# 29 Walk/Run the Golden Gate Bridge

Starting line of the Relay

It's been a little while since I've been able to blog so I'm catching up. I am very happy to report that one item has been crossed off my 40 before 40 List...

#29 Walk/ Run the Golden Gate Bridge!  

How did I come about accomplishing this?  By participating in a run called, The Relay. 

The Relay is a non-stop, 36 hour, day and night foot race that starts from Calistoga

(Napa Valley) to Santa Cruz covering 194 miles.

I first heard about the race via email from a fellow co-worker.  He was looking to form a team and have our company (Microsemi) sponsor it.  My first initial thought was, who in their right mind would participate in such a race?  Not a chance, this is for CRAZY people.  Then something in the email caught my attention, 1 runner would have the privilege of running across the Golden Gate Bridge... hmmm, I can DO crazy where do I sign-up?

There are 36 legs to the race and each runner has 3 legs to run in rotation. I was runner #6 in Van 1 (V1) and my first leg was running in Calistoga, my second leg would be running across the Golden Gate Bridge (GGB) and my third leg would be running 3 miles up Skyline the steepest hill-of the race (gulp).  I was anxious about the last leg but if that's what it took to run the GGB... it was game on.

Our 12 person team consisted of Microsemi employees

from Northern and Southern CA, some of us had never met before.  We were introduced to one another at a rental car company at the San Jose airport where we assembled
6 runners in each van. We made a quick trip to Costco, decorated our vans (Hunger Games style) and ate dinner together. Even though some of us might have been strangers hours before, we were now a team sharing a unique journey to cross a finish line.

Our Team Captain Joe at Costco (we would be eating a lot of Clif Bars!)



Hunger Games Theme 

All 12 Runners

Van 1- Michelle, Rob, Me, Mark, Naren & Nuru

 I was in Van 1 and was the 6th runner, so when I finished

my leg, I handed my baton over to Van 2 (below). 

Van 2 -Tim, Rick, Hong, Mar, Steve and Joe

Mar running in Calistoga (check out the vineyard)

 

Mark handing me the baton

My first run was almost mid-day and when I finished my miles I handed the baton over to V2.  Our van had some down time at a church that was converted into a rest station for runners.  We rested for a few hours (nobody could sleep) then headed out to take up the baton again from V2.  The rotation started over again...

My first Leg


The thing about this race is that you are always "on" even when you are not running.  Everyone in the van works together to direct the van to the next location and to support one another. Our van was very easy going and everyone got along (thank goodness).  No one needs a jerk on board especially under circumstances such as this.

At around 10:45 PM the baton was handed to me and this time I would be running over the GGB!  My journey started in Sausalito.  It was dark and I'm not exactly the most savvy at directions. 
I got lost going to the bridge and had to send an S.O.S text to my van to come find me.  They followed me and made sure I knew where to go. I made it to the bridge and then started across.  The weather was ideal, not cold at all which was unexpected. 
It was incredible and I took my sweet time.  I reflected a lot about my life crossing over that bridge.  Mostly, I was happy, just living in the moment and enjoying every minute of it. 

Not the greatest picture but it works!



After I crossed the GGB my team was waiting for me and I passed the baton to V2.

Our van then headed to rest area at a local community college.  By the time I fell asleep, it was time for our van to run again, oh yeah and by the way... it was 3:30 AM.

 We made our way to meet V2 and our team was running again.

Hours later, it was time for me to run my last leg and I was not looking forward to climbing Mt. Everest.  I was functioning on 3 hours of sleep and I was mentally and physically exhausted.  Drum roll please...

I was handed the baton and I started up the hill.  I'm not going to sugar coat this, it was a brutal monster of a hill.  If you're a runner and you think you've ran hills before, I hate to break it to you but you haven't.  My calves and thighs burned so bad that I had to actually turn around and run backwards to ease the discomfort- and this was only the first mile! 
I did a lot of self-talk during my climb, you can do this and you are not going to die. 
 Just when I thought I couldn't go any further, I was there.  I gladly passed the baton over. 

I was done!  

Our van journeyed to a local restaurant for a well deserved breakfast.  In the past 30 hours the only thing we had consumed were energy bars, soup, fruit and nuts. 

We were SO hungry!

After breakfast, we waited at the finish line for V2 to arrive.

Other Vans 

Microsemi Team Spirit

When we caught site of our last runner Tim, we ran in with him to the finish line.

WE DID IT! 

Team Microsemi running to the finish line

The Relay was an incredible experience. Not only did I cross an item off of my 40 before 40 list but I met some awesome individuals who inspired me to become a better runner.
 I have a strong feeling that a few team members will even become life long friends. 
Then again, when you spend 35 plus hours in a van together how could you not?

Time to cross off #29...

Our Bling!