Grand Mesa Ultramarathon
Back in the Spring, our 25-year old son Lawlor and his college buddy Connor O'Hearn decided to raise funds for Be The Boat by running the Grand Mesa Ultra Marathon (https://www.grandmesaultras.com/). An amazing undertaking - with a goal to run $10,000 and run 50 miles at an altitude above 10,000 feet. Lawlor lives in Salt Lake City (4,226 elevation) and works in Park City (7,000 elevation) while Connor lives in Boston (sea level). Through spring and summer, they trained, geared up and arrived in Grand Mesa ready.
Their "pit crew" arrived from all over - Connor's parents from Cleveland, another college buddy from Salt Lake, our daughter Regan and her beau PJ from Ft. Collins, Mark and me bringing up the rear from RI. The day arrived early at 3 AM for breakfast followed by a 4:30 AM pre-race meeting. Just before 5 AM, the racers lined up, with only headlamps to guide them on the first 4 miles through the trees. Lawlor and Connor ran together through the dark and into the day -- all the way until Connor turned an ankle, at which pint he encouraged Lawlor to go on. Connor quickly - and gracefully - shifted from runner to supporter and never left his disappointment change his naturally positive demeanor. What a terrific life lesson he provided.
By days end, 11 hours and 38 minutes later, the numbers read:
* 50 miles
* 3,971 elevation change during ascent/descent
* 10,000 foot elevation course average
* $10,519 raised (visit https://www.gofundme.com/betheboat50 to contribute)
Whether they ran 50 feet or 50 miles, they were champs in our books for taking on this physically-taxing and mentally-grueling event. But then, with Hunter as his "big" brother, I guess Lawlor had been training for this his whole life!
On reflection, there were so many moments of beauty -- the cheering from the "pit crew", the support of college buddies for such a crazy endeavor and ultimately, a brother's action to honor a beloved older brother in a way so uniquely his own. As Forest Gump would say, Lawlor and Hunter went together like "peas and carrots" but like peas and carrots, while they fell in the same "kingdom", they differed in every other way :--) It was lovely to see them joined together again, this time on Lawlor's playing field!
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