You might remember that my kids and I were part of a charity bike ride last year to benefit Lifewater International. This wonderful organization builds fresh water wells for people in remote areas of third world countries.
Last year, the destination for our funds was a village in Ethiopia called Fonsho. The inhabitants of Fonsho used to walk miles to access water. When they did get to it, the water was not always sanitary. Lifewater goes to these areas and digs the well, teaches the locals how to operate, maintain and repair the well after the project is finished. Fresh, clean water has a dramatic effect, because the locals also learn about proper hygiene and sanitation. This in turn greatly reduces the spread of disease. Lifewater has the highest rating possible with Charity Navigator.
Ok, so by now you see where I'm going with this. On May 17-18 I ran the same route that we biked last year! The course distance is 100 miles, with 12,000 feet of elevation gain. I have run a number of marathons, and ultra distances of 32, 40 and 62 miles, so there was some unchartered territory for me on this one. My goal was to raise at least $1000 for Lifewater's project in Ethiopia, or $10 per mile. It would be incredible if you will partner with me by contributing towards this need for safe water abroad.
Additional Information on Lifewater International Fundraising PageOn May 18th from 6:30am until 11:13pm Roy ran 82 miles non-stop. The next morning he ran 18 miles more to the top of Mt. Pinos. He did this to raise awareness and financial support for people in Ethiopia who have no safe water to drink, or with which to wash.
Here are some pictures of the Mountain Run 2011 ...
Hello friends,
I'm not sure how best to convey how thankful, humbled, and GRATEFUL I am to have people in my life that took time out of their lives to support my run last week. It came in
many forms, all of them equally appreciated. Donations to the charity, words of encouragement, prayers, advice, etc. it's taken me a few days to come down enough from the runners
high I've been on, to sit down in one place long enough to craft an email to all of you!! Feel free to bail on reading the rest of this if you have things to do
of more import, of which many duties qualify!! I will try to mercifully condense as much as I can my 22.5 hours of running into something worthy of your time.
Last Wednesday began with the alarm going off at 4am. Had multiple bags with running clothes for all seasons, as rain, sun, and snow were all possibilities for the days ahead. Pastor Kurt picked me up in the "mothership." This was to be the main support vehicle for the next two days, holding most of the food, water, running gear, overnight bags, Kurt's bicycle (rooftop) etc.
Later in the day we would be joined by another vehicle, with 2 more buddies, that would have more good things in it, like a camp chair, a big warm ankle length jacket, and first aid supplies. My friend Armen Anassasian was waiting for us at the mission in Ventura, smiling when we got there. Armen is a beast, he had just done the Pasadena marathon, 3 days before, and now is ready to run the first 20 miles!! This guy is a marathon addict - you put it together, he'll find a way to get there!!
After a brief photo op, we started our journey. Armen and I headed up the Ojai Valley bike trail, with Pastor Kurt (who will be referred to as "Pk" for the rest of this tome, with his permission I might add) driving ahead to meet us later.
The first 16 miles was the most "off-road" portion the course. The bike trail was built over a rail line years ago, so no cars to deal with, and it being a wednesday, very few bikes!! After we caught with the mothership, Pk decided to park up ahead again and meet us on his bike. We tacked on a few extra miles in the Ojai area so that when we eventually reached the top of Mt. Pinos we were actually at 100 miles.
After 20, Armen had to head back to the real world. I can't tell you how wonderful it is to have a buddy run with you, and this was proven over and over again throughout the two days. Pk left to drive Armen back to Venturaand I headed up hwy 33. This takes you into Los Padres national forest, towards Kern Co. it's a 2 lane ribbon of road curving through the mountains. Very scenic, but all of it heading uphill to the first 5000 ft. summit. There were very few cars, and if one did come by, I could hear them a half mile away. The lack of city noise was very noticeable!!
About 1pm or so, Pk and I were joined by the second car that would stay with us for the rest of the time. Cash Murphey, good friend, first responder, ski patrol at Mt. Pinos AND retired Navy SEAL - the kind of guy you want to have around WHENEVER something goes south!! Mac Murphey, his son home from college for the summer, great guy, eagle scout, navy rotc, strong runner, story teller who would run 25 miles with me that day!
At around mile 35, another good friend would show up to run with us. Tom Queally, professional photographer, frequent marathoner who did some training runs with me, and the wise guy who provided the most acerbic humor of the day! Tom took all of the pics that I sent out with the link called "gallery". He stayed with us for about 10 miles, then had to get back for "work". At least, that what he told US!
At about hour 12, Mac and i reached the first summit, Pine Ridge, 5000ft. cold and windy, but ahead lay 8 miles of blessed downhill, the first of the day. After a brief stop, Mac retired his feet for the day, racking up his first 25 miler - he finished with a smile on his face and a spring in his step!! The next 8miles totally put wind back in my sails!! I was flying down the mountain, looking at stunning vistas of mountains, valleys, farmland, blue sky, white puffy clouds. This was probably the most spiritual part of the run, and I will leave it at that.
At the base of the descent I was the lucky reciepient of an intense leg massage from Cash. He found muscles in there I didn't even know I had!! Cash was the "keep moving" guy all day - no breaks longer than a few minutes, keep hydrating, keep moving - "We're burning daylight, people!!" he, of course, was correct on all counts. Speaking of all day, PK was my bartender, who kept my personal water bottle filled with the perfect ratio of water to cytomax sports powder. Also, he was head chef in the mothership "kitchen", making sure I had plenty of watermelon, tortilla chips, pretzels, etc. Later on PK became my pharmcist, filling orders for Ibuprofen on demand!! A man for all seasons. This was the last break of the day.
The next 20miles were mostly flat, or gently rolling hills. Evening was fastapproaching, and at this point both cars played leap frog up ahead and behind me. These 3 poor souls must have been exhausted having to drive at a snails pace, staring at somebody running all day long, having to cater to him when called upon, not to mention missing their proper meals.
Around 9ish I started noticeably slowing down, as we were back in the hills. At around 11 Cash felt that it was at the point of diminishing returns. After 18 hours I was just beating myself up, covering little territory and setting myself up for a very painful morning of running the next day. I was dehydrated and exhausted but felt great!! We had covered 82 miles, and it finally felt like we could make the goal!
I plopped into the mothership and we went to grab some dinner. When we arrived at the restaurant I felt wobbly and my finger tips were numb. Cash said thet were signs of dehydration. He said it was impossible not to be in that condition after so many hours of running. Well, dinner was mostly for the other guys. My stomach called it a night after a bit of white rice and soup, PK had made arrangements at El Camino Pines, a wonderful campground with plenty of warm cabins. We all slept like babies.
The next morning we returned to last nights stop point, the first mile I was pretty stiff, but slowly things started to work again. The initial 4 miles were relatively flat. After a brief stop at general store at lake of the woods,where we were given a bottle of honey by a kindly local woman who raises bees, we headed out again.
The next 6 miles were up again along a stretch of busy road. Finally we arrived at the base of Mt. Pinos!! Mac jumped out of the car to run, and PK got on his bike. This was 3000 ft. up in 9miles. Slow going, the air was getting thinner. About half way up, there was snow along the sides of the road, and up in the tops of the tall pines. We stopped along the way to look back down at the valley from where we came, quite a view!!
Finally, we reached the parking lot at the top. I couldn't resist sprinting the last 50 yards! The runners high I got that day has yet to dissapate.
One of the things that helped me get through the course was thinking about the daily challenges of the folks in Ethiopia. The purpose of this charity is to bring clean water access to people that are walking miles to the nearest source. It kept things in perspective for me, and reminded me how blessed we are with all that we have in our country. Much thanks again to all my friends who were with me every step of the way. It's much easier to run that far when you have lots of extra legs helping you!
Peace, Roy