The 2022 Reno Tahoe Odyssey (RTO) is complete!
Reno Tahoe Odyssey | Challenge Yourself.
The RTO is a relay race is about 178 miles split over 36 legs. A standard team is 12 runners, so each team member runs 3 legs. “Ultra” teams of 6 do exist, however. The route starts in Reno and runs up Truckee, Tahoe City, and South Lake Tahoe… all the way back to Reno. This a Ragnar style relay meaning it continues all night. Typically each runner runs legs that are equally spaced so there is little time for anything other than cat-napping at a few key points of the race.
Of our 12 runners, 2 dropped out right before the race, so some of us had to run extra legs. I was originally slotted to run legs 11, 23, and 35, which is considered the 3rd most difficult (of 12) set. In addition, due to the dropouts, I ran leg 8. Our team placed a respectable 80 of 202 with a time of 27:58:09 (9:26/mi).
My overall review: hard. Probably the hardest athletic event I’ve ever completed besides the bike trip. However, I’ll definitely be back and training harder. It’s a truly unforgettable and bonding experience.
Strava race results are below. For the first two legs I really struggled with the elevation. According to my Fit Bit, my heart rate rapidly spiked up to 175-180 bpm after the first mile or so of legs 8 and 11 which were at or above 6000 ft. The remainder of those routes I spent trying to reduce my pace so that I could still breathe, but it was challenging. Next time, I’ll spend at least a day or two acclimating.
Leg 23, despite starting at 3:47 in the morning and having the most gain of the legs I ran, felt good. Leg 35 was incredibly challenging for me, and I had to walk the latter segments of it before rallying at the very end. I’m not too surprised though, since I had been up for nearly 30 hours straight at that point.
