Nike Challenge Chronicles

So now I'm going to chronicle my race to the finish of the Nike Challenge that I was SOOOOO caught up in. Over the last month, my main competitor, Chris, really stepped it up. We were running neck and neck, and I was starting to worry about what I was going to do with our impending vacation plans because the challenge was slated to end at 11:59:59pm Saturday, June 5th. I really didn't want to run over our vacation, but I was going to have to if I had any hope of winning. Both of us were posting anywhere between 2 and 4 miles daily, so there really was no room for even a day off.

Wednesday, we were to leave town after Aaron got off work. He got off early. I swapped cars and kids with him and went to the gym to put in a few miles before we left town. We drove to McKinney, TX and stayed the night. Thursday we drove to Victoria and once we got into town, I went to Aaron's old high school track to put in about 5K. Friday morning I went and ran about 4 miles, I think. It was hot and humid...it was south Texas.

The morning of the final day I was up 109 to 105 approx. I ran 4.5 miles that morning to put a good lead in. So, when we left for the dude ranch it was at 113.7 to 105.9 and I was up. I said I was done and was going to quit thinking about it. Well, as I was putting the kids to bed in our cabin, Aaron took our laptop to the lodge to upload some pictures and logged on and saw that Chris had done just enough to beat me and he was up 114 to 113.7! He came back to the room and was like, "are you up for another 1/2 mile?" It was getting dark, in the TX wilderness, and I was ready to run. So, I was going to go alone, and when I got all hooked up, my ipod was dead. So, I had to wait for it to charge. It was like 9:15pm. By the time it was charged, it was dark...so Aaron came with me. We jogged the dirt road that leads up to the dude ranch. It's a little over a mile long. It was hot, and humid and dark, and all we had was a small flashlight. The terrain was rocky. I had started to feel sick after dinner. About 3/4 mile into it I started to worry about wild hogs and coyotes. I was scared. Aaron said he wasn't worried, so we kept going. We ran 2.5 miles. I posted it and went to shower, feeling really bad. I was weak and tired and sick to my stomach. When I got back to the lodge late, Aaron said that he had posted another 10 miles! Either he ran a crapload that day, or he saved up a run to kill me in the end! There was nothing more I could do and I basically just killed myself in the dark, dangerous wilderness and heat for nothing. I went to bed but woke up around 2am and was up sick the rest of the night. I think I got dehydrated and was heat exhausted. And I suffered from stupidity too. The competition was fierce, but fun. I came in 2nd place. I pushed myself really really hard, and I am proud of what I accomplished anyway. Chris says he's never running again. I will...after a little break!

That's the story. I think it could work as a Lifetime movie don't you?

Coming soon...Dixie Dude commentary and pictures! Stay tuned!