Beating the Blerch

Blerch: (noun). A mythical creature that each person has inside of them telling them that napping, eating and any sort of gluttonous lifestyle is far better, more rewarding and more fulfilling than any sort of physical activity or exertion. Why work out, when you could nap instead? The Blerch was created by a PNW comic, The Oatmeal, and is wildly popular amongst runners, non-runners and all those in between. 

Back in March, the Oatmeal announced that he would be hosting a 10k/half/marathon in the Seattle area. I got pretty excited because it sounded like fun: a race with Nutella, grape soda and cake?! Sign me up. Apparently, this was the race to end all races because it seemed like the entire world wanted to get on board. The race sold out in less than 30 minutes. I never even had a chance.

Talk about extreme disappointment. There was a waitlist, so I signed up, but didn't think I'd even have a chance. 

Turns out, a lot of people also signed up....and The Oatmeal ended up adding a second day of running. I.was.in. 

Well, after months of waiting, The Beat the Blerch weekend was finally here. 

I went into Seattle to pick up my packet and ended up getting a signed copy of The Oatmeal's new book. He even drew each person their own little blerch. Seeing as it was Blue Friday, I obviously asked him to make it a Seahawks fan. 

Pretty awesome. 

There were a ton of people there. Each race had been open to 2000 people per day. It was great to meet so many people. There were a lot of different fitness levels and there were a lot of people running for the first time. Clearly, the Blerch had inspired a lot of people to get moving. 

While waiting in line, I met a bunch of people who were running together and called themselves "Team Fatties." They all met online, through the race Facebook page and formed a group that supported each other during training. They were planning on running more races together in the future. I loved that. 

The actual race was at Snoqualmie Valley trail in Carnation, WA. I'd never done any sort of trail running before, so I wasn't quite sure what to expect. It was definitely a much harder run than I am used to, but it was also much prettier. I thought it was a great place for the event. My mom and I drove down early on Saturday and got to watch the half/marathoners start their races. Someday, I'd like to do a marathon. 

Not anytime soon. But someday. 

During the race, there were people dressed up as blerchs, there was a Sasquatch and at some mile markers, there were couches that people could take a break on. It was hilarious. 

At the halfway point, mile 3, there was also the promised cake and Nutella sandwiches. Not quite the best mid-race snack, but totally worth at least a bite of each. 

It wasn't my fastest race by far, but it was probably the funniest, best spirited crowd....minus the Seahawks one I did a few weeks ago. 

I ended up with a rad medal and some pretty cool swag.