THE KEJI REMEMBRANCE DAY 2000 ADVENTURE!

WELL, GORDON WARNICA (VIKING), ROSS MITCHELL (SCROUNGER) AND MYSELF (I'M SELLING HALIFAX!) MET AT TIM HORTONS IN BEDFORD AT THE TRADITIONAL GONZO START TIME OF 5:00A.M. TO START OUR "FULL" DAY - WHICH WAS MY FIRST EXPERIENCE RUNNING A DISTANCE LONGER THAN A MARATHON. VIKING & I FIGURED OUT IT WAS 58 KMS (CONTRARY TO THE POPULAR BELIEF THAT IT WAS ONLY 53KMS). NOT THAT 5K EITHER WAY WOULD MAKE ANY REAL DIFFERENCE (EXCEPT AT THE END!).

WE ARRIVED AT THE BIG DAM PARKING LOT AT ABOUT 7:15 A.M. AFTER CHECKING OUT A PROPERTY VIKING WANTED TO SEE IN CALEDONIA (HE SAID I'D THEREFORE BE ABLE TO WRITE-OFF THE TRIP - BUT LITTLE DID HE KNOW, WITH 58K AHEAD OF ME, THE DAY WAS PROBABLY GOING TO BE A "WRITE-OFF" ANYWAY!) WE WERE GREETED BY BRUCE DUFFY (SUN GOD), BRUCE MURPHY (DIPPER), GREG VAIL (FIREBALL) AND WALKING UP THE TRAIL A FEW MINUTES LATER WAS MY BROTHER NORM (DUDLEY). THE WEATHER WAS A LITTLE MISTY, BUT JUST COOL ENOUGH FOR A DAY IN THE WOODS!

SOON SCREACHING DOWN THE ROAD (WE DIDN'T THINK VW'S COULD GO THAT FAST) CAME GABBY (THE DRIVER) GOUGH, JERRY MACDONALD AND JIM (THE PILOT) ALL FROM THE ANNAPOLIS VALLEY AREA; AND SOON WE WERE READY TO TAKE OFF FOR OUR ADVENTURE. GABBY ASSURED US THAT WE WOULD ALL STICK TOGETHER, BECAUSE OF SUCH A SMALL GROUP, BUT VERY SOON SHE WAS SPEEDING AHEAD! WHAT SEEMED TO BE ABOUT 3 AND A HALF HOURS OF RUNNