Being a Wrunner Wrangler

As I returned to work after an extended weekend of shuttling runners in the 203+ mile Texas Independence Relay, I posted the team picture and the picture of the winning van to the front of my Dilbert-like cubicle. A few of my co-workers looked at the pictures, asked, "How many miles?" They kind of shook their heads and walked on. There were more co-workers who would stop by, look at the pictures, then wonder why I do it. At the risk of sounding uppity, this is why...

To begin, let me state that I will never be a runner. Doesn't appeal to me. A nice walk I can get into, but running? Forget it. However, my brother, James, started running several years ago. When he set his sights on his first marathon, I think I volunteered to come down and help him out by getting him to the race start, checking on him throughout different race points, and just generally being a concerned sister. Secretly, I thought he was a little crazy, but I already had a lot of respect for him. At that time, he had already battled, and won, alcoholism and nicotine addiction. I already looked at his successes in those battles with awe and pride. Perhaps he was replacing these self destructive addictions with another one? At least this one (running) was, somewhat, healthy. Spending time looking at the race route and planning the "hits" to make to give James energy bars gave me a mission. It appealed to me as a sister and appealed to my more analytical personality. I had a "job".

Fast forward a few years. On a fairly regular basis, I am the race support for my brother. Race support blossomed into an annual trek to Corpus Christi for the Beach to Bay Relay marathon, where I no longer ran race support for my brother, but was now responsible for a running pack. I had 6 runners to coordinate and care for. It became a challenge to ensure that this pack had little more to care about than running their leg and handing off the baton. The introduction to the inaugural Texas Independence Relay began in a Corpus Christi condo the night before the Beach to Bay Relay Marathon. The story has been told numerous times, but I was silly enough to throw down the "challenge". "If you get a team together to run it, I'll drive." I really thought it was a crazy feat that wouldn't come to pass. It almost didn't, but three years later...

What do I, as a non runner, get out of the Texas Independence Relay?

1. Taking the business of anything but running out of the teams hands. The captain does a lot of work, but I am the behind the scenes coordinator. I make sure there are places to rest/relax, rent the main team van and generally dealing with all the details. Coordination of any event provides satisfaction and I definitely get that satisfaction from coordinating, as well as the frustration that goes along with it.

2. Directing and corralling 12 individuals into a team. No, I don't lead team building exercises. This group of runners is a mix of co-workers (it IS team Mid-Texas Symphony), relatives of co-workers, and a few additional runners who filled out the team the first year and keep returning because there are now friendships. Any way you want to dissect the team, there are fairly dramatic mixtures. Type A and Type B personalities, Analytical with Artistic temperaments, linear and non-linear thinkers, etc. I really don't do a lot of direction/corralling, but ensuring that the team vans get to the designated hand off points (and knowing that the analytical minds in Van 2 can understand my routing) is satisfying.

3. Sense of responsibility for each team member. Although I am not driving both vans (there are two team vans), I do try to take care of all the runners. Whether that means ensuring that there is sufficient down time: time to eat, time to rest, time to do whatever, I have a sense of responsibility for them. When driving my van, I try to be mindful (sometimes bossy) of providing runner support while they are running their leg. Sometimes I follow them closely, sometimes that means telling the captain to provide water, sometimes it is mixing up Recoverite, but all in all, it means I care about their well being. I feel their pain when running at night, getting lost on a leg, etc. If I fail in my job, the team fails.

4. Being part of something larger than myself. In my day to day activities, I am mainly responsible for me. So, being part of this team of runners, even if I am on the periphery , is a great feeling. I cheer the runners, decorate the van and have fun. I asked the runners in my van if cheering really helps (kind of seems hypocritical for me to cheer when I don't run). They all responded with a definite affirmative.

5. Finally, self-satisfaction in a job well done. When we get to the finish line, their job of running is done. They have the runners "high" and I know that I still have to get them safely back to their cars. I love watching them celebrate and my celebration comes when I hit the bed on Sunday night and can sleep peacefully, knowing that there were no major mishaps, no injuries, and hoping that I wasn't too bossy and that everyone had a great time.

Just thought I would add this to the Mid-Texas Symphony runners blog so that the team members can know how much I appreciate coordinating and driving for them. Additionally, if there is anyone who has ever wanted to be involved in a venture such as this but is not a runner, rest assured that there is immense satisfaction from being on the sidelines and that the sideline crew is VERY appreciated by the runners/teams. I look forward to the part I play, although it may not always seem that way.

On to next year! The Gonzales hotel reservations are already made for Friday, March 4, 2011 (4 rooms - two doubles and two kings), the mondo van has been reserved and I already have begun thinking about how to "up" the decorations on the van. It would be awesome to win best decorated van for two years in a row!