep pushing. It didn’t matter how far I went, it never felt like enough, as the 31.5 miles that was scheduled for the day loomed.
“If you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans.” Life happens, and things don’t work out the way we expect, but that doesn’t mean they don’t work out. Team dynamics changed, a lot more than expected, and my Ultra team became a 4-man team, with Ville to Ville runners prepping for a race 2 months out filling in the rest of the spots.
Legs were assigned:
- Flintstone
- Gumby
- Flintstone
- Blart
- Termite
- Gumby
- Flintstone
- Blart
- Flintstone
- Termite
- Flintstone
- Gumby
So the day of the race came. Plenty of Q Fails along the way, as we had little preparation, printed maps, breakfast or coffee plans, etc. You name it, we didn’t do it. But what we did was show up. 2:00 AM – Wake up. 3:30 – Meet up in McAdenville launching in Termite’s truck. 5:30 – Arrival. 6:00 – Launch. And just like that it was on.
The day went quickly, and it was 2 weeks ago, so this backblast is way late (another Q fail), but here are the things I remember:
- Gumby is a monster. He crushed his 3rd leg, running a 7:48 pace for 3+ miles with the last quarter mile under 7:00.
- There’s not a better guy on the planet than Blart. He was the one who held us all together and did all the little things – driving, navigating, staying ready with a joke, and just generally aware of what needed to be done all along the way.
- Termite was clutch, joining the team the week of the race, offering a vehicle, driving, and taking the longest leg. He wandered off a lot less than expected, but nobody had a better time than Termite. He showed up smiling and left smiling.
- The burgers at the finish line were great as always, but don’t sleep on crinkle cut fries. They kept them hot the whole time too.
- After my last marathon, Golddigger mentioned to me that in those distances, you go through phases, and if something hurts, it’s just a phase. You learn what to pay attention to. I didn’t have my fastball on the day, and the miles were more of a grind than I wanted, especially early, but as the day wore on, I kind of figured it out and at the end of the day, with the help of my teammates, we got it done.
- I didn’t have a goal for a pace, just to finish, but as the day wore on, I realized I hadn’t walked, so I figured that was the goal. I was able to finish my legs without walking a step, so that felt like something.
We didn’t win the race. We didn’t see any other Gastonia team, finishing probably 2 hours after they did. We ran. And drove. And pissed in urinals at the churches. But everyone stepped up and we did the thing, and that’s what it’s about. You never know how it’s going to go, but that’s the point. There’s a little discomfort, but a lot of comfort in knowing you’re in it together, and you’ll find a way to make it to the burgers at the end. A huge shout out to my teammates – Blart, Gumby, and Termite – who made it a great day. And to all those who spent time logging miles, as that’s where the real work is done. And of course to Virus, whose razor-sharp memory was the impetus for the Ultra try and whose push has got me through, from early days and bear crawling bootcamps to 20 mile runs and whatever comes next.
Completely Stupid and Utterly Pointless. If you don’t know, ask, and get involved. It’s livin at it’s finest.
Yabba Dabba Doo