Ron and Teammates are Vicious and Delicious

Posted September 15th, 2008 by Ron Edelen

 It all started with a friend asking if anyone in the room was a runner. Ignorant to the details, I raised my hand. Without fully understanding the challenge, I had committed myself to run a 208-mile relay through the rolling Blue Ridge Mountains. With the support of 11 killer teammates, the event turned out to be a beautiful experience wrapped in my own physical humility.

I was met with sarcasm and disbelief from the Myjive boys. This only fueled the fire. They only see a 155-pound momma’s-boy whose athleticism spawns from a daily design-star mouse-click routine providing nothing more than dexterous hand-eye coordination. It’s a known fact that the muscle distribution of computer nerds reflects an evolutionary concentration of the left and right mouse-click fingers, diluting other critical muscle development. I’m not denying this theory, but they forget one of Myjive’s core inspirations… “I’m always doing things I can’t do, that’s how I get to do them.” – Pablo Picasso

The Vicious and Delicious

Fueled with ignorant optimism, I hit the mountains at 8am Friday morning with fearsome aggression. By the third leg, my brain had refused to acknowledge the meat-sack that carried it. The final stretch was called the Steven King run. Pitch black with a start time of 3am, it was a 7 mile 200 foot uphill crawl through a winding, fog covered gravel road. I wish I could explain the outcome, but the memory has been suppressed to some deep inaccessible void.

The team finished about mid-way in the stats. It is a sweet accomplishment and one that belongs to the collective guts of 11 other amazing people. Originally complete strangers and now cherished friends, the 12-person squad is notoriously called “Vicious and Delicious.” The Vicious (Mike, Eric, Tony, Justin, Clark, and Todd) dominated with their wicked power and freaky aggression. The Delicious (Ron, Scott, Nikki, Katie, Mike, and Jen) smoked everyone with a tasty aura that… well, let’s just say was so Delicious!

There were over 800 runners on 78 teams who ran in the 2008 Blue Ridge Relay, which was held Friday and Saturday, September 5th and 6th. Teams of 4 – 12 runners, along with their enthusiasm, cooperation, and extreme ability to run for 208 miles from Grayson Highlands State Park, Virginia to Asheville, North Carolina made this event a remarkable experience for everyone involved.

The Blue Ridge Relay course offers some of the well-known scenery of the Virginia and North Carolina Mountains, but highlights the beauty of our less-traveled countryside, sounds of our sparkling creeks, the coolness of our mountain hollows, and some very big views. The course is as challenging as it is beautiful with a total gain in elevation of over 12,000 feet and total loss of almost 15,000 feet.