"Disclaimer: I received a CoolNet headband from BUFF USA to review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews!"

I have been a fan of BUFF USA for years. You know, the company that makes the original buffs for Survivor?  I’ve tried out many types of their buffs as well as the UV arm sleeves and have always been impressed with their quality and functionality.  I tried their cold weather gear, and now it’s time to try warm weather, because duh – I live in Arizona!

I don’t tend to wear headbands much because my hair is very thin and fine – and the bands sometimes slide right off. The CoolNet headbands has grippers built in so they stay in place – and I’m happy to report they work great!

The first time I wore it was on Global Running Day, when it was around 90 degrees. Worked great!

I also wore it in a 5k race in the heat, and it stayed perfectly in place. I was also worried that it would feel hot on my head, but honestly I don't even notice it!

I love that it offers sun protection of 50+.    I hear that if you freeze it before your run, it will help keep you cool – I’m going to try it on my long run this weekend.

Other perks:
Made from Recycled material - 95% REPREVE® Polyester made from recycled water bottles 
HeiQ cooling technology
Washable – gentle cycle, air dry
Odor Resistant
Comes in 12 patterns, check them out here!

The CoolNet headband retails for $15.00.  I’m going to stock up on a few more, now that I know they work with my hair. You can save 15% on one for yourself (or other BUFF awesomeness) by visiting http://www.buffusa.com/bibrave  & signing up for the newsletter. You're welcome!

Have you taken supplements in pill form and wished you could better control the dosage that is right for you? Personally,  I have always hated swallowing supplements the size of horse pills.  I try to keep that to a minimum.  That is one big reason that the new IT Spray vitamins are such a clever idea.

There are 3 types –
Boost It for your immunity
Charge It for energy
Dream It for sleep and mental calm

All are infused with vitamins and herbal remedies known to help each area.
 
                                                                                 BOOST it

I have been traveling a ton, in and out of airports and airplanes, rife with germs! BOOST it is portable protection that you can customize with the dosage. You don’t have to wait until you’re sick to take it, it also helps your overall health protection for skin, nails, gut health and metabolism. It's a refreshing citrusy flavor.

Active Ingredients: Zinc, Vitamin C, & Echinacea.

Bonus – it fits the 3oz requirement for travel!

                                                                            CHARGE it

There are plenty of mornings when you are dragging and have an early morning meeting, or an early run, gym date, etc.  It has natural caffeine and a range of B vitamins for energy on the go, to sharpen your mental game and keep you going.
 
Active ingredients: Ginseng & Ginkgo Biloba , B Vitamins
 
Again, here is where the ability to control your dosage is key.  You can do just a few sprays if you just need a quick pick me up, or the full 7 sprays for a full reboot! Charge It comes in a berry flavor.

DREAM it

I admit it, this was the one I was most excited about trying.  I have been taking melatonin as needed off and on for several years now.  I fall asleep easily, but I have so much on my mind, that I tend to wake up in the night.  I have also been wanting to give 5HTP a try, as a way to control work stress and anxiety.  This supplement has it all, and you can take just a little amount, or the full dose.  We all know how important sleep is and how it affects pretty much every system in our body.

Active ingredients-  5HTP, Valarian Root & Melatonin. This product is designed to not only calm your mind and eases anxiety, but also helps you fall asleep and stay asleep; Um, yes please! This one comes in berry flavor.
 
DISCOUNT
Ready to buy your own? Save 25% off with code GETFIT online.
 
GIVEAWAY
Want to win a spray vitamin of your choice? Simply head on over to my twitter page, twitter.com/azsungoddess1 and click on the pinned post.  All you need to do is retweet this tweet for your chance to win! 

Rules: RT my pinned twitter post regarding the giveaway for your chance to enter between Thursday June 6 and Sunday June 9, 2019 at 11:59 EST.  Don't have Twitter? Drop a comment on this blog post. One entry per person. Winner will be chosen by random drawing and notified on June 10, 2019.

I have thought about doing this race before, but it just seemed “complicated” to get to, so I brushed it off.  The race starts in Coburg, Ontario and ends at Niagara Falls, Ontario. We run within Canada the entire time. On a whim I responded to a post on the Ragnar Niagara page for a team needing a runner, and the rest was history.  And getting there was a piece of cake!

I was super excited to do my first INTERNATIONAL Ragnar, especially since there is a second one planned this fall. I considered it like a trial run.

I met my team at the Toronto airport and we rolled out out to Port Hope, where we would spend the night before the race. We had the first available start (5am), as speed was not our forte.  Everyone was super friendly, and knew each other already. I was the odd man out, but I’m used to it.

The race is definitely one of the smaller ones that I’ve done. The start area was small, and the exchanges were pretty easy to get in and out of.   I was runner 6 and I saw that my first leg was 16.59 Km, or just over 10 miles.  Yikes.

One of the main differences in this Ragnar is all the distance is in Kilometers instead of miles.  It definitely messes with your head!

This leg had a beautiful start.  Right on lake Ontario, on a paved path, then a dirt trail. I did not see a soul for almost 3 miles! Say what!  All of a sudden a woman came up behind me and I was like wow, another person! She started chatting me up, and wanted to stay together.  I’m typically a solo runner who likes to take walking breaks, but she was a fascinating Canadian, and I wanted to keep talking to her!

Qani was a very positive person, waving energetically at anyone we saw – truck drivers, telephone pole repairmen, doesn’t matter.  7 miles later,  we were coming up to the finish (after taking a wrong turn on the trail), and she couldn’t believe it.  I said “grab my hand, girl, we’re doing this!” and so it was. I have kept in touch with Qani since the race and I’m so glad I met her.

After I finished, we headed out for a quintesentially Canadian lunch – poutine!  I got something over the top, but I enjoyed it.  Then we went to the exchange to rest for a bit.

Leg 2 would provide a different type of scenery – a downtown Toronto skyline view near the waterfront. It was 5.7 mles. The first few miles honestly were a bit sketchy with lots of transients, but once I was in the heart of downtown and other runners were nearby, it was more fun. The CN tower was on full display.

I loved the end of this leg.  We had to run up a bridge that was all lit up in bright colors, it just looked fun in a lively setting. After the finish, we drove on to the next big exchange and slept in the van. And by van, I mean minivan. Ugh, not my first choice. Super duper uncomfortable for sleeping.    I was sleep and coffee deprived by the time we rolled out for our next set of legs.  The team knew how caffeine dependent I am and what a fondness I developed for Tim Horton’s, Canada’s version of Dunkin Donuts.  Their coffee and cheese tea biscuits are the bomb – and cheap!  Anyhoo, they graciously stopped to get me my goodies right before I ran. I just had a 3.5 miler left to go!

My last run had some nice water views, but ran along the shoulder of a highway, which is not my favorite. The finish area was really nice though, a great way to end!

Hot damn, van 1 was done and after a 25 mile drive, we got the chance to explore Niagara Falls while waiting for van 2!  We took #allthepics.

All the hills and walking was exhausting, but fun. I hadn’t been to the falls since I was a kid with my parents.  We had lunch and visited all the souvenir shops. Then we went to the finish to wait for Van 2 to arrive.    

The finish area, like all Ragnars, was stunning. It literally backed up to the falls! Wow.  Teeny tiny gear tent, so I wasn’t able to buy anything at the end. No “free” food at the finish, all for purchase. There were “good” beer choices – and everything was in both (a little overpriced) in US and CAN prices.  But the best surprise was seeing the bonus medal tent. I had been told that only US Ragnar races qualify for the bonus medals, which made me extremely sad.  It’s a huge motivator for me in doing these races.  Our team was super happy to see the medal lady sitting there, as many of us had already done Ragnars this year.  Made my day.

This team was very easygoing. They do several Ragnar Relays a year, so there is a good chance I will get to do another one with them in the future!

So, the main differences were -

• distances in km, not miles
  
• no "1 mile to go" signs
  
• smaller race
  
• custom tat (see below!)
  
• limited gear tent choices, especially at finish
  
• no "free" food for team at finish
  

I'm still not exactly sure what the relationship between Ragnar and Ragnar Canada is. There is an entirely different website you use to register for the race. They have different insta accounts. Medals are the same.
 
Running in Canada was unique and I would definitely do it again! Canada kind of puts their own spin on everything. I fell in love with the scenery and the local favorites like Tim Hortons. This experience made me even more excited for my next International Ragnar Relay race, coming this fall!