Blaizing, rolling, rocking (and hello to all the kitties)

We kicked off the race around 3pm EST, in Bretton Woods (the same Bretton Woods of the famous treaty). Our highly competitive opening group included the former St Lawrence College cross country team (who we jawed with a bit at a local supermarket), a team in yellow called the "free radicals" and our overall favorites, an all men's team in pink, white, and black spandex known as "Hello Kitty". Yes, we'll try to add photos.

Bel had the honor of being the only runner not to help us get towards the beach (ok, maybe 10ft, as he says reading over my shoulder), as the first leg took him up and over the opening mountain. Imagine running 1.5 miles up a ski slope, and then 1.5 miles back down, and that's what he got to do. Joel followed up with a solid run down and out of Bretton Woods.

I grabbed the third leg, not knowing exactly what to expect, only to discover that the rolling hills were not *quite* as gentle as I'd thought. 3.7 miles, a few cliffs, and a thousand feet later, I'd finished my leg in about 5:30 pace (more stats coming from Bel), catching the runner from the Free Radicals. My legs burned on all the downhills and was certainly being outrun on them, but I felt great on all the flats and uphills, and feel pretty confident for the main legs of the race this evening.

I'd add that Don had a great leg after me, and Crosby is hauling *** right now - he's put us in first!