Day 114

Hello all, for the second time in less than two weeks, tonight's blog is coming straight to you from Clairetown. yes that's right, Claire here excited to bring all of you all of today's stories, excitements and adventures.

today's blog is actually going to start with a quick recap of what went on late last night after the blog had been posted. last night the guys welcomed one more companion on their route to the coast. Long time and best friend Dan Verdi flew into California and took a car service ride to the guys. Dan had to tell his taxi driver to please drop him off between mile marker 37 and 38. probably an odd request because Dan was asking to be dropped off literally in the middle of nowhere! but he got there none the less. at about 10:30, Ken awoke to Dan climbing into his tent bringing with him lots of food. all the boys ate and enjoyed subs, peanut brittle, blueberry scones, and banana bread. "Thanks Dan." Everyone was really really excited to see Dan and have another soul to spend their time with out on the road. Dan, though bringing lots of food, packed for himself very lightly only bringing a small bag of clothes, no sleeping bag or pad like everyone else has because of the limited amount of room in the joggers.

for the first part of the night, Matt lent Dan part of his sleeping bag to cover up with. but it was pretty warm in their tent, so Dan decided that he didn't need the bag so Durkin quickly took back the opportunity and zipped his sleeping bag back up. but then.....it got cold, and Dan was forced to put on a $20 jacket that he had bought from Wal-Mart. After this, Ken lent Dan part of his sleeping pad, and by morning Ken found himself curled up on one end, and Dan curled up on the other.

our team (total of FIVE guys now) woke up at 5 am and were on the road by 5:40 all in very high spirits because Dan was there now and ready to spend his first day sharing in their adventure.

as a side note, Dan has always had a deep love and fascination with ants, and since college, Dan has passed this love along to Ken. so the morning was spent by the two of them reminiscing about old times in Oneonta outside of Wilsbach watching and talking about ants. Dan and Ken, in all of their ant excitement, would run up to and investigate every ant hill that they found, often leaving them a little more than a few steps behind the rest of the team. but none the less, their time was spent with good fun this morning. Around mile 11, Dan started finding and picking up large sticks off the side of the road. he would then take his large stick, pretending that it was a staff, and he was Gandalf from the Lord of the Rings. Dan then found a large white stick and used this to turn into "Gandalf The White." all of the pretending and game playing definitely kept the boys entertained for the rest of the morning.

at mile 11, the guys found a short-cut on a dirt road that would cut 6 miles off of today's total. they all decided that the miles would be worth it so they took their chances and started down the dirt road. they ran for a little while until they saw a house where they were greeted by loud barking dogs, and a man who was less than welcoming to the team. He told them to pretty much turn back around and get off of his property. the guys were bummed that they had to turn back and add on the additional miles to their journey. as well, they are all so accustomed to running into great generosity and kindness from strangers, that this encounter wasn't a great way to continue on with the day, but the boys pushed on.

all day today the guys were looking up at beautiful mountains as they ran through a valley. looking up, they could actually see the rain shadow, where the clouds would rise and break apart above the mountains. all agreed that this was a sight to remember.

with 15 miles left in the day they came to Stage Coach Trails, a campground where they stopped into the general store to grab some lunch. here they met a very friendly and very helpful woman working at the counter. she told the guys that in the lodge in the center of the campgrounds lunch was about to be served. so the guys took a short walk up to the lodge where they were greeted by tons and tons of people, most of whom had already known from the short time that they spent on the campgrounds already, who the boys were! that's pretty much celebrity status now if you ask me ;). the guys were asked many questions and handed out many cards and everyone was very interested in learning about their journey. their story even brought some to tears when they found out that the propose of the run in honor of Andy's cousin who passed away. many were touched by their story because a lot of them have had loved ones lost in the war and the idea of keeping his name alive through the nature of their run and the memorial scholarship caused a great deal of emotion today.

During lunch, the guys were waited on hand and foot by the people at the campgrounds, bringing them trays of pastries, sandwiches, chips, and orange juice. this stop at the campground was a real shot of good energy for the team from the people there. especially after being so bummed before, their spirits were lifted high once again, and they were all ready to tackle the rest of the day. thank you for everyone at Stage Coach Trails who helped out with the boys today. they are very happy to have met all of you, and your generosity and kindness gave them a new spring in their running step.

with 15 miles left the guys got running and within the first hour the elevation really started to climb. The “Banner Grave,” a ridiculously steep hill, really gave them a run for their money today where they climbed for about 2 hours to about 4, 000 feet. as well, running on the normal side of the road today was more dangerous than running on the wrong side, because cars could not see them on this steep part of the run, so for the first time all trip the guys ran on the opposite side to dodge the dangers, but they did overcome and made it into Julian in one piece.

finally in town, the guys stopped in and ate at the Julian Cafe where all five ordered the Wrangler Mile-High Meal where they were given a burger, French fries, a drink, cole slaw, and to top it all off a slice of apple pie a'la mode!!! after their delicious lunch, the team headed over to the Julian Police Station where the boys are staying in a conference room in the station courtesy of Steve McNamara and Craig Rembold. Thank you :). the guys also had to shower in sinks today, and after a few days going without a shower, they got pretty creative with their washing tactics only having a sink and some hand soap. but at the end of the day, clean is clean, and they were happy for the opportunity to get that way.

now that the running day is over the team has welcomed even more guests!!! Ken's parents and sisters, Matt's family and his Aunt Jenette made the trip out a few days before the finish to spend time with the guys. Currently everyone is out to dinner and enjoying the company of Ken's family (can't wait till I’m there too) :). with only TWO running days left, everyone is getting really excited. the adventure of a lifetime is so close to being complete. I think it's safe to say that the boys have gotten a lot more than they have expected to out of this trip. from support from loved ones back home to the love and kindness of complete strangers, and running through some of the most beautiful places this country has to offer, these past four months have been something to treasure forever.

two more runs to go...that's it! I’m flying out to California tomorrow morning, and am more than excited to see the finish…and ken ;). I’m really proud of you guys. you chased your dream and have been living it for the past 114 days...not many people can say that, and what you have accomplished is amazing!

keep checking in for the END OF NATION RUN 2008!!!!!!!!!

all of my love,

Claire

oh yeah, team sports ;)