But one of the most challenging things is trying to convince other people to also love Ragnar... And if they've never done it before, well... Then trying to explain Ragnar can be kind of confusing...
For my first Ragnar, Adirondacks, I was invited to join a team. I didn't know anyone else on the team and wasn't the team Captain. My captain did all the dirty work and all I did was conveniently show up in Upstate New York and patiently await my ride from the airport. Hello, teammates!
For my second Ragnar, I had just moved to Tennessee. I had completed ADK a few weeks earlier and thought "There is a Ragnar happening in the state I now live in. Of course I'm doing it." I was living out of a hotel room, but through the facebook group, I managed to find a team who was down a runner due to injury and hopped on board less than two weeks before. I didn't have an apartment yet, but I had a Ragnar team. It's all about priorities! Plus, I figured, what better way to make new friends in a new city than to spend 36 hours in a van with someone?
I actually PLANNED joining a team for Ragnar Trail West Virginia! One of my ADK teammates had wanted to run this as well, so between the two of us, we rounded up all the crazy folks we knew and forged ahead! As is pretty much always the case, we lost a few along the way, but managed to fill in some holes with friends and when that failed, we found a runner on facebook! She flew in all the way from Florida to join us and she fit in to our team perfectly!
That's the thing though... The facebook event pages are a great way to find runners or a team, but just a heads up: Finding a team to join is much easier than finding runners.
There are always TONS of teams looking for runners at the last minute. Whether someone is out because of injury, they feel they're not prepared, whatever the reason. And since there are more teams looking for runners than there are spare runners... Well, if you need a runner, grab the first one you can. And if you're a runner, you're also in a position to pick a team you think suits you best.
If you're on the fence about running a Ragnar, you really shouldn't be. It's honestly not very competitive (unless you're like, super, ultra-fast, serious runner...) and it's amazingly rewarding. There are plenty of places to find information about Ragnar online, including lots of blogs like my own or on facebook pages. And Ragnar people are friendly and always willing to help.
And, if you're ever looking for a Ragnar teammate, well... You know where to find me.
You won't have to try to hard to convince me. <3
#runlove, y'all!