2017 Red Dirt Ultra

Waiting for the start.

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2. sur·re·al

   səˈrēəl/

   adjective

   1. having the qualities of surrealism; bizarre.

      
      

      "a surreal mix of fact and fantasy"

      
      

      synonyms:

      unreal, bizarre, unusual, weird, strange, freakish, unearthly, uncanny, dreamlike, phantasmagorical "a backdrop of surreal images"

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5. This is the only way I can describe last weekend for me.  It has been hard to put it into words over the last few days, but I am going to give it a shot, so hang on.

Leading into Red Dirt, people kept asking me if I was nervous, and I would answer them honestly and say "no".  I had been planning this race and working on even the smallest details for a year.  I knew that all of the logistics were covered and I had the best possible people in place to make the race go smoothly.  My team is completely competent and once they were set to a task, I no longer had to worry about whether it was going to be done correctly.  We were ready.

But, in the back of my mind, I was waiting... waiting to get nervous or have doubts; waiting for something unexpected to happen; waiting for some unforeseen kink to show itself.  None of those things ever happened.

All of the planning, meetings, race dreams, middle of the night wake ups while details of the race ran through my head...it all paid off, and the race came off without a hitch.  Or at least without any major ones - there is always room for improvement, and we are working on that for next year.

Instead of being nervous, I was completely at ease all day.  There was anticipation - it felt like my kids were running, and every time a runner finished, there was a sense of pride and relief that they accomplished their goals.  I must say, the finish line hugs were my favorite part - even if you guys smelled pretty bad sometimes.  :-)

I loved every minute of the race, even the set up and tear down.  I loved visiting with the families and crews while they were waiting on their runners.  I loved seeing runners head back out that gate for another loop.

From the first runner to the last runner, regardless of pace or time on the clock, every single one did something amazing this weekend, and I could not be more proud or more humbled.

THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart for having faith in me and trusting that we would take care of you.  It was an honor, and I am already looking forward to Red Dirt 2018!  

Course tear down complete.  Time for some rest.

See you guys next year!  

Edie