Wasatch Back Relay

The 2007 Wasatch Back Relay was probably the most fun relay yet. It doesn't mean I want to run it again anytime soon, but we did have a great time. Our Weber State Alumni team beat the BYU Cougar team (first time since 2004). We had 7 alumni (Me, Jason Schoenfeld, Mark Jolley, Joel Atwater, Jed Johansen, Kenneth Richardson, and Trent Hooper) and 4 current Weber runners (Bryant Jensen, Dave Olsen, Jace Nye, and Steve Sheppard). We were 1 runner short of a full team because Trevor Ball dropped on us a few days before the race.
Brad Anderson was our driver for the 2nd year in a row, and he was huge key to our success. Check out his race summary and some pictures at www.andersonfamilyrun.blogspot.com.
The first van (the young guys) ran outstanding and gave us a huge lead from the start. BYU did get lost on the 2nd leg, but it only accounted for 6 or 7 minutes of our 19 minute lead after the first 6 runners. The stud of the relay had to be Bryant Jensen. He ran against Kyle Perry - who was probably more focused on his current legal issues with the "mop attack". Bryant ran strong on all 3 legs and really lengthened our lead. Each time the 2nd van was running we lost time to BYU, but not enough for them to get back into the relay. We kept just enough time to "pad" the lead for Jed. I think the closest they got to us after the 2nd leg was about 10 minutes. Our finishing time was 17:40.40. Probably not as tough as the 2004 or 2005 team, but definitely fast enough to win this year, which is good enough for me.
They put us on Sportsbeat Saturday for about 2 minutes. Jed, Mark, and Kenneth answered all the lame questions that Rod came up with (seemed like on the spur of the moment).
Thanks to Stefanie and all the other wives for letting us party for a night. I know I was pretty wasted for a few days after the relay, and Stef has been very patient and helpful during my recovery. Maybe it is because I got sick, or the extra leg I ran, or the foot injury that is still bothering me a week later, or maybe just because I am getting older, but I am having a harder time recovering this year than in years past. Still, I am sure that we will get a team together again next year. It is worth it to spend the time with all the guys.