RTB Continued

Wednesday, September 18, 2013 · Mike Davis

Good morning and thanks for sitting down to coffee with me! Sunday I began my RTB wrap up and today I will finish it up. When I left off I had just turned over the bracelet to my wife Kathy at Bare Brook State park and now van 1 was off and running. My van was now on break for another 5 hours and from my previous RTB experience this particular break was my favorite. We had another drive of an hour to Sanborn Regional High school in Kingston NH with a slight detour to Epping for coffee and food at Starbucks. Once we got to the high school my plan was some much need sleep. At this transition point they offered use of the gym for sleeping and for a fee you could take a shower. A shower made no sense to me as I would be running again, but the offer of a mat to sleep on in the gym sounded great to go along with my sleeping bag. They weren't going to make it easy as they directed us to park around the backside of the school and then have to walk what seemed like a quarter mile around to the front side to enter the school. No matter, I made the trek with my sleeping bag determined to get some sleep. Once inside I quietly entered the gym to see not mats but instead a huge floor covering that would offer little in the way of cushioning. At that point sleep was badly needed so my sleeping bag would have to suffice. After laying down my sleeping bag I figured had better go the bathroom before laying down so I went out into the hall and inquired as to where the facilities were? The individual I asked was the shower money taker and he informed me that the facilities I required were the port-a-potties located the quarter mile walk to where we parked. It may not have actually been a quarter mile but in my state it seemed even further than that so I thought about my need to sleep soon so I asked how much is it for a shower? I handed over the 5 bucks, proceeded into the locker room to use the toilet I knew would be located in there. So yes I basically paid 5 bucks to relieve myself. Well worth it! After 90 minutes of sleep, I did some more foam rolling and downed another cup of coffee. My last leg would be 3.9 miles, not exactly a long one but my body was feeling the effects of the 19 point something miles I had already run and I was extremely tired. This final leg I would also bring out a tradition that seemed like a high point for many runners and observers. The first RTB I participated in three years ago we had stopped to use one of those north country park shops and I was browsing the gift shop when I came across this rather large moose hat. I made a quick decision to purchase it and the fun that came with it was priceless. Every year I have run my last leg wearing this moose hat and people love it. For me I enjoyed the reaction from both the runners and those people I ran by but the thing is; it is hot as heck! Despite the sweating I wore it on my final run Saturday and the final run of our RTB 2013. This was the first time I would run the final leg but it was amazing running along Hampton Beach wearing my moose hat, people were honking their horns at me, kids were stopping to give me high fives, I even was asked to stop and get in a picture with a couple who had just gotten married at the beach! Totally a blast and helped to energize me for those final miles. The final half mile of Reach the Beach is on the beach in the sand so as I pulled on to the beach I slowed down considerably just taking in the last steps. Some of my teammates even met me around 100 yards from the finish to join me for those last steps. I was drenched with sweat but I enjoyed those final minutes. After some hugs, high fives and hand slapping we got our team picture taken and headed off for a cookout. We celebrated at our house and shared some stories of the past 30 hours. Everyone had a great time and had much to laugh about. I enjoyed listening to all the stories, but all I really wanted was to lay in my bed! After cleaning up I got to do just that and man did it feel great! RTB 2013 was best yet for me and that's probably due to the fact that I know what to expect better than in the past. 2014 may bring another RTB but that's a decision for another day. For now I am still trying to recover. Hope you enjoyed the experience. Thanks for sharing your coffee with me! mike