Runners Doing Good: #1 – Jenn

It’s time to kick off our Runners Doing Good Introductions! And let’s do that with none other than the lady that has made this all happen: Jenn!

Before we describe why she has been so vitally important to the RDG efforts throughout the years, let’s look at her running cred: She has run the Indianapolis 500 Festival Indy-Mini twice and run the Sunburst Races in South Bend and the Fort 4 Fitness multiple times as well but what is most impressive about what she’s done with Runnin’ Not Walken / Runners Doing Good?

It all started with just wanting to help out. In 2016, she came along to support Van 1 at Ragnar Relay Chicago in what turned out to be the most brutally hot and humid run we’ve ever experienced. Gabe and Andrew are the only two runners still active on the team that ran that year. It was so tough but without Jenn, we would have been in awful shape and you could argue that if we didn’t have her that year, that 2017 may not have happened.

As the team captain, it’s tough to tackle all of this and admittedly, my own well being, some races, wasn’t always the best. I’ve been dehydrated and feeling bad. I’ve had the late night Chick-Fil-A that didn’t sit in my stomach but with her there making, dare I say, forcing us to drink something after another 85+ degree run, it could have been much more serious. We had one runner go down in Van 2. Without her, we might have had many more in Van 1 and what has come post 2016, I’m a firm believer that we wouldn’t have gotten here without her.

In 2017, she jumped aboard as a runner in a pinch. We’d had a runner get sick with 4-6 weeks to go and we knew that he’d not be able to take it on. I’d not recommend taking on a Ragnar if you’ve not run in 10 years but Jenn is easily one of our more determined runners.

She would admit that she’s not the fastest runner we have but I have rarely, if ever, seen her breakdown and lose her pace. She finds her sweet spot and just keeps running and dictates the pace. It’s something that I’ve always always admired about her. Her consistency is awesome.

Throw in the fact that as a teammate, what’s not to like? She brings a big, fun, and lovable personality to any room she enters and regardless of the conditions, when you’re grinding out a couple hundred miles, you need someone like that who can bring a smile to the group around you.

2021 will mark her 4th straight year of running, compiling 61 miles of total mileage when Ragnar Trail Michigan is in the books. On our All-Time Mileage list, that puts her solidly in 5th place out of more than 30 runners and her consecutive year streak is only eclipsed by me. I bet if you asked her 5 years ago if she’d run one Ragnar, she might say yes but if you asked if she’d keep doing this, I’m not sure what her answer would be but I’m thrilled that she is. Our adventures together only got crazier and even more memorable once she officially joined the team and I look forward to having her by myself for many more of these.

— Gabe