Yesterday I talked a bit about the Ragnar Relay in the Adirondacks that I now firmly believe is going to happen. I wanted to elaborate a little bit on something I said yesterday.

Yesterday was the day I’ve been waiting for. The day when some kind of opportunity presents itself, where normally I would laugh and say yeah right . . . but not this time. This time I said let’s do it.

[The Ragnar Relay] is exactly the type of thing I’ve been looking for.  I wanted some kind of not-your-ordinary adventure that will make for a great story, and to be able to share it with people important in my life.

2FNs has had two primary goals since its conception. The first was more of a personal goal, to help myself and Brian lose weight and then maintain it by having some form of accountability, some way to report to the world that we are staying on track. The second was to help motivate anyone who wanted to make a change in his or her life by working to get in shape. Overall I feel like we've been more successful than I'd ever imagined and for that, I am extremely happy.

For the past couple of months as I edge ever closer to my goal weight, I've started to looking for more adventures to find ways to get more people involved. I was looking for something that would make for a great story and an even greater experience—something to which you can say, "Hey, we did that." I didn't know what opportunities would exactly fit that bill, but I've been trying to stay open to different things. When Mark suggested the relay, I realized that  it was what I was looking for. A fun challenge that wasn't necessarily competitive and that a lot of people of all degrees of skill could do together.

I used to play team sports when I was little, but nothing real since middle school . . . unless you count raiding in WoW or countless hours on Counter Strike. Those games provided situations where we needed all hands on deck in order to accomplish our goals, requiring up to forty people all working in a coordinated effort. Being part of a team—of something greater than just an individual—is a powerful motivating factor, and it is one that pushes you to do the best you can. Running is by nature an individual pursuit. You can train with a partner, but at the end of the day it is up to you to push yourself to the next level, to get to where you want to be. There is a distinct lack of team. I think I've been looking for that element, for that group dynamic that is constantly changing and developing.

I know this Ragnar Relay is kind of just a one-off project, but it will be nice to be a part of team.