The Speed Project DIY

The PowerMilers are racing: a relay! We had signed up for The Speed Project, a crazy Santa-Monica-to-Vegas relay, before all the COVID cancellations. The replacement event is called "TSPDIY", and we've adapted. We're running a route of our own concoction for 31 hours. It's a set time, so we're going for distance!

The Speed Project doesn't have a lot of rules for a relay: you can read some really fun (and anxiety-inducing) recaps over at tempojournal.com. You make your own route, your relay legs can be any distance, and your team is basically on its own. It's even loser this year, as we're just running for time, and in fact your team doesn't even have to be in the same city. 

We have eleven studs running for our team. And I'm one of them. Because you know what? 

Yeah, there's a pandemic. 

Yeah, I have a baby. 

Yeah, I already did one relay and it sucked. 

Yeah, my hamstring is iffy. 

But I am ready to RACE, this sitting around doing nothing is getting old! I haven't run a race since Thanksgiving of last year, and I was running that one easy (highly pregnant and highly injured). My last real race was the Jazz Half in October, when I lumbered across the line in 1:39:xx, which felt like a victory at almost seven months pregnant. I'm looking forward to running for a reason, and it's been years enough since my last relay for me to be able to look back at it through rose-colored glasses. I guess it wasn't the WORST experience of my life. And this should be slightly less horrible: when I get a chance to sleep, it can be in my own bed, and I can take a shower, too. Of course, the relay is in early September, so we should still expect temperatures in the 90s and even overnight in the 80s, so that won't be ideal. Hopefully we are heat acclimated enough to deal with it for an estimated 290 miles: what our team predicts if everyone performs according to fitness!

Relay starts September 5th. I'll be ready!