DAY 1: 24 Miles

Waking up at 4am, 69 runners from all over the world put on running cloths and jumped in a bus to begin our journey. After a 1 1/2 hour bus ride, we finally arrived in a little town in Mirik, India. All of the locals were in the street cheering for us as well as local musicians. Before the blow of the whistle, each runner was given a white cloth to symbolize "good Luck & safe journey". At roughly 6,000 ft we were off! Boy was I crazy for signing up for this race! Only after running less than 1 mile of the monster hills began. For the remainder of the run, we climbed a total of 10,000ft! Now I usually average 24 miles every Saturday however climbing 10,000 ft in 1 day is a new challenge for me. To ensure I complete before sun down, I forced myself to run any rolling hills as well as speed walk up hills. Throughout the day I made sure to appreciate my surroundings and take pictures of Mt. Kachachunga and Mt. Everest. The Himalayans are absolutely breathe taking and even though today was the most difficult run I have EVER faced, I did have an amazing experience. After 6 hours and 8 minutes later, I came to the finish line. I know that sound like a long time, however I took 16th place overall and 6th female. Woohoo! Not bad for an American :)