Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Relay Packing Advice Wanted

Since we are departing next Wednesday for Oregon and the great Hood to Coast relay, I am starting to pack.

Okay, all I did was get out the suitcase and buy some baby wipes at Target last week.  I plan on bringing travel size shampoo, conditioner, lotion, etc to save space in my bag. 

What my point really here is...
What should I bring? 
What are your relay running must haves?

I know I have read posts about great things to pack for a relay, but that was then and I wasn't packing for a relay, now I am. If you have such a blog post I would love it if you would leave me a link to it so I can study it like it is my job. 

Also what did you bring that you really didn't need after all?
What did you wish you would have brought?



19 comments:

  1. I packed super light for the one I did and think I used pretty much everything. I didn't bring a pillow, just tried to use my bag in the car and that didn't really work!

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  2. I've never done a relay, so I'm no good for advice. Good luck, though!! You're going to have so much fun.

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  3. I am packing right now for my 4th Ragnar Relay. Pack a blanket - I found that some like air conditioning blasting in the van and I don't. Plus it is nice to have when standing outside at night cheering on your fellow runners. And baby wipes - keeps you feeling fresh!! HAVE FUN!!!! Can't wait to read all about it!

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  4. Bring an outfit for each leg and pack them individually in a large zip lock bag to keep everything together. Don't forget the essentials: sunscreen, snacks, compression gear, ibuprofen, pillow & blanket, band aids, & flip flops.

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  5. LOUNGE CLOTHES! Something to toss on after you take off your skanky running clothes. Flip flops! I brought three running outfits and three pairs of shorts and tees to toss on. I may not have been clean, but clean clothes made me feel way better.

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  6. Gallon sized ziplocks will be your BFF.

    Pack each individual outfit for each of your legs in a gallon-sized ziploc - everything, sports bra, socks, any fuel you'll need on that run (GU, whatever), all of it. When you're done, you can toss the funk clothes back in there and keep the funk contained. Mark each bag with which leg it's for.

    Pack your safety gear in a separate ziplock bag, so it's all together and easily accesible.

    Pack all toiletries in a separate ziplock bag - body glide, deodorant, sunscreen, etc.

    Pack your post-race gear (comfortable clothes, compression, etc) in a separate bag.

    Bring way fewer snacks than you think you need, and plenty of water.

    I didn't bring clothes to wear between legs - I would change out of my running gear, baby-wipe down, and put on the next set of running gear. Keeping track of a separate outfit between each leg would have been just too much stuff.

    I ended up with bringing just a backpack, and had everything I needed, and didn't feel like anything was missing.

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  7. the packing clothes in a ziplock bag thing is definitely smart! i did grocery bags for my last one and it helped. definitely nice to have clothes to change into immediately after each run so you dont have to sit around in sweaty clothes! i also brought fuel and snacks that I like. a water bottle. flip flops! you will do great! super excited for you!

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  8. You have a lot of great advice. I always pack each outfit in it's own ziplock - makes it easy to find and then easy to pack up the nasty stuff you are taking off and SEAL IT UP. :) I would also pack an extra pair of shoes, a blanket and small pillow and more food than you think (and a wide variety because you never know what will sound good). Basic toiletries are great - just brushing your teeth and washing your face can make you feel like a new person. :)Oh, and a camera for sure!

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  9. Ziplock bags for sure for all your stinky clothes! A super comfy outfit for between legs that includes flip flops! I usually always pack a normal outfit like jean shorts or a dress and never wear it so save yourself some room and only pack comfy stuff. I usually bring a full size towel and end up not showering, so maybe just bring a hand towel and worst come to worst you can dry off with that :).

    And...TOILET PAPER! I've heard some nightmarish things about porta potties at HTC running out of TP so stock up!

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  10. I am no help, but think the commenter who talked about the gallon sized ziplocs has this down!

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  11. We brought way too much food and ended up not eating most of it. We stopped to eat meals along the way, so the snacks were really not needed. We also never used the Febreeze, half of the drugs (tylenol, pepto, etc) or anything in the first aid kit.

    Baby wipes was my #1 must have. I also kept a little tote bag of stuff I needed/wanted - (my cell, camera, headlamp, clif bars, gu, chapstick etc...) to keep at my feet so I had it easily accessible the whole time. Good luck!

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  12. Giraffy has it down for sure! I can't believe I never blogged about what to bring and right now I can't remember!!! One thing I found helpful was gallons of water. You never know what's going to be available along the course. The men in our van thought it was insane - but the six of us did drink 8 gallons of water! :) Sunscreen for sure and snacky items.

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  13. Lots of good advice here. I second the bring a separate complete running outfit for each and every leg. It's much more humid in Oregon and sweaty clothes do not dry out between runs. When I finished last year both my hats were soaking wet and I ended up buying a ball cap to wear on the beach to shield myself from the sun. Bring warm clothes to wear at night - believe it or not it does get cold in the coast range, even in August! Salty snacks are good too. My van downed an entire jumbo bag of kettle chips! I'm definitely bringing more of those this year. Good luck packing and have a safe trip.

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  14. Hi Christy, I have never done a relay before, so I don't have anything helpful to add here...but first thing that came to my mind is a foam roller?! And lots of snacks/granola bars because I can imagine getting really hungry during the down time.

    I also wanted to let you know that I had some foot discomfort after my december 2011 marathon and I'd been feeling it off and on for a while and it finally went away after I loosed up my shoes! Hope that helps.

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  15. A tarp to hold up in front of open van doors so the runner can change out of running clothes, clean clothes to wear after running, towels, and definitely fresh socks for each run.

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  16. Flip Flops! You'll want to be out of your running shoes whenever possible.

    HAVE FUN!!!

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  17. i'll admit, i didn't read all the above comments so I'll try not to repeat.
    body spray (bc you will smell) air freshner (bc your van will reak) pump up tunes for the van (bc you will need it by the end.

    For food start thinking about what your stomach likes- i think often times we just grab whats quick, but we're not used to running with it. I LOVE LOVE LOVE fig newtons as a quick energy supply. Definitely have cash too, the major exchanges will sell food if traffic is heavy and you need to eat right then and there vs. finding something. I have a hard time sleeping with a lot of noise, so I always bring ear plugs to help with downtime.

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  18. What Giraffy said is pretty much what I did. Freezer bags with one Leg per bag. I did not need ANY of my snacks, since the van went in together for food. Although if you usually eat something particular, I would bring it just in case. We ended up eating out two meals though. Also, don't forget flip flops. And bring something warm for the night run, but not too warm. For us, we were running in San Francisco and it gets pretty foggy and was probably around 50 at night, but I still ran in my t-shirt. BUT while waiting, you get COLD!

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  19. I asked the same question on my blog. and also on our FB page for our team. Warm clothes for the beach is what I got. LS shirt for between legs in the night. hats. someone said gloves

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