Dead to Red 2012

It's the end of an era: As I type, Dear Husband and Artist Son are running their 7th Dead to Red race together, the last one before Artist Son heads off to college next fall. And what a wonderful era of father, son, and friends adventure it has been--which of course prompts a bit of reminiscing about our family's Dead to Red history.

Dear Husband and our boys ran their first Dead to Red ultra- marathon relay race, a 248 kilometer (150 miles) race beginning at the Dead Sea and ending at the Red Sea, in 2004, the first year the race was held. Artist Son was a mere nine years old, Active Son was eleven, and Dear Husband was, well, he was younger. As the years passed, the boys got faster and Dear Husband slowed down. I can't remember the year that the boys overtook him in training but I could tell he was glad for it to happen. He made it his goal to run the race until Artist Son graduated from high school.

If I remember correctly, not a lot of training and preparation went into that first race. It was just a lot of fun. The race t-shirts were the best ever with running skeletons, and our team's name was Dead Men Running : six adults, four youth, and the runners did their own driving.

Dead Men Running, 2004

Though the teams Dear Husband, Active Son, and Artist Son have run on have never had the same ten runners, our guys have run together on teams each year from 2004-2012 with the exception of last year, 2011. Dear Husband also missed a race in 2009 as he was traveling outside of the country at the time. Was that ever hard for him!

2004, Active Son and Artist Son thought it great fun to stay up all night, eating snacks, playing cards, and of course running 25K each.

As legend goes, in 2006, one of our team's faithful drivers, when driving through the security check as he left Aqaba with a van full of runners was asked who was in the van, to which he replied, "These are the Dashing Dudes." And so, in 2007 our team officially became the Dashing Dudes. Somewhere around 2005/2006 the adults were mostly replaced by youth who had grown into competitive young bucks. The training intensified and the Dashing Dudes and their accompanying strategy became a team to be reckoned with. I've written about those exciting races here.

This year, Artist Son wore the mantel of team captain, learning more of what it takes to organize, administrate, and motivate a team of runners. The Dashing Dudes put forth their most international team yet with runners from the Australia, Bolivia, Korea, Switzerland, and the United States.

And this year the Dashing Dudes have dedicated their run to their friend Tim, a young man who grew up in Jordan, recently joined the United States Marine Corp and was severely injured in Afghanistan a few weeks ago, losing both his lower legs. Tim's brother is a former Dashing Dude, and both his younger brothers were members of this year's team until they had to travel to the US to be by their brother's side. They are missed, as is their father, a Dashing Dudes driver.

One last time we experienced the Dashing Dude pre-race fever as the guys prepared for the race this morning, though I have to say that there was less heat without Active Son around to whip everyone up. Pasta salad, thermoses of hot tea, and the traditional race Monster Cookies were packed in the van and Dear Husband and Artist Son departed Mafraq to meet up with their team in Amman before heading down to the race start, just past the Mujib bridge. Go Dashing Dudes!

edit~I just spoke with Dear Husband and the Dashing Dudes are in 6th or 7th place (out of 40-50 teams) and have just about reached the halfway part. Now it is cold and dark for long time.

edit~Active Son informs me that Dear Husband came up with the Dashing Dudes team name but that our driver did use it at the checkpoint and was waved through.

Dead to Red 2010

God is blessing us with triumphs and challenges, often intermingled, at such a rate that I've scarce had time to chronicle them, never mind, the notable recipe or contemplation. And though the 3rd place trophy, won three weeks ago, now has the lightest layer of dust on it, the stiffness of muscles has subsided, and the victory dinner of steak and home-made ice cream has been enjoyed, I couldn't let pass the chance to to celebrate the Dashing Dudes 3rd place (of 26 teams) win in the annual Dead to Red 250K relay marathon. And this year I have pictures!

Though this is the sixth Dead to Red run my guys have participated in, I'd never gone to the race start (1.5 hours from Amman) or taken any race pictures; I usually sent a camera along with repeated pleas for pictures, though somehow in the heat of the race no one ever thought to take pictures. So, knowing that this would be Active Son's last Dead to Read race before leaving for college, I decided to drive down to the race start to cheer the Dashing Dudes and take some pictures.

The Dashing Dudes 2010 Dead to Red Team

Meet the Dashing Dudes:

Active Son, a six time Dead to Red runner, was handed the Team Captain baton by Dear Husband this year; It was Active Son's last year to run the race before heading off to college next year. Setting the pace for his team by training diligently, he encouraged his teammates to stay on track with their own training plans, he held periodic time trials during the training months, and with imput from others he worked to develop a race strategy which set the Dudes on a winning course.

This would be a good time to mention that, once upon a time, Active Son had no desire to run. That is putting it mildly. He would tell you now, as he has told a few college admissions officers per his college admissions essays, that God has used running and this race, through the vision of his father, to discipline and humble him. Active Son is preparing to run his first full marathon next month.

Dear Husband was a dad with a vision. If his mom had years ago written a blog about her family, I'm certain Dear Husband would have been dubbed with the same or similar moniker as Active Son. About eight years ago, Dear Husband chose running as an activity that he and our boys could do together, and by which he could impart to them a means for staying in good physical shape. Not a "natural" runner himself, his goal is to run the Dead to Red with his boys until they graduate from high school. Just two more years to go! He trained extra hard this year in a gallant effort to keep up with the young bucks on the team, remembering nostalgically that he used to be faster than both our boys. His reward: he ran faster legs this year than he ran two years ago!. Great vision, great dad!


Artist Son ran his first Dead to Red race when he was nine years old--at that time, the youngest runner to enter the race--and he has been running ever since. He is the only runner in our family with a natural runner's gait of ease and is a pleasure to watch. He makes it look so easy. Artist Son plans to run his first 21 K (half marathon) next month.







Brendan, another graduating Dude, competed in his fourth Dead to Red this year, having joined the team his first year living in Amman. Maybe, just maybe, he'll be running at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy next year...









Doug thought he was just going along for the ride. Little did he know that joining the Dashing Dudes team four years ago as a driver when his son, Brendan, got involved, would be a life-changing experience. The second year he drove, one of the runners injured himself and Doug ran part of the race. Last year he was a full-fledged member of the team, leading them to a stunning 2nd place in Dear Husband's out-of-town absence. At 50+, Doug has the honor, and I do mean honor, of being the oldest Dashing Dude. He is training to run his first marathon next month.




Andrew also completes his Dashing Dude career with four good runs. Though he doesn't have the the longest legs on the team, I'm sure he has the longest stride--his legs can really reach! And the Dudes are ever grateful to Andrew's dad, Fawzy, for faithfully driving their green van, the official van of the Dashing Dude team, for all four of those years. If I remember correctly, their van shuttled Dashing Dudes to Aqaba even on the year that Andrew and Fawzy were in the States, with someone else doing the driving.





Zack, a two time Dashing Dude, is a valued team member known for his enthusiasm and determination. I observed him run his first 1K, which he began in an all-out sprint. This guy runs like a rabbit. Another graduating senior, Zack heads off to college in Southern California this fall.








Though the Dashing Dude victory was nothing less than a team effort, Jon's contribution, no doubt played a big part in helping the Dashing Dudes to shave nearly 40 minutes off last year's race time. Now teaching elementary school in Amman, Jon ran on Calvin’'s National Championship cross country and track teams in college. Jon started the race for the Dashing Dudes and his 2K leg was the only time during the race that the Dashing Dudes enjoyed first place status. And, though he is a more seasoned runner than any of the other Dudes, I think he would say that he's never run a race quite like the Dead to Red.




Training and perseverance earned Matt a coveted spot on the Dashing Dude team this year. This is his third Dead to Red run; he ran on the Boy Scout team two times, once as their team captain. Noting that the Dashing Dudes will be losing half their members next year, he is already scouting new runners for the team. Rumor has it that Matt put away the most steaks at the Dashing Dudes victory celebration.







