First Relay Week

Day 10 – 3/22 – Prepping for the first runner – (LA area) – We got up and got the hot water going for the dishes. I did the dishes which took awhile because it was all the ones from the past 5 days. Gabby made us breakfast sandwiches which were very good. We organized a lot of the RV while getting things ready to go get the RV washed. We were both pretty tired and we drove an hour to the truck wash. The truck wash itself was pretty cool and very fast which was nice, and then we drove to go grocery shopping at Walmart. Both me and Gabby were kind of out of it while shopping so it took awhile but we were able to get it all done, even if we were kinda slow. We drove back to the RV park and did lunch and worked on getting some things organized and getting our route planned for the start day the next day. We took the car to a car wash after that along with getting some gas and ice. Once we got back Gabby organized the car and I worked on inside the camper, we both called our parents while cleaning which was nice to be able to catch up. I also got to show Gabby my dogs and had her say hi to my parents. Once all our stuff was done we were able to hang out together while eating dinner and watching the first episode of Ludwig’s china trip series. We went to bed so we could get some sleep before waking up at 4am to get to Santa Monica by 6am to meet Chris our first runner to start the relay.

Day 11 – 3/23 – Our first relay day and a hike – (LA area) – I got up at 4am and I woke up Gabby by just saying her name which worked much better then I thought it would and we got ready for the day and hit the road by 4:50am. The traffic in LA was pretty crazy even at that hour which was kinda wild and we dealt with a road closure when we got close to the Santa Monica Pier, but we met up with Chris at a pretty reasonable time. We met his friends Aaron and Sammy as well, Aaron was running with him and Sammy was Aarons fiancee who would drive him back after he was done running with Chris for the day. Once they started Gabby and I went back to the car and tried to get to the first turn to make sure they knew where to go but the road closure was once again in the way, but thankfully they figured it out with the map loaded on their watch and we met them a few turns ahead. The rest of the day was running around Santa Monica and Beverly hills trying to keep up with them and we did a pretty good job of that. At some point Gabby and I really had to pee and it took a little too long to find a bathroom, but we both made it. Throughout the run we were doing social media stuff and I was trying to get photos and videos for the Instagram post and the weekly video. Chris was very fast and didn’t stop almost at all for the crew stops which was pretty crazy and impressive. We met them at the end and did some more photos and then went back for recovery and lunch. Gabby set up the recovery stuff and I made lunch for all 3 of us and we got to hang out with Chris and hear about his life in the navy for awhile. He was surprisingly fine and chill even after running a marathon in around 4ish hours. After we were done with lunch and stuff I did some file management and then me and Gabby went on a hike together. On the drive out there we were talking about how cool yet weird it was to have someone else living with us, because we had gotten used to it being just the two of us for about a week by then. We both really like Chris but we were just noticing the difference, and with that how we had gotten to know each other so incredibly fast. We had hours and hours of driving and a good chunk of that was getting to know each other which was pretty easy for both of us. I think we felt that we really enjoyed just being together just a day or two into the trip, which definitely makes things a lot better as a whole. And I think this is part of the reason why Gabby wanted to go on a hike together that was close enough to the RV park so we would have time for it. We went through some of the mountains near LA which was a very different landscape then I was used to with very few trees, mostly bushes and a lot of cool looking exposed rock. We hiked for a little while and then turned back to make it in time for making dinner. We were going back for a little while when all the sudden we heard a very loud, distinct rattle and in a split second realized there was a rattlesnake 3 feet in front of me. The rattle was very distinct and I saw the snake for a split second, enough that I could see its head and tail perked up ready to attack. Both of us immediately scrambled back, I grabbed Gabby’s hand, dragging both of us back while we both ran away. Both of us were reacting as you would seeing a deadly snake like that. We caught our breath and very carefully walked past the spot because Gabby had seen it slither away. For the rest of the way down we kept seeing sticks and stuff that started looking like snakes. Neither of us had seen a rattlesnake before so we were definitely a bit shaken. When we got back to the camper we told Chris about it and he said that he has seen a lot of them where he’s from in San Diego and they call them danger noodles. I helped Gabby as she made dinner which was gnocchi and ground beef with marinara. It was a very good meal, Gabby did a great job. We planned the route for the next day along with the plan for me taking the camper to get the generator fixed. We hung out with Chris for a bit and when he went to bed Gabby and I watched some of the next Ludwig china video. We were both pretty tired but it was nice to chill together for a bit before bed.

Day 12 – 3/24 – Second day with Chris and fixing the RV – (LA Area) – Chris and Gabby got up early to start the run but I slept in a bit until 6:30 when I got up to get the camper ready to get it serviced. I took it to a camping world where we had an appointment with a guy named Nick to get the problem with the generator diagnosed along with the tow bar. He was a very cool guy, very chill but also straight to the point. He had me sign some paperwork and I waited in their customer lounge area working on my laptop while they were looking at the generator, and eventually Nick came in to tell me that they have to replace the carburetor along with some other services to it. He thankfully said that they did have the carburetor there so they could do it right away. This was a big relief for Gabby, Ashley and me because Nick had said on the phone that he was thinking it would be that part and that they probably didn’t have the right one. And those things take forever to come in if you have to order them, which could’ve been a problem because we are going to need the generator for going through the desert. We would’ve had to try and find someone with that part, but thankfully camping world had it. I waited for a little while longer while Chris was finishing his segment for the day and then I grabbed Chris’s stuff out of the camper and they picked me up and we went to In-N-Out. They told me the run went well, and Gabby had been sending me some videos while they were going that were very nice. This was the first time I had been to In-N-Out, and it was pretty dang good. After we ate we went to REI because Chris needed gels for his nutrition stuff and Gabby needed a water bottle because hers kept leaking. We were pretty sure we still had time before the RV would be ready so we went to Malibu beach. That was a bit of a drive but it was pretty nice. Of course we didn’t have our swimming stuff with us, but Gabby went in the ocean anyways. I wanted to but the shorts I was wearing would’ve been soaked for awhile and we were going to be headed back to the camping world soon. And sure enough I got the call from Nick telling me that it was good to go after we had been at the beach for 20 or 30 mins. We drove back to the camping world which was an hour and 20, I drove and Gabby worked on the Instagram caption and then fell asleep in the back of the car. We got to the RV place and Nick had me sign more papers and we went back to the RV park. I worked on the Instagram post for the day real quick and Gabby worked on dinner which was salmon poke bowls. I helped her with some prep stuff. After dinner we did the prep for the next day route and Gabby showed me the nutrition stuff for Chris because she was gonna move the camper the next day and I would be crewing Chris by myself. We didn’t do a whole lot the rest of the evening, we talked with Chris for a bit and then we all went to bed.

Day 13 – 3/25 – Crewing Chris by myself and setting up in Barstow – (LA area – Barstow area) – We had to move the RV from our original park to Barstow CA in the morning, so Gabby did that while I crewed Chris. We got up and drove only 15 minutes to the start line to start at exactly 6am. Gabby made me cold oats the night before which is something we’ve done a few times now. The landscape during the run was very pretty and I got a bunch of pretty cool shots. There was a pretty big hill up the side of a mountain and then it went down into the desert areas where we saw a bunch of Joshua Trees. I prepped Chris’s stuff like his electrolytes and his recovery mix for after his run. We then drove towards Barstow where we met Gabby for lunch at a Hawaiian BBQ place. It was pretty good, I got the beef plate. We went to the RV park and set everything up, although our AC started giving us problems. It kept flipping the breaker which was very annoying. Gabby and I went to the pool which was a nice break from the desert heat, although she thought the pool was way too cold, but she did get in eventually. We hung out in the pool for a little while and then went back to the camper where I just chilled for awhile. Gabby made grilled chicken while I helped with the sauteed veggies. We watched this guy who’s truck broke down get pulled into his RV spot which was kind of interesting, and then we got the route ready for the next day and took showers and stuff before bed, we had to wake up pretty early at 3:45am the next day to get to the spot to start the run. 

Day 14 – 3/26 – Beautiful landscapes on the run and an interview – (Barstow CA area) – We had to wake up at 3:45am to get to the spot on time to start the run at 6am because it was an hour and a half to get there. All 3 of us were definitely not super happy to be up at that hour but we were able to get to the start so Chris could start his run on time. It was nice to have the two of us crewing again as it meant I could get a lot more shots while in the car and we had someone to hangout with a bit while waiting for Chris to catch up to us. I got a bunch of cool shots of Chris with the amazing views and at the beginning I got a cute shot of Gabby running up with some flowers. The route took us down a private road that was a throughway and was very pretty, although we did run into someone that was annoyed that we were there but he didn’t give us any problems. We saw a huge dog not long after that which apparently ran at Chris although thankfully didn’t actually attack him. Once we were off that road it really opened up and was very pretty was we went down a road with a very long hill. Chris hit mile 100 at the end of that hill so we celebrated that and he continued on his favorite road of the day because the drivers were nice and he had a very wide shoulder to run on. Once we were done for the day we went back to the campsite where Gabby got some leftovers together and I did some editing. We hung out for awhile while we waited for the RV repair guy, Fred, to come look at our AC. Fred and his guy cleaned it out and looked at it and told us to let them know if it had more trouble. It tripped the breaker again not long after they left along with a whining sound. The AC not working was a pretty big problem with how hot it was and how not used to heat I am. Gabby and Chris are way better with heat then I am, but I also need to be able to sit inside with my computer for editing stuff so I can see the screen and have room for my mouse and stuff. So the AC not working was getting pretty frustrating. I had to edit a bts reel which was fun to make. I was feeling all over the place and Gabby wanted to go to a ghost town thing so I decided to go with Chris and her. It was a cool little tourist thing to walk through with some weird looking birds that were walking around. They were chukar partridges. There was a cool overlook spot there that you could see the landscape for many miles. We went out to an Italian place for dinner which was pretty good, I got a 3 piece plate and couldn’t finish it all and then left my leftovers on the table at the place which was sad. When we got back me and Gabby sat outside to plan the route for the next day. We went to be shortly after that. 

Day 15 – 3/27 – Moving the RV to even more of the middle of nowhere – (Barstow CA – Newberry Springs CA) – I got to sleep in a little bit, around 6:45 because I was moving the camper that day and Gabby was chewing Chris. I made myself some eggs and was able to chill for awhile after finishing packing up the camper. I waited for the RV repair guy to come again so he could replace the motor in the AC. We tested it before he left and it didn’t trip. I met Chris and Gabby at the next RV place which was not a great one. The AC tripped again while I was try to work on the video and both tests kept tripping it. This very annoying because we were in and even hotter part of the desert with no AC at all. I also needed the starlink set up because the parks wifi was so bad, and the set up was very messed up so it took like 2 hours of troubleshooting with Christian to finally get it working. While I was working on that there was a mini earthquake which was cool. Gabby and I went paddle boating in the little pond they had there which was chill and fun. Gabby made pizza and left over stuff we had around. It was pretty good and then we showered. The shower was pretty bad even for a campground. It was pretty glitchy which was annoying. When we got back from showering we planned out the route and some groceries for the next day as it’ll be Chris’s last day.

Day 16 – 3/28 – Chris’s last day and meeting Wendy – (Barstow CA area) – We woke up pretty late, around 6:30 because Chris wanted to start late so he could run with his wife. He had a pretty good start to the morning, although it was weird to be starting in daylight instead of early in the morning. I got some photos of Gabby doing her job along with Chris and his wife. Me and Gabby were both kind of out of it, but we did all the crew stops and then went to the finish line park at the end. We had to set up the inflatable finish line arch which meant we had to ask the houses around if we could use an outlet in or outside of their house. Thankfully someone said yes so we had plenty of time to get it up for Chris and his wife to finish. We did an Instagram live which was kind of weird and I did my camera shots as he came through the finish line. It was a pretty cool moment because he had just finished his whole segment of the relay. Wendy was at the park as well and we took her to a cafe to wait for us to get ready for her. The laundry didn’t work the way we wanted but we were able to get it going along with cleaning the RV. I went to pick up Wendy which was fun to get to talk to her. We picked up a Walmart order and got gas and then went back to the RV park. Gabby and Wendy talked about running for awhile. Gabby made chicken, pasta and veggies. The AC stopped working like it has been with flipping the breaker. Another breaker flipped at one point which was strange. It was good to get to know Wendy more but eventually me and Gabby got to talk about the past week together, because we didn’t feel like it went the best it could have. We did laundry while talking and then I took a shower where the knob for controlling the water had fallen off which was pretty annoying. Then I went to bed because I was very tired and we were getting up at 5am.