S.W.A.T

Karyn’s responses:

What is your proudest running moment so far?
Actually running a half-marathon, and not stopping.
What scares/freaks you out the most about the Ragnar race?
Um, yeah, that would be the giant Texas country bugs that will be dive bombing my head during the night run.  Watch me run if you want some good entertainment (i.e. Mad woman swatting)
What do you do when you need a pick up while running? Music? Mantra?
Sometimes (especially to get out the door) I will think about people who have to do much harder things than run, or for whom running is not just something to do for fun.  I think about how blessed I am that I CAN run and that I even started running in the first place and how that will help me in the long run. (hehe).  Most of the time I’m just reassessing whats left of the run, and the ever popular ‘just one mile left! ANYONE can do something once….’.   One of my favorites though is telling myself that I’d rather deal with the difficult stuff now, so that later it will be easier.  Running is probably the only area in my life where I don’t procrastinate. hmmm….

What is one food you absolutely HATE?

Sauerkraut. disgusting.
Describe one of your silliest moments/habits:

Moments: - 7th grade lunch room, with all my friends. I snorted as loud as I possibly could just to embarrass them. It worked. They all dove under the table while I sat there looking at them like they were crazy. fun times. =)

Habits???  some would say I’m a bit silly about my technology, but it’s the researcher/data geek in me that makes me do that.  I do tend to sing silly songs, especially when it’s just way too quiet and serious on a run, or if we’re doing a drill and the rhythm just happens to match up to a song from Stripes or something.

Here are Fran’s answers!

What is your proudest running moment so far?
First 100 mile finish
What scares/freaks you out the most about the Ragnar race?
hills, heat, and time limit
What do you do when you need a pick up while running? Music? Mantra?
Caffeine strips or good fast paced music. Mantra — just keep putting one foot in front of the other
What is one food you absolutely HATE?
there are soooo many, lets say cauliflower
Describe one of your silliest moments/habits:
sometimes if it is hot and sunny, I will wear a cowboy hat running (very breathable, but I look pretty dorky)

Thanks Fran!

Here are Ginger’s responses:

What is your proudest running moment so far? Completing the first El Scorcho, Ultra along with my very first marathon years ago!
What scares/freaks you out the most about the Ragnar race? Staying awake and being part of a team. I worry I will let others down.
What do you do when you need a pick up while running? Music? Mantra? Music always…..talk

What is one food you absolutely HATE? meat!

Our fearless leader Joy’s responses to the 5 questions!!

What is your proudest running moment so far?

Completing the Rocky Raccoon 50K with out injury in 5:25. I had a very busy schedule and had only 3 days a week to train but I always did my long runs and was diligent on my other runs as well.

What scares/freaks you out the most about the Ragnar race?

That tired women may not remember to be kind, as you never know what someone else is really dealing with internally.

What do you do when you need a pick up while running? Music? Mantra?

I think of those that can’t run and how luck I am. Sometimes I think of songs that describe running. For the most part, running makes me very happy - it is the pick-up

What is one food you absolutely HATE? Spinach

Describe one of your silliest moments/habits: I check my key pocket to make sure I have my car key 50,000 times during events.

Thanks Joy!

Here are Elle’s responses!

What is your proudest running moment so far?
Finishing a 1/2 marathon with my Dad.

What scares/freaks you out the most about the Ragnar race?
Running on NO sleep!

What do you do when you need a pick up while running? Music? Mantra?
If I can see it, I can run to it.
If this was the race, would I be slowing down.
FINISH THE RACE.

What is one food you absolutely HATE?
Brussel Sprouts are definitely High on the list.

Describe one of your silliest moments/habits:
I’m not sure but silly or embarrassing moments seem to find me frequently; I’m usually pretty good entertainment.

Here are Tiffany’s responses:

What is your proudest running moment so far? Completing the Dallas White Rock Marathon in 2007.

What scares/freaks you out the most about the Ragnar race? Running at night and any nocturnal creatures we may encounter along the way.

What do you do when you need a pick up while running? Music? Mantra? Music is good. Conversation with friends is great.

What is one food you absolutely HATE? Good question, because I am not a picky eater. I would have to say beets.

Describe one of your silliest moments/habits: Being that I am generally creature of several silly moments and habits, it is tough to say. It really depends on the situation or what kind of mood I am in.

Here are Ouida’s 5 questions!

What is your proudest running moment so far? I guess it goes back to the first time I ever ran my first complete mile. I only started running in 2000 and joined the Jeff Galloway running group which is a run walk program since I had always been a diligent walker and wanted to incorporate running into my walks. After a few weeks of meeting them on Saturdays, we went to the track to do speed work and the leader proceeds to tell our group to warm up by running 1 mile with no walk breaks, I had never done any such thing so when I actually did it I was beyond proud!

Coming in a close second was the completion of my first Marathon nine months later, who would have ever thought I could do that!

What scares/freaks you out the most about the Ragnar race? Running alone and getting lost. 90% of the time when running in strange places I run with my running buddies and we keep each other from wandering.

What do you do when you need a pick up while running? Music? Mantra? I have only just recently started running with music, so I would guess that most of the time I use self talk to encourage myself to keep going. And running most long runs with buddies we encourage each other tremendously. There have been many runs I would have given up on had my running buddies not been there to urge me on, and hopefully I have returned the favor for them on other runs when they are wanting to give it up. I often tell these women that I don’t like myself much to run over about 6-8 miles by myself, because I can really start talking ugly to myself and decide that yes that leg really hurts! So I am grateful that I have them to keep my “self-talk” to a minimum!

