VCM Relay Team!

So back in January when I thought I would be running the full Vermont City Marathon, my friend Maria thought it would be fun to enter the relay and have her relay team run alongside me for the the full race - motivation, camaraderie, company. Apparently I needed those things far before the race itself, because I my training was... lame, nonexistent and I decided not to run VCM after all.

But wouldn't you know it, Maria got a team in the relay lottery and now I am one of the runners on the team Patti's Pacers. The irony is rich.

The five-leg relay course lets you divvy the distances among your runners however you choose. I lobbied for two legs, so I'll be running about 12 miles:

• Leg 2, the Beltline: one of my favorite parts of the whole course, this out-and-back leg gives every runner a chance to see every other runner in the entire race. For back-of-the-packers, it's a pretty good thrill to see the fastest of the fast coming at you as you're heading out
  

• Leg 3, downtown and south end: the best and the worst leg. Pluses: running down Church Street, neighborhoods with water hoses and trays of oranges, bagpipers on Pine Street, cruising into Oakledge Park and then coasting up the bike path along the water. The minuses? Pine Street is mostly not attractive, the South Cove Loop is a cruel joke. Some might put Battery hill in the latter category too, but I have good memories of heading up this hill every time I've run it. And this time I get to hand off the relay bracelet as soon as I get to the top!
  

Check out the course map here.