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[quote=Anonymous]Ok, so I've done two Ragnars - 2012 and 2013, locally.

I knew the captain of my team, but nobody else on our 12-person team.  I was apprehensive about fitting in, about running by myself at night, about having to run 3 times in less than 36 hours, about going without sleep, about the possibility of encountering a bear...

It was a wonderful experience, and I knew going into my 3rd leg that I'd do it again the next year.  (I'd do it again this year, but my team decided to become an Ultra team - 6 people covering 200 miles vs. 12 people - and I can't handle that much distance.)

So you register on the Ragnar site for the race you want to do and say you are a runner looking for a team. People will be excited to have you.  They'll ask you about your running experience, how much distance you are used to doing, so they know how to assign you.  Each runner does 3 legs of the relay, and the distances of the legs are all different.  You might have 15 miles split evenly, or 20 miles with a 9 miler, a 3 miler and an 8 miler.  It's really random.  And every runner will end up doing one of those legs at night, by yourself.  (there'll be other people running at the same time, but because they start at different times, you may only encounter a few other runners.)   You will have a headlamp and a buttlamp for the night run, plus a reflective vest.  It's scary, to be honest, but also exhilarating, doing something people tell you not to do - run at night by yourself.

The camaraderie is great. The lack of sleep can be an issue.  Some teams camp out at the exchange points.  My team got a hotel room - we all got to shower between our legs and nap for a couple hours after eating.  It's not cheap - probably $150-$175 for race fees and van rental, plus the vest, headlamp, buttlamp, etc.  But it was a life-changing experience for me - I have always run solo, and being part of an incredibly supportive team in an incredibly supportive environment was really awesome.

What is overrated - the beer tent at the end.  You're too tired to care about beer at that point.  Nobody really socializes with other teams, at least at the DC one, because everyone is too tired.  So you'll meet the folks in your van and on your team but probably nobody else.  The swag is pretty excellent, though - great medal.[/quote]

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