This pandemic has put a true damper on so many things we all enjoy in life. Our daily routines and favorite actives had been cancelled. Our lives have spun out of control as we try to adjust to the times. I have always lived by the motto that the two things that truly matter in life are people you surround yourself with and places you get to see. Both of these have been severely compromised in the months of social distancing and closed borders.
Over the last few years, my husband and I have worked hard on getting our teen boys to love running. We managed it with the help of destination runs in places like Morocco, Croatia, Slovenia, and Oregon. Few years ago, my oldest son, Christoph, and I challenged ourselves to run 50 half marathons in 50 states. We were on a roll with 17 under our belts and an amazing run in Hawaii planned for April 2020!
And then COVID hit. Everything came to a halt and we had to reinvent our lives. But I know the power of exercise and outdoor fun and the dangers of the “new normal” of rolling out of bed and spending days in PJs in front of Zoom.
We needed to take our lives back and teamed up with friends sending out daily family workouts, getting morning runs in or biking at lunch. But organized half marathons are still off the table. After some grieving, we adapted. After all, our priorities were pure enjoyment of family and travel, not medals. And with this attitude we set out on running adventures! In June, Christoph and I ran a breathtaking half marathon #18 in the mountains of Telluride. It was the hardest trail run I’ve ever done at 12,000 feet of elevation, but we were thankful for the views and the waterfalls. In August, we ventured out to glorious Montana. We mapped out the most beautiful run along the stunning Highline Trail starting at Logan’s Pass in Glacier National Park. Christoph and I ran into the sunrise avoiding bears, climbing to views of glaciers, and taking a rest at a mountain chalet, on this half marathon #19. The rest of the summer we trained hard at home. We ran, strength and weight trained, biked… so by October, for Christoph’s fall break, we were ready for an ambitious plan of three half marathons in one week on the trails of the Carolinas and Georgia. We spent the week near Greenville in beautiful country of lakes, waterfalls, and mountains. The leaves were turning various shades of red, yellow, and brown. The days were warm enough to get out on the lakes, but morning chill made runs perfect. In Georgia we ran through thick forest to a beautiful view point. We gave ourselves a day of rest while hiking waterfalls and then ran along Chattooga River on the Foothills Trail in South Carolina. It turns out that running along the river is filled with fun scrambling, climbing, and downhill tumbles. We had all the waterfalls, riverside beaches, and forests to ourselves. We took a day off and headed to another lovely lake house in North Carolina to finish our week with our final run on the famous Appalachian Trail. We mapped out a 13-mile section of mostly downhill running and ran along the ridge with views of the valleys below on both sides of the Appalachian peaks. Fall colors made this run stunning! Words cannot express the gratitude we felt for being able to be there together in these times of uncertainty.
We’ve learned through all these months that instead of wasting our time on the couch, we are able to pull together as family and persevere through the power of running. When we came up with this project, we did not realize that it will be our saving grace in uncertain times. We are so thankful for the strength and perseverance we’ve gained. We might still have 28 half marathons ahead, but 22 adventures to beautiful places with people we loved the most will always live in our hearts!
