Do you some someone who has walked across America from shore to shore? I met a woman years ago who did this, and heard of several others. That's quite a feat - quite an endurance walk. Geoffrey had considered doing that, but one morning I woke to the idea of Key West to Maine...this is a highly populated area of the States...more than 32 million people live in the counties through which Geoffrey will walk and his support personnel will drive. So we are working toward fulfilling a real dream!
Geoffrey wants to share this with you about his 24 mile training walk yesterday, August 21
Kia Ora - the 24-mile walk is significant as the average distance I will have to travel every day from Key West to Fort Kent - on the Canadian border of Maine. The 2400 miles has a break every ten days or so built in so there is no point in doing the maths, especially as the actual distance is 2376 miles, according to Wikipedia - the online source that thinks on its feet. But why spoil a good round distance with the actual length; until I am so tired I'd happily wipe that extra 24 miles.
Yesterday I finished full of running( walking) and knocked out the last mile in 15 minutes to prove there was more in the tank. Starting slowly helped, but I can't go too slowly; my muscles would get bored. I set off south on the Ohio and Erie Canal towpath from 40 Corners, planning to go 3 miles south and return to the car and take on more drink and it was quite deserted at 7.40am - first day back at school for many. The turnaround point in Massillon was the 11.5 mile peg and I planned to walk to the Stark County boundary and half a mile past that toward Clinton to make the 24 miles. I was back at the car in 1hr 45 and drank my fill and filled my drink (bottles) for the walk to Canal Fulton. It's invariably 55 minutes to Butterbridge but the main path was closed at Crystal Springs - for maintenance. An old ( well, young fella about my age) chap on his bike shared a moan with me about that and I considered walking on anyway - rather than take the alternative route on the Muskingum Trail on the other side of the Tuscarawas River. But I figured the workers would resent an interloper and harsh words might ensue - so I took the detour and found that added an extra 0.2 miles -and that changed the extra distance past the county boundary (the 0 mile peg). When you have an hour of fast walking you have plenty of time to calculate all this - plus practice lines, do the Rime of the Ancient Mariner. Our board member Tom asked me what I think about and my glib self replied my head was full of Sousa marches - and they do come in readily with the rythmic feet hitting crushed limestone.
The detour forced me to miss my favourite spot - where a week or so back I was stunned by the beauty of one scene, for its sheer symmetry of greeness as much as anything, and a small inner voice asked if I had ever seen anything so beautiful - and in that epiphany moment I had to grab a tree to stop from falling as I answered the most humble and awefilled "No. It had always impressed me but this was "clouds opening and showing riches ready to drop upon me" moment.
We (who's we) reached halfway in 3 hours 40 mins - 12 miles and lunch a long way off - at Canal Fulton and the next 3.3 miles were north. Twice I was walkers going quickly ahead of me. I wish they wouldn't because the competitor in me has to catch them. One I didn't but the other I caught easily. The only stop on the second leg was for a drink at Canal Fulton. I had meant to buy some more Powerade but the machine was not in a $1 note accepting mood - I should carry more quarters to obviate the need for them - but I found that Coke was just as stimulating (the Coke machine was working/ swallowing $1 bills).
So the second leg took 3 hours 30 mins - pauses to buy and ice-cream included and with 3.6 miles to go in one more hour I knew I had a solid time in the bag - the last leg took 55 minutes at close to 4mph - more than usually tired but happy that this feat is achievable - 48 of the 100 days we will walk the same or shorter distances; in eight month's time. Ka Kite
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