We ran, we cheered, we danced deliriously at 4am…another typical year at the Wild Rogue Relay! Team Common Block Rogue Runners traversed 220 miles from Applegate Lake to Brookings last weekend, 100% powered by their own legs (and beer). This was our seventh year running the race with friends and coworkers, and we’re here to tell you it’s one of the highlights of our year.

A bit about The Wild Rogue Relay…

It starts with packet pickup at Common Block, where we give racers a free pre-race beer to calm their nerves and hopefully slow them down so we can pass them on the course. Nah, who are we kidding? We’re enjoying our own pre-race beverages, too.

The starting line at Applegate Lake is stunning (even if you’re still half-asleep at 6am), and then it only gets more beautiful as the course winds around wineries, trails and the Rogue River. Around 8pm, runners head up into the mountains and run all night. In the dark. In the woods. In costumes (some of them).

Then, at the crack of dawn on Saturday, runners start the trek down from the Coast Range and meander back along the Rogue River, popping out at the Pacific Ocean in Gold Beach.

But wait, the race isn’t done! No, no, no. There are still beaches, roads and trails to run (including our favorite leg of the relay – The Clown Puncher), until the finish line at Azalea Park in Brookings. There, all teams finally converge and share stories of killer hills, shoe-sucking sand, gravelly trips and brushes with sun-stroke. We bond over our collective trauma, thank others for their support during the course, clink our finish line beers together, and then talk about signing up again for next year.

We love this race, and you can absolutely plan on seeing us on the course next year. We’re addicted, in the best way. Until then, we want to thank the organizers, volunteers, racers and supporters along the relay for another amazing year! See everyone in 2020!