Charleston Challenge 40 Mile Relay 2012

natatkinson    Team SteepleWeb     40milerelay, charlestonchallenge

Another year, another course record and victory at the Charleston Challenge 40 Mile Relay. This is the 3rd year of the growing event, and Team SteepleWeb had double representation (that’s right, we had 2 teams this year)! We broke our own course record by 4 minutes with a time of 3:55:15.

Much warmer this year, with a high near 70, and it was quite windy.

Charleston 40-Mile Relay Champs (Year 2)

natatkinson    Team SteepleWeb     40milerelay

SteepleWeb had a team compete in the 2nd annual Charleston Challenge 40 Mile Relay in Charleston, IL. There were double the teams this year – but our goal was to obviously win again – but also to break 4 hours (last year we ran 4 hours and 7 minutes).

The weather was fantastic, and we had a great group of guys competing for SteepleWeb (only 1 returning runner from last year)!

Our time was 3:59.01 (set the course record) and the next team was 55 minutes behind us.  Here is some eye candy for you!

Already of to a lead right from the gun

The Rooster

Not sure what was happening here, but it was epic!

This is my dog, she rode in the van with us for the 4 hours, and licked all the sweat off the guys when they finished their legs

being awesome

Its a Trap

sometimes, shit happens

Dave McKinney, Nic "Rooster" Atkinson, Mike Connolly, Eric Traphagen - the winning crew

Team SteepleWeb Wins 40 Mile Relay

natatkinson    Team SteepleWeb     40milerelay

Last weekend, I had some friends come down, and we ran (its what my friends and I do for fun). We ran in Charleston’s first 40 Mile Relay, and we won it – beating the next team by a whole hour!  There were only 7 teams, but everyone there was in great spirits, and everyone had a lot of fun.  As soon as we walked into the elementary school cafeteria that morning (that’s where the race started), we were jokingly boo-ed by the other teams.  We were the only all male team, and we were certainly the youngest.

Left to Right: Nic Atkinson, Nate Atkinson, Brad Runnion, Bryan Conger - Team SteepleWeb - winners of the first Charleston 40 Mile Relay

I’m not too in shape, but thank goodness the other guys are!  I was certainly our weak leg, but I still ran pretty well – so I was happy.  And I actually ran 11 miles when it was all said and done!

Before we start talking about the race though, I’ve got to share this great little “instruction manual” that was in the bathroom (keep in mind, we were at an elementary school).

How to Pee

Alright, on to the race.  It was cold, and rainy out – it is November after all, so its expected.  We ran southwest of town – some of my favorite areas to run at.  Started off on a Woody’s – Bryan started us off, ran about 3 miles, then handed-off to me, and I ran about 3.5 miles, then handed off to Rooster – who ran about 3.3 miles, and then Brad, who ran about 3.3 miles.  This continued until we ran 40 miles!

The route was great, I liked the weather (although i’m sure some didn’t), and I enjoyed the company.  I hadn’t seen Brad for a while, and Brad is someone I talk to nearly every day with SteepleWeb work.  Bryan is a freshman at EIU, and he is really a great guy – he joined the team well, a great addition.

Next year we hope to have 2 teams and hope to break 4 hours (we ran 4:06).  Enjoy the selected pictures below (the full album is here on Flickr )