What is one food you absolutely HATE? Food? Hate? Can you use those two works together? I don’t hate any food, just like some way more than others.

Describe one of your silliest moments/habits: I have been known to start sing- alongs during marathons especially after mile 18 when everyone gets so quiet. The silly part is that I can’t sing and usually only know the words to silly songs like “If You Are Happy and You Know It” etc. I also like to talk to the crowd during marathons and especially encourage them to cheer and clap if they are just standing there looking at runners going by.

Thanks!!!

Here are Nicole’s answers to the 5 questions!!

What is your proudest running moment so far?

Well, it’s not straight running, but my proudest moment would be completing a half ironman this year. I worked for 6 months (base building and then triathlon training) for this one 6 hour event. 1.2 miles swimming, 56 miles biking, and 13.1 running, and I’m still alive and kicking!

What scares/freaks you out the most about the Ragnar race?

Um, I guess the only thing that scares me is having to be packed in a van for hours with a bunch of stinky/sweaty runners. And the wild animals that might creep out in the night down in the Texas hill country.

What do you do when you need a pick up while running? Music? Mantra?

I always listen to music in one ear. But lately my running has been struggling and that hasn’t even worked. So I’m open to any ideas that you guys have! During triathlon training, I didn’t listen to anything because headsets are not allowed in USAT sanctioned events. So I used that time as my time to think and really reflect on what a blessing it was that I could do what I do. During my half ironman, every 2 miles I dedicated to someone special in my life and just prayed for them. That kept my mind off the pain I was experiencing and shifted my focus to positive things.

What is one food you absolutely HATE?

Guacamole! I won’t even touch the bowl it’s in. Also, anything that swims. I do not like fish/seafood/sushi AT ALL.

Describe one of your silliest moments/habits:

I can’t think of any silly moments right now….and I don’t think my habits and rituals regarding running should be discussed in public

Thanks Nicole!!

Next Up! Jeffiner! Here are her responses to the 5 questions:

What is your proudest running moment so far?

Running the Cowtown 10K without walking at all. I hadn’t trained enough (I thought) and I expected to do really badly. But I just kept running….and running…and running….and then I was done!

What scares/freaks you out the most about the Ragnar race?

Oddly enough, I’m not really worried about Ragnar at all (Yet! I think I’m too distracted by all the worry I have about the triathlon.) I am a little unsure about what I’m going to eat during the race days, and I’m worried I’ll be really slow and we won’t finish in time because of me.

What do you do when you need a pick up while running? Music? Mantra?

I like running to music, it’s a great distraction. But when I’m really suffering, I keep telling myself that I’m a woman and women are strong. I think about women who have endured oppression and slavery and abuse and giving birth in the fields and going back to work, and that if they can do that, then I should be able to run just a little further. (Sounds kinda weird, I know…Maybe I shouldn’t watch the news so much.)

What is one food you absolutely HATE?

I have discovered that I do not like Gu. I just don’t do well with slime.

Describe one of your silliest moments:

I don’t really know of a silliest moment that I have. I’m rather shy and introverted and tend to avoid attention, attributes which do not lend themselves to silly moments. The only thing I can think of is when I went back home a few weeks ago (for the first time in 5 years). I had forgotten how wonderful home was, and got really excited about it. I was scurrying all around my home town taking pictures of my school, church, courthouse, and other local landmarks. Someone saw me and asked where I was from, to which I replied “here.” He gave me a really weird look.

Thanks Jeffiner!

Maureen got to go first on the 5 questions. Why? Because I emailed her first, that simple. This is all very random mind you.  But here are her answers to the 5 questions:

What is your proudest running moment so far?

I have completed 4 marathons and am attempting my 5th in a month, run numerous half marathons and run lots of local 5 and 10k races. But I would say that my proudest moment in running is setting a good example to my 4 year old niece, Megan. She has seen me run and knows that I run. She even had to buy sneakers that looked like Aunt Mo’s running shoes as well as running outfits like mine. I went to visit her in VA this past June and found a race that we could run. I signed her up, so that she would receive a number, too. I ran the 5k and my brother waited with her near the end and she ran to the finish line with me. She talks about the race quite a bit and calls me when she runs on the family walks. So, showing my niece how fun running can be and that it is good for your health makes me smile.

What scares/freaks you out the most about the Ragnar race?

Nothing really scares me. I like challenges and new adventures. The one thing that I worry about is running at night on little sleep.

What do you do when you need a pick up while running? Music? Mantra?

On my long runs, I listen to my Satellite radio and keep cheering for myself. I also think about what I accomplished and it gets me through.

What is one food you absolutely HATE?

Brussel sprouts

Describe one of your silliest moments:

I have tons of silly moments. I love to laugh and have fun. So, I hang out with people that I laugh a lot with. One moment that just happened last night, involved shopping for an 80’s outfit for an upcoming 80’s party. I was with my friend, Lauren, and we were trying on all kinds of clothes laughing our butts off. We were discussing 80’s clothes, styles and just being goofy. We laughed the entire time we were in the store. It is definitely more fun shopping for silly outfits with a good friend!

So that’s a little bit about Maureen. Feel free to comment and all that.

One done, 11 to go (plus of COURSE Joy and any volunteers we want to quiz!)

Up next… Jeffiner!