Wonderland Training Update

In 6 weeks I will be heading to Longmire, Washington to begin my Wonderland run with Aspire Adventure Running. I will attempt to run/hike 93 miles in 3 days, around the base of Mt. Rainier, with accumulated elevation gain of 23,810 feet. I've taken on this challenge in order to fundraise for Breast Cancer Prevention Partners in support of their mission to eliminate exposure to toxic chemicals in our environment that are linked to cancer. I have friends and family who have suffered from and succumbed to this devastating disease, and this is one small way I have found to help. 

My training has been sporadic since signing up for this adventure. I've had some solid weeks with good, long back to back runs and other spans, like the last 4-5 weeks where I barely stepped on trails. Life/work/heatwave all played a part in the inconsistencies but I'm hoping that these last 6 weeks of training and the strong base I already have will pull me through. 

Mindset is critical in a run like this and the biggest challenge I have is wrapping my head around it and believing I can do it. So this weekend, I decided to actually put my feet on the start of the trail to get a feel for it. I met up with my friend Dan and did a 13 mile out and back hike from the starting point at Longmire and it gave me a good sense of what I'm getting myself into. Holy crap! It's going to be a lot! When I got back to the visitor's center and looked at the room sized 3D topo map of the whole route, I just started laughing when I saw the very tiny stretch we had just covered compared to the massive scale of the entire trail. What was I thinking when I signed up for this?!

I've always known this was going to be a tough one but now I have a real sense of the fortitude and attitude it will take to get through it. I know it will be nothing compared to the strength it takes to deal with cancer. I will draw inspiration from the climbers I had the honor of supporting through the Mt. Shasta climb recently. I'll be thinking about my friends who have faced breast cancer and kept putting one foot in front of the other, climbing mountains, even during treatment. I'll keep running to support an organization that works to create a safer healthier environment for future generations. I'll keep running to support BCPP's mission to prevent cancer. 

If you would like to support BCPP you can donate safely on line at https://donate.bcpp.org/wonderland 

Thanks to all who have already donated. Stay tuned for more updates!