60 Miles

I want to share a piece of my heart with you this evening. Today, I took a huge leap of faith. I went to http://08.the3day.org and registered for the most daunting walk you can imagine. sixty miles. Walking. Three days. 20 miles a day. (up-hill, both ways, barefoot in the snow, etc, etc).

What do we do on this torture-treck you ask?

In October of this year - 5 short months away - I will drive from my warm comfy home in Murfreesboro, TN to Atlanta, GA and walk 10 miles a day, sleep in tents at night and guzzling gatoraid to re-fuel my aching body. I am going alone. I am leaving my best friend and all of our kiddo's at home and I am setting out to change my life. Reading things this evening about past walkers had me in tears. Remembering my wonderful friend that passed had me deep in memory lane. I was in tears for a while (especially when watching the YouTube videos) but it gives me the inspiration I need to do this.

Walking 60 miles sounds like a long way. It is a long way. It requires months of preparation, culminating in 8 to 12 hours of walking for three consecutive days. I'm starting small. I've began walking a couple miles a day at work along with my regualr cycling outings. Danny and I have been getting up before work and walking 1.2 miles around our neighborhood. I'm going to have to step that up a bit =). It will certainly help me get in shape!
The hardest part for me will be raising the minimum funds: $2,200.00. Right now, I'm at $600.00. It's the most I've ever raised but I think given the five month timeline, it is do-able.
I have to make an investment in some new tennis shoes. Danny is going to take me over to FleetFeet next weekend to get my feets checked out. I have to make sure I'm training in the right gear.
I've done a lot of reading tonight and my biggest fear is ....blisters. Seems almost unavoidable. I guess the key is tight-fitting socks and loose tennis shoes. Don't worry, I'll keep you posted ;)

I think I'm also suppose to invest in a..."fanny pack"... eek!

Alright, I'll check back with everyone with updates.
Love you all
~A