This is Jonathan's second Dead to Red run, and his first as a Dashing Dude. I didn't see Jonathan at the end of the race, but at the beginning, at least, he ran through the desert with a really big smile.









This year 26 teams competed in the Dead to Red relay marathon on Thursday afternoon, the first teams finishing around 4 a.m. Friday morning. As you can see from the pictures, the race is run along the highway-which I found out as I drove along the first 15K or so taking pictures, can be dangerous--a mom's point of view.

Map of Jordan~Lonely Planet

Over the years the Dashing Dudes have come to be known as a team with a plan. Race strategy is serious business and this years' race plan was about three pages long. Not to mention the pre-race emails flying back in forth between the teams' top strategists. I'm convinced that it is the Dudes' strategy of running shorter legs that has enabled them to compete with teams which include professional runners, such as the perennial first place Aramex team.

The Dashing Dudes start strong with Jon running the first leg

Active Son flying through the desert

Dear Husband hands off to Artist Son

The Dashing Dudes Chorus Line
stretching out at about 4am in the morning, just outside of Aqaba

The Dashing Dudes just after finishing the race
wearing the mandatory reflective vests. (Active Son wanted me to tell you that they were mandatory)

Congratulations, once again, to the Dashing Dudes. This year they ran the race in 14 hours, 38 minutes and 55 seconds, just six minutes behind the second place team and 20 minutes behind Aramex, the first place team. Not only did they cut about 40 minutes off their previous best rest time, but the also bested the race record which Aramex set in 2009. They currently have the third best race time in the history of the race.

They're Off and Running~Dead to Red, 2009

It's that time of year again--time for the Dead to Red, the 10-man, 244K relay from the Dead Sea to the Red Sea. This is Active Son and Artist Son's fifth Dead to Red (Artist Son first ran when he was just nine and received an honorary award for being the youngest runner) and it just seems to get more fun every year.

At the beginning of the week, Dead to Red Fever began to heat up; strategizing began in earnest, supplies were gathered and packed, and an official Dashing Dudes T-shirt was designed and produced:

By last night the Fever was really burning; Active Son was now entering the realm of hyper focus, on the race, and was losing focus on just about everything else. At 1pm this afternoon, the 10 Dashing Dudes and their drivers loaded into two vans and headed for the start-line, about 20K south of the Mujib Bridge. Beginning the race at 3:30pm this afternoon, the Dashing Dudes, along with 15 other teams will run through the night, hoping to reach Aqaba around 8am tomorrow morning.

Map of Jordan from Lonely Planet

Mr. Mag., this year's team captain, dedicated this year's run to Dear Husband who is missing his first Dead to Read race in five years due to -yawn-meetings abroad; DH entertained thoughts of playing hooky from his meetings but it couldn't be. This one's for you, DH. You've been a great coach and encouragement through the years and our boys couldn't have done it without you!

Update, 6:30pm: The Dudes are in fourth place with high hopes of catching the third place team, the student team from King's Academy, an upscale boarding school located outside of Amman. Active Son is encouraged by their pace--they are currently running one kilometer legs.

Update, 7:45pm: Active Son called to tell me that they are now in 3rd place! They overtook the King's Academy team on The Hill. King's put up one runner to take The Hill while Dashing Dudes took it by a few legs of sprints. The Dashing Dudes, however, are not resting on their laurels: Active son reports that the King's Team is strong, made up, he thinks, of members of their track and field and cross country teams. He's not sure if they'll be able to hold their lead, but it looks like the neck and neck competition will keep them running their fastest through the night. Go Dashing Dudes!

Update, 10:10pm: Another phone call from Active Son and he doesn't sound tired yet; I think he is energized by the fact that the Dashing Dudes are now in 2nd place! They passed the former 2nd place team a little bit ago and Active Son estimates they now have about a five minute lead on them. Dashing Dudes are averaging 3 min. 50 sec. kilometers now. In first place is the national team, as in really, really fast runners, so 2nd place is probably as good as it can get for the Dashing Dudes--and it is very good!

Update, 12:00am: This will be the last update before the finish because I'm going to bed! Dashing Dudes are still in 2nd place, now with an increased lead. They hope to finish in just seven more hours or so. Just. I'm predicting they'll set a Dashing Dudes record time this year. Makes me feel kind of guilty for going to bed.

Update, 8:00am: Active Son calls to report that the Dashing Dudes finished the race in rare form: not only did they maintain their 2nd place position, they pushed hard on first place team who finished only 22 minutes ahead of the Dashing Dudes and broke the race record. They said the Dashing Dudes were a little too close for comfort! There was lots of whooping and cheering going on in the backround of our phone call but I was able to get Dashing Dude's official time:
15 hours, 19 minutes, and 32 seconds.

Congratulations to all the Dashing Dudes!


Dashing Dudes Team, 2009

Dead to Red, a few pictures

Still stiff and sleep deprived from running 25 K (25X 1K) through the desert in the middle of the night, my husband remarked with a deep sense of contentment, "The Dead to Red race weekend is just about my favorite weekend of the year." Though some women participate in the race, I would never consider joining in, and not because of the grueling physical exertion it would demand of me. Really.

No, the Dead to Red is more than just an annual crazy relay race through the desert. It is serious, and I mean serious, male bonding time. No way I'd want to interrupt that.

Active Son at the race start

Younger son preparing for his turn to run

Dr. T hands off to Younger Son

007 hands off to Dear Husband

Another great Dashing Dude hand-off

After-the-race banquet

Some of the Dudes celebrating

As for what the females where doing while the males were bonding, I mean running: let's just say that it took place indoors, and that it involved friends, good food, cheesecake, a movie, and sleeping in too late.

They're Off

The Dashing Dudes left Amman this afternoon, headed for the starting line of the Dead to Red relay marathon. Their ten man relay team will run from the Dead Sea to the Red Sea, 250K, attempting to beat their 17 hour 13 minute time of last year.

After months of training the anticipation of running the race was undeniable; dear husband could hardly sit still in his chair during morning devotions and Active Son did his best to concentrate on his morning studies. By noon, all thoughts were on the race. We wish the Dashing Dudes all the best as they run through desert tonight!

Update: (1:15 a.m. GMT+2) I talked with Active Son who is leading the five members of the team in Van A and with dear husband, who is heading up Van B. Both sound amazingly awake and energized and I think the fact that they are running hard to hold onto their 2nd place standing has something to do with that. One of ten teams participating in the relay marathon, they are outrun at this point only by the Jordanian National Team, however it sounds like they will have to continue the hard pace into Aqaba if they hope to hold onto 2nd.

The young bucks of Van A have been running 1/2K sprints in an effort to stay ahead of the third place Haddadin team, which is only about 1K behind. Not much in a 250K run. We are praying for Dr. T. of Van B who seems to have come down with a stomach bug and had to sit out a leg. The loss of even one team member at this point could seriously hinder the Dashing Dudes in their bid for the 2nd place win. Having completed 170K , the Dashing Dudes hope to arrive in Aqaba around 7am this morning. Go Dashing Dudes!!

Update: (This update is a little sketchy as I was half asleep when I received the call from my husband. I'll fill in the missing details in a later update.) The Dashing Dudes finished the race in third place; though second place eluded them by about 15 minutes, the Dashing Dudes shaved 30 minutes off their race time of last year finishing in 16 hours and 43 minutes, and that just 30 minutes behind the Jordan National Team. Praise God, Dr. T recovered from his debilitating sickeness in two hours and went on to finish running the race, even attempting to make up some of the distance picked up by his fellow runners while he was ill. The team was headed to a favorite resturaunt in Aqaba to enjoy a traditional Arab breakfast of bread, hummus, falafel, and more before checking into their hotel for a few hours of rest before tonight's award and celebration banquet at the Aqaba Movenpick.