Run. Camp. Sleep? Repeat.

Way to go team telos! Y’all ripped Ragnar apart. the telos institute can support you and your team understand and embody the power WE! Who’s next?

From Alan Stein, Jr.

This past Friday/Saturday, I completed my first Ragnar Team Trailing Run Relay at Big Bear Lake in the Appalachian Mountains of West Virginia.

Wow.

What en epic, memorable experience.

The event tagline?

Run. Camp. Sleep? Repeat.

For context…

Each team had 8 runners and each team stayed at the campsite (we opted for the Glamping accommodations and stayed in pretty killer tent!).

The campsite had food trucks, a band, a bonfire, a recovery center (massage, compression boots, foam rollers, yoga mats, etc.), outdoors showers, and plenty of port-a-potties.

Each runner ran three legs (loops) through some pretty gnarly terrain (tons of rocks, roots, mud, foliage, and elevation). Several experienced trail runners said this was the most technical trail run they’ve done.

95% of every loop was in the woods… this picture is from the last 100 yards before the finish line… the only stretch out in the open!

Oh, and yes, it’s totally OK for you to laugh and/or make fun of my high socks, short shorts, and headband!

Each team member ran each loop once. Each loop had a different level of difficulty (Green: 3.5 miles, Yellow: 4.6 miles, Red: 6.5 miles).

Only one team member ran at a time. When they returned, they handed their race belt (‘bib’) to the next person up. So the ratio was roughly the same for everyone: 1 part run, 7 parts rest.

This sounds easy, but the goal was to complete all 24 loops (8 x 3) in 24 hours.

I ran my Green loop at 5pm on Friday and finished it in 33 minutes (I quickly learned that trail running takes much longer than road running!).

I ran my Red loop at 2am on Friday night and finished in an hour and 28 minutes (oh boy, running in the dark is a different beast). *The difference between running in the dark and running in the light is like night and day!

*Yeah, that was a dad joke I came up with.

I ran my Yellow loop at 10am on Saturday morning and finished in 58 minutes.

I managed one 30 minute nap and one 90 minute ‘sleep’ in 36 hours… which is part of what makes this event so challenging.

I did however manage 4 showers (one early Friday morning and one after each loop). What can I say, I’m a bit of a pretty boy!

Prior to starting, our team chose to set some intentions and some standards to help ensure this was an enriching experience on and off the trails. I knew three of my teammates and met four of them for the first time.

My favorite part of this event were our ‘Tent Talks’… and the conversations we had in and around the running. We had no shortage of laughs as well as some very deep, impactful, and meaningful dialogue.

There were so many lessons learned and experienced, but for brevity, the most impactful lesson I learned from a fellow runner (referencing the 90 minutes we spent running the Red loop in the dark at 2am):

You can view running the dark in one of two ways:

1) This sucks. I can’t see anything?!

2) This is helpful. It forces me to put all of my focus where it needs to be – right in front of me and on the next step.

I am beyond grateful to have taken part in this… and can’t wait to see what our team decides to do next!

While I really loved spending super quality time with each of my amazing teammates (Suzanne Coonan MS, PCC, Michael Fox, Bart Miller, Mark Kolar, and Kim Wagner), I want to give a special thank you to Michele Ocasio (our team captain and organizer) for her unparalleled leadership.

I want to thank Angela V. Fox for all of her efforts in preparing our team… her coaching was incredibly helpful… and her support was immeasurable!

I also want to acknowledge Rick Simmons, MSODA of the telos institute for his leadership, friendship, and mentorship. Rick is a super-connector and one of the most intentional, thoughtful, and innovative leaders I have ever met! Proud to call him a friend!