For years people have taken the challenge to run the HOOD TO COAST relay.
I’ve always been intrigued but somewhere between the mountain peak and the Sandy beach - I’ve never managed to commit to the journey. Until this year, when I learned of the Portland to Coast walk that has been part of the Longer Hood to Coast.
To be honest, the signing up and pre-race parts of the process were not appealing to my DO IT NOW personality - little did I know how much I would come to appreciate those finite details.
As soon as I signed up - OK a couple of weeks later- I started training for the relay- I knew I would be assigned at least two legs of the relay but I had no idea which ones, what the terrain would be, what the weather would be or even who my teammates would be.
Good thing I personally do not need to have all of the details to jump into an adventure.
The night before the relay, I met my new team and was pleased to find them very accepting and excited to have me on their team. We went through some details, loaded our supplies, and decorated our vehicles. The following morning I drove out to meet the team and was pleasantly surprised at what I saw!
SEA in action!
S - So many people out on the path to SUPPORT runners and walkers.
E - So many offering words of ENCOURAGEMENT
A - So many holding others and being held ACCOUNTABLE themselves.
I found COMMUNITY.
As the day progressed I saw the magic of what happens when people lay down all their differences and come together to support a common cause - in this case, Breast Cancer Awareness. I found myself enjoying the various themes, creativity, and human spirit during my 2 days and it made me think of how much I love people.
The ten-plus miles I walked were uneventful - in my case that is a huge PLUS! No trip falls or blisters- it was a great adventure. We can find community everywhere we look and we can see the beauty in all the differences we see. It’s time to look for the good, find a cause worth fighting for, and maybe even dust off the old tennis shoes and GO FOR A WALK!
A special shout out to my Portland to Coast team: Rick and Deb Middleton, Derek & Pilar Swanson, Val Hanada, Stuart Branine, MaryJo Reinhardt, Kortney Lyman, Katrina Tompkins, David Miller, Judie Bristow.
You guys were a great team! Team 2182 Walk N Rollers- a good time was had by all!!!
