“Opportunities do not come with their values stamped upon them.

Everyone must be challenged.

A day dawns, quite like other days;

in it a single hour comes, quite like other hours;

but in that day and in that hour the chance of a lifetime faces us.”
-Maltbie Davenport Babcock

 

For a long time I have dreamed of racing at Lake Placid. As it turns out, I’ll be there sooner than I thought! While, it may not be for my original fantasy involving a 2.4 miles swim, 112 mile bike ride, and 26 mile run, it will involve plenty of mileage.

In an unexpected turn of events, I have been invited to run with the Bondi Band Ultra Team at Ragnar Relay Adirondacks. Unluckily for the team (but lucky for me!), they had some runners drop from the event due to injury.  Surprisingly (and also fortunate for me!) there are not tons of ultra runners available to travel to New York on short notice for a multi-day event (Go figure, right?). I guess there is some benefit to planning life at the last minute because I had no conflicting races or plans.

My initial reaction to the invite was that is was WAAYYY to good to be true! Here I had an invitation to run a Ragnar Event with my race entry and hotel paid for and free gear and nutrition from sponsors…. All I had to do was show up and run. I could not, for the life of me, figure out the catch. How was there not a line of people fighting over this AMAZING opportunity? When I saw the race finished in Lake Placid, I knew it was a sign to just go for it.

There are some times in your life when it just feels like the stars and planets perfectly align in your favor, and this was one for me. I was being offered an opportunity to do something I absolutely love, on a long weekend I just happened to have off from work, within hours of my house, at a location I have dreamed of racing. I felt like I won the karma lottery.

Even after registering and sending me measurements for my race gear, I still couldn’t believe it was actually happening. I held off on posting just in case something fell through… Then it did. Another runner dropped from the team, and we were sent scrambling for a replacement. Again, no one was available who could cover that kind of mileage.  Just when it seemed all hope might be lost, the hubs volunteered to cover the toughest legs of the team (He is a keeper that hubby of mine!)

Sooooo now it is official! We have a full roster! Both the hubs and I will be running as Bondi Bandits at the Ragnar Adirondacks in less than two weeks!!! I am so psyched to be doing my very first sponsored event, and even more so that I’ll have my hubby there with me. Beyond that, I was thrilled to learn that our main sponsor Bondi Band is not only founded by a kick a$$ lady from New England, but also donates 10% of all profits to the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, Massachusetts. That is the kind of company I am proud to run for and represent.

As great as it is to get a free race entry and new gear, I am almost more excited about being a part of a team of like minded individuals!  I am so looking forward to finally meeting all the other ladies in person! I love ultra running, so the opportunity to connect with other passionate endurance athletes (and bad a$$ ladies) is a huge bonus for me.  After all, there is nothing like spending hours end running and sleeping in a van to bond a group of strangers!

For those of you interested in learning more about some of the other fabulous members of the Bondi Bandits, I provided links to their blogs below. Be sure to leave them some love!

RunAllTheRaces– Share Perfect Goofy Gail and Kimberly’s adventures as they run Disney and everything in between

Mother Maker Marathon Runner– A blog about embracing life with a bit of grace, a lot of perseverance, and a positive attitude

Fabulosi-T– Because life is too short not to be fabulous 

While your at it, you can check out our sponsors as well!

Bondi Band– In addition to generously sponsoring the team entries, they are also supplying us with new gear! They have so many cute headbands and socks, it was hard to choose!

Chase This Skirt– Um, did I mention we get to race in custom made skirts!?! Coolest team/race/moment of my life ever.

Clif Bar– The hubs and I already use Clif Bloks as our go to nutrition/electrolyte replacement on long runs and rides. I love that they even come in margarita flavor. 

Krave– Healthy Gourmet Jerky, who knew there was such a thing?  I am sure the hubs will love it; and as far as I am concerned, if it is good enough for Meb, it’s good enough for me!