I really don’t know for sure.  I had an idea to document my training for the Leadville 100 ultramarathon race, but after getting the website, a logo, a name, a new Facebook page for this little project, I found out I wasn’t going to be running the 100 this year.  I figured I’d give the marathon a go and try to get an entry that way, so I registered for it the first day I could.  As the race date got closer, I found I wasn’t going to be able to run it, and had to put it off until next year.  The staff at the Leadville Race Series were very helpful with that process.

So, with no Leadvilles this year, what am I going to make of this?  Let’s see where it goes.  I’m still going to work for the 100 next year, maybe put in for both the bike and the run.  Might as well up my chances of doing something cool.  I did a bunch of mountain bike racing when I was in high school, probably to the detriment of my parent’s retirement funds, but they said they didn’t mind, and that the experiences were worth it.  Thank you very much Mom & Dad! No refund on the marathon registration, but for $40 I was able to defer it to next year, so I have that going for me.

The Giant Red Viking Son has expressed an interest in climbing mountains, which is something I kinda did in college, so maybe we’ll add some of those to the mix along with the running and riding training.  He also wants to do some adventure motorcycle touring after passing his MSF class.  Poor guy looked like a circus bear riding a bicycle out on the riding course.  At 6’5-ish, he definitely needs a bigger motorcycle.  Maybe this project will help fund some of those adventures, though I don’t know how, I don’t have anything to sell at this point, just my words.

I definitely need to get back to being stronger for work.  I haven’t really done any lifting since I was unceremoniously told to get out of the house so my soon-to-be ex-wife’s work friend could move into the spare bedroom where I had spent most of the last year sleeping.  The gym at work was also being redone and I hate the public/membership gym experience so after a few months of feeling sorry for myself I started running.  Might as well, since, as a grown-ass man, I moved into my childhood home with my parents.  Thank you very much, again, Mom & Dad!  There are a lot of trails around here and it doesn’t take much to go for a run.  Anyway, stronger.  The gym at work has been finished for a while so I’m getting back to picking things up and putting them down.  As well as consuming protein.  All the protein. 

So, what’s up with the name?  It’s pretty simple, really.  We, as a society, have gotten so focused on the next cool thing that we’ve largely stopped having adventures.  Instead of exploring and running around in the neighborhood open spaces, climbing trees, riding bikes and skateboards and scooters around, our kids are scrolling through feeds or watching videos or playing video games on their electronics.  Instead of family trips to interesting places, we’re family-wide binging on Netflix or Prime Video.  Alone.  We’re human beings, we’re not meant to sit in front of screens (yet here we are) alone.  We’re social animals, we’re made to explore the world around us.  Sitting in front of screens is killing us, possibly one of the greatest contributors to the physical decline of the modern world human. 

What we’re lacking is adventure.  Exploration.  New experiences.  A component of legitimate physical danger.  The riskiest thing most of us do on a regular basis is strap ourselves into a large metal cage, specifically designed to absorb energy, and which will explode from nearly every conceivable space with inflatable cushions should we crash.  What we need is adventure.  We need to see new things, have new experiences, reconnect with the natural world on several levels.  Edward Abbey said “Wilderness is not a luxury, but a necessity of the human spirit.”  To that, I would add that struggle, work, and adventure are also necessities of the human spirit.  So, here’s to One More Adventure, whatever yours may be.