Homeward Bound IV

It will be strange to get on a plane tomorrow and not have to ask if the town 8 miles away has a gas station and a grain elevator. I also look forward to what happens to my legs once they get a few days rest. I imagine my mucles will freak out a bit. They already are actually, after my puny 13 miler today. Perhaps I can use this foundation for some race this fall. That's always the goal but a new school year and my desire to pick up the slack with parenting certainly competes for scheduling. I'll update a bit more after reality sets in. I've had loads of fun sharing these experiences with everyone through the internet and I hope you are looking forward to your next adventure as well.

Homeward Bound III

Turned out it had just reopened as I got there and I filled up on a lemonade and more water. Then it was only 3 to a road junction and only 9 more to Sterling. If I had spent the day counting up to 44 I would have never made it. But 7 here, a little 3 there, it's managable. I even did that on tired legs and little sleep after my sbower stall "nap". Once I heard that I had a ride offer to Denver, my feet felt more sore. My legs ached. I had planned on running 33 today to Brush, CO. I found out a flight change wasn't that expensive and decided to do a short run to finish off the trip. I ran 13 miles to Merino,CO, where I saw I had reached an elevation of 4000 feet on my way to Denver. I took that as another noteworthy accomplishment after coming from less than half that 600 miles earlier. I got lunch in a bar, a ride to Brush, and Jim, his wife Sarah and 2 of their 5 kids picked me up in their van. They treated me to Olive Garden in Denver, then dropped me off at a hotel near the airport

Homeward Bound II

Offering me a ride was a kind gesture and another example of the wonderful hospitality I'd been shown on this trip. I initially dismissed the idea as I was making good progress through Colorado already. But the miles were wearing on my body. Yesterday's 44 was a good lesson about my own capabilities. The first 15 miles of that day were terribly slow and difficult. I like towns to be about 7 miles apart. It makes for a good interval between aid stations of bars, gas stations, and dusty grocery stores. But 15 is a big chunk to bite off mentally. That would be a decent distance for anyone to run. What's interesting is that the 29 miles I ran after that 15 were comparably speaking, a piece of cake. That's because it wasn't really 29 miles. This distance running is all about mind tricks. After tbe 15 it was only 7 miles to the next rown with a cafe. Then it was only 8 more to the next town which had a bar but it might be closed because the owner likes to go to town in the afternoons.

Homeward Bound

The goal of this trip was always to cross Nebraska. I reached that goal two days ago. A secondary goal was to run the additional 241 miles of the American Discovery Trail from the NE border to Denver where the trail joins its own southern and western route. In the past 3 days I've run 75 miles of that. Not surprisingly, the miles were very similar to the stretches in Nebraska. I was impressed that I was able to pull off the 44 mile day on top of a 36 the day before. Last night I got an email from my friend Jim from Gallup in Omaha. He had been one of the 11 to meet me and run the first miles with me in Omaha. He also gave up a Sunday morning to drive 5 hours to run 17 miles with me on a long stretch near Grand Island. Today, he was planning to drive his family from Omaha to Denver. He wanted to know if I wanted a ride.

Fireworks in Ogallala w lightening