Now some of you may be familiar with the you tube video of the Crazy Nastyass Honey Badger (narrated by Randall). If you're not, you should be because it's hilarious. This fearless animal was the inspiration for our team name plus many jokes and witty quips before, during and after the race. As observed by Randall, the Honey Badger just doesn't give a sh*t, a mentality we embraced in many aspects, since we certainly didn't give a sh*t that this race was 200 miles non-stop over 2 days, including dark, creepy nights, up and downhill. But as you know, those of us who are dedicated to the Race Within US, DO give a sh*t about some things, like raising money for our favorite charities. And one badger in particular, Miri Frankel, showed that she gave a sh*t about the American Cancer Society by raising over $2000 for them! Great job Miri! Your team is very proud of you!
It's impossible to write about all the badger moments, as there were too many. I have to admit it wasn't fun every single second. As team captain, I certainly had my moments where handling the logistics and questions became overwhelming. I would like to thank my teammates sincerely for all their help planning things and enduring with a joke and a smile the many moments I was a cranky badger. You are all fantastic, amazing people! But there were fantastic, indescribable moments.... Like the run I did during sunrise, down a gravel road lined with giant evergreens, where the morning mist was just coming up off the ground. It was awesome, even if I could hardly see with all the dust in my eyes from vans driving by to get to the next check point. My final run, which was the longest and hilliest of the runs I had to do, was so picturesque, I thought I had walked into a postcard. I know that my teammates all have their favorite moments as well, like running in the dead of night with only the eerie glow of their headlamp to light the way, or running top speed down Mt. Hood.
The best thing I can say about this race is that I made many new awesome friends. You definitely get to know each other well, maybe too well, when spending so much time together. And inevitably, as I often find happening when people become really comfortable together, the conversation turns to poo. One of my favorite quotes from the race...The Honey Bucket (coincidentally named port-o-potty) is the one place the honey badger does give a sh*t. I laughed my crazy nastyass off with all of the team in the time we spent together before, during and after the race. We saw Portland, ate tapas, drank wine, perfected our jazz hands, hiked to see waterfalls in inappropriate shoes (apparently flip flops or Chuck Taylors aren't good hiking shoes?), and made pancakes together...sort of. I use the word "made" loosely, Mark.
So thank you Amy, Betty, Robin, Jay, Darren, Bethany, Vera, Susan, Sangeeta, Mark and Miri for being a part of the team. And to the honey badgers we lost along the way, Cory and Heather, thank you for your help and support along the way and during the race. You were missed!
Up next for RUS members, Miri, Mark and myself, plus honey badger Jay..... the Bank of America Chicago Marathon. It seems it will also be a mini honey badger reunion as Vera, Susan and Bethany are joining Sangeeta in Chicago to cheer on the runners. I can't wait to see your nastyasses and hope that it is not a rare occasion in the coming future. Until then....
Hugs and kisses,
Captain Cranky Honey Badger (by the way, someone else is captain next time, I already call "not it!")
