Superheroes among us

[Note: This post should be read while listening to the theme music from the Avengers. Just sayin'.]

“You get hurt, hurt 'em back. You get killed... walk it off.” Captain America to the Avengers in Avengers: Age of Ultron

The Rescue Run 2015 kicked off as planned last Thursday morning in Superior. We got a little bit later start than intended (it was closer to high noon than the original 10 a.m. kick-off ). Because of a function on Wednesday evening at the Christian fellowship they are a part of in Milwaukee they did not pull into our driveway until 1:30-ish. As hyped up as my niece was to get her journey going, when you go to bed that late the morning comes awfully soon. But after a two hour drive north, devotions, prayer and a lot of pictures, at long last she and her friend, Holly, started running south out of Superior along the Tri-County Corridor, a rail-to-trail path, with her dad in tow on his bike. Like the Chinese say, “the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” I'm sure that holds true for a 400-mile journey as well.

Team Hannah Day 1

Mile 2.5

Bound and determined

Hannah, a recent high school graduate, has had this idea for some time now to run across the state to raise awareness about the reality of human trafficking in the Badger State as well as raise $20,000 for the nonprofit, Exploit No More, that wants to establish an after-care home for juveniles rescued from the sex industry. According to the National Human Trafficking Resource Center, human trafficking is a modern version of an old problem in our country – slavery – and it's going on in every state in the Union. Whatever else that may be, it's a crying shame. So, this 18-year-old wants to do something about it.

Cemetery Road is a real killer

It's a crazy idea: run 20 miles a day for 10 days straight while recruiting friends, family and any one else who feels so inspired, to jump in and run along for a combination of an additional 20 miles a day. To date I have run 8 marathons and 2 ultras and I can tell you that 26.2 miles takes a terrific toll on your body. Now, imagine running the equivalent of  7 1/2 marathons nearly straight in a row. That is huge. If there are approximately 10,000 steps in a mile that's a LOT of steps. But what's crazier? Attempting something like this or simply wishing those lost girls and boys the very best? By comparison, it's a good kind of crazy.

Rain run in Rice Lake

Our daughter Christine and son, Ed, - both veteran CC runners – committed to help their cousin get her epic quest going (our other son, Charlie, was there for moral support as well and biked a mile or so with her). And, as I shared in my previous post, I was ready to lend some helping miles as well.

This is pretty epic

Between Thursday and Saturday, Team Hannah made their way south from Superior to the village of New Auburn just south of here. Between her accrued 80 or so miles and the rest of us we have advanced the ball about 140 miles – and that was as of 2 days a go. She's down by Fairchild now and by day's end will have recorded between yesterday and today another 40 miles. Epic indeed.

As for our side of the family, Christine, who just started running again this spring after a long hiatus, over three days recorded 12 miles, Ed – who runs CC and Track for UW-Superior – ran 22 and “old faithful”, myself, managed an even 20. It's the most I've run over the same length of time in a very long while and truthfully I'm feeling it today. However, when this day is over my niece will have recorded her 100^th mile so I've got nothing to complain about.

The best

Christine told me while running her stints she kept playing the Captain America march over and over. For my part, I have a playlist on my Ipod that I call “Cowboys and Superheroes,” a combination of some my favorite Marvel and DC theme music - Captain America, Superman, Thor, Avengers - and western soundtracks – Silverado, True Grit (the John Wayne version), and The Sons of Katie Elder. I'm an early morning runner by habit. I like getting my run done and out of the way before 8. But on Friday, my first run of the day was nearly at noon. The sun was out and it was very warmish and there I was running a 5 mile leg above Minong on the Wild Rivers Trail at the worst time of day for running. I had my Camelbak water system on and the trail was far better running-wise than it had been when I had run on it the day before above Solon Springs. But when it's hot and you're alone and there is nothing but trail stretching on forever ahead of you, it can be discouraging. But because my playlist was on “shuffle”, every once in awhile The Avengers theme would come on and suddenly I'd get a few drops of adrenaline into my soul. I'd think of one of my favorite scenes in Avengers: Age of Ultron. The fight is going poorly for earth's mightiest heroes, their backs are against the wall and Ultron has the upper hand. Wanda Maximoff (aka the Scarlet Witch) is beside herself with guilt for having been in cahoots with this ultimate bad guy. But then the master archer, Cliff Barton, delivers what I think is one of the best lines ever in this genre of film:

This guy is my favorite

The city is flying and we're fighting an army of robots. And I have a bow and arrow. Nothing makes sense. Doesn't matter what you did, or what you were. If you go out there, you fight, and you fight to kill. Stay in here, you're good, I'll send your brother to come find you. But if you step out that door, you are an Avenger.

Now here's a super girl

By my estimation I am perhaps 30 pounds overweight and my pace is so very tortoise-like. But on that hot, June day I was out there contributing to the cause and step after torrid step helping Hannah get closer to Milwaukee. When I see pictures of myself in my running get-up, I cringe. Is it me or why does that tire around my waist seem to be getting bigger? And then I remind myself that at the moment I can't do anything about my waist-size. It truly is what it is. But svelte gazelle (Ed) or stocky miniature horse like me I'm out there all the same and at the moment – pant, pant – I'm an Avenger, too.

God bless Supergirl as she moves further south. She's a real super hero to me. She reminds me that while her run will not solve the issue of human trafficking, acts of love like this amount to something significant over the long run.

So now she's on TV (Channel 18 story)