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DAY 10 - WEDNESDAY, MAY 7, 2008 - - - -
  Hello
from Roundup, Montana! For those of you who don't know, I've
taken this day off the road so that I can more effectively
treat the persistent tendon injury in my left foot that
occurred on day two of this trek. I've logged a couple
hundred miles with that tendon strain in the past 6 days and
due to the stiff headwinds I've had in the wide open
prairie, I've put quite a strain on the foot in order to
push Bob through those winds. In fact, although I've been
typically logging 30 to 40 miles per day, the amount of
energy I've been exerting to push through the stiff winds
has been equivalent to the amount of energy I would expend
to cover 50 miles or more in a day. So, the wind has
certainly been a factor to contend with.
Yesterday on my
way to Roundup I crossed over the Musselshell range, which
immediately brought more trees and contours to the
landscape. I'm hoping that the physical change in my
surroundings will help in breaking up the prevailing west to
east winds. I knew that when I chose to run east to west
that I would be running into the jet stream and therefore
have a lot of headwinds. However, it is certainly much more
difficult than my west-to-east run across Montana in 2006. I
can't begin to explain how much such winds can dehydrate an
ultra-endurance athlete. Constantly taking in fluids is
essential, and Bob carries 2½
gallons
of water - as well as Gatorade. So, I'm hydrating my body
enough to endure the mega distances, but the constant sun
and wind combination has truly done some damage to my skin
and lips. What needs the most attention is my feet. I'm
doing what's necessary to get back on the road tomorrow and
continue west. I do want to mention that kids should be
making sure they are drinking enough water each day. The
body needs water and if you don't get enough water you'll
develop headaches, fatigue, intestinal issues, and more. So,
be sure to drink!
 I'm writing
today's entry from my hotel room in Roundup, Montana. The
America's Best Value Inn donated my room and I have
everything I need to be able to do what is necessary to get
my body ready to head out on the road again. I've posted the
videos for the past several days (Sunday,
Monday
and
Tuesday), so you'll want to check out those pages
to see such things as the Turtle Cam, the curious cows, and
the electronic "scratch and sniff". I'm also working on
getting the photos put onto those pages - so check back
again either later today or tomorrow. I'll have those pictures in place before I hit the
road tomorrow morning (Thursday). I've spent some time today
nursing the various blisters that I've acquired on the
road... blisters to my feet as well as blisters from the
sun's harsh rays. That's just one of the consequences of
logging such distances.
So, I've spent 8
days on the road running/walking and have logged 242 miles
in those 8 days. That's an average of 30¼ miles per day.
I've been looking ahead on the schedule and here's what's
coming up for distances:
Thursday, May 8:
40 Miles
Friday, May 9:
29 Miles
(Halfway
Point)
Saturday, May
10: 31
Miles
Sunday, May 11:
31 Miles
Monday, May 12:
42 Miles
(Ugh!)
Tuesday, May 12:
32 Miles
Wednesday, May
14: 24
Miles
Thursday, May
15:
34 Miles
Friday, May 16:
37 Miles
Saturday, May
17:
37 Miles
Sunday, May 18:
34 Miles
Monday, May
19:
7 Miles
(Finish)
So, I have 12
more days on the pavement - if all goes according to plan,
and as we've seen with the first week of P.A.C.E. Trek 2008
there are some things that make adjusting the plan
necessary. On Friday, May 9 (in two days from now) I'll pass
the halfway point of this trek. So far, I've had
temperatures ranging from 19 degrees to 85 degrees... from
snow to rain... sleet to ice... hot sun to lots of wind...
and just about everything in between. Yep, it has been a
challenging first week - particularly going through all of
those extremes with a left foot that is not as strong as it
needs to be.
The next part of
this trek will be bringing me into the mountains. There will
be gradual elevation gains each day, and tomorrow will be an
increase in elevation of 437 feet. The day after that I'll
increase 544 feet. So, I'll slowly be going up in elevation
as I get closer to the Continental Divide. Knowing that was
coming, I knew it would be wise to take today off the road
to get my left foot as ready as possible. I've had many
teachers and children write to me and ask about the injury.
Although it makes the days on the road less comfortable and
tends to slow me down more than I prefer, I will continue to
press on - even with the tendon strain. I'm committed to
getting to the Idaho border - just as all of the teams are.
If doing that requires me to deal with more pain than I
typically prefer, that's just how it will have to be.
Some Team
Mileage Update Information...
I've received more updates on team mileages and wanted
to share some of the recent ones with you. Keep in mind that
at this point I've logged 242 miles. See how many
teams are behind or ahead of me:
AHEAD OF PAUL:
Ryegate School - 276 Miles
Urunga Public School - 325 Miles
Tunnelton-Denver Elementary School - 292 Miles
St. Ignatius Elementary - 280 Miles
Meadow Hill Middle School (7th Grade) - 365 Miles
Amelia Earhart Intermediate School - 320 Miles
Pioneer Elementary - 281 Miles
Bonner School (m/w) - 319 Miles
Roosevelt School (Red Lodge) - 366 Miles
Wells Road Int. School (Greyhounds) - 379 Miles
Wells Road Int. School (Gazelles) - 367 Miles
Wells Road Int. School (Antelopes) - 310 Miles
Wells Road Int. School (Cheetahs) - 266 Miles
Cold Springs School - 254 Miles
Paxson School (Team Harris) - 278 Miles
BEHIND PAUL:
Paxson Elementary - 195 Miles
M.C. Perry Elementary School - 235 Miles
Longfellow Elementary - 230 Miles
East Evergreen School - 60 Miles
Rondout School - 188 Miles
Cold Springs Elementary - 126 Miles
Bonner School (2/3) - 79 Miles
Lockwood Primary - 220 Miles
Gibraltar Elementary School - 220 Miles
Roosevelt Middle School (Ms. Cords) - 184 Miles
Romeo Elementary School - 88 Miles
Garmisch Elementary School - 155 Miles
Dalat International School - 80 Miles
Spruce Street Elementary (Little Spirit) - 85 Miles
Spruce Street Elementary (Spirit) - 88 Miles
Bamberg Elementary School - 105 Miles
Finger Lake Elementary - 78 Miles
That's the
latest team mileages from what has been submitted over the
past few days. As you can see, based on the schools
reporting it
appears that half of the teams are ahead of me and the other
half are behind. Keep
in mind that in the next 3 days I'll log 100 more miles!
We learned today
that due to the shift in dates for lodging that I cannot
stay at the Paws Up Resort on Friday, May 16, because
they're booked up. So, Vicki (my wife) will likely have to drive 40
miles out of Missoula to pick me up and bring me into
Missoula... returning me to Greenough on Saturday. There's
no other place to stay in Greenough than the Paws Up Resort,
so since they're booked up for the 16th of May I don't have
any choice but to be transported that day. At least I'll
only be 40 miles from my home at that point.
Below is an
example of how one school is tracking my progress in
comparison to the students in their school. Thanks to
teacher Deb Carlson of Lockwood Primary School in Billings,
Montana (team "M&M Walkers") for sending it to me, along
with pictures of the kids in action. Currently, I'm only 50
miles north of team M&M Walkers in Billings!
I've had a few
schools send me pictures of their teams and kids in action
running and walking. It truly is an encouragement to me to
see kids in different parts of the world involved in
P.A.C.E. Trek, running and walking around playgrounds,
parks, gymnasiums and more. Thank you! As I mentioned before, I plan on
putting together a music slideshow when this trek is
completed that I'll make available through this web site -
featuring pictures of my trek as well as pictures of teams
and kids in action. Please send pictures anytime!
Tomorrow morning
I'll be on the road with Bob heading for Ryegate. I truly
hope that everyone is enjoying this journey... and please
don't worry about the tendon injury that I'm battling. I'm
truly doing what I believe is right to handle it while still
making progress.
Keeping on PACE,
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Paul's Current Position In Montana |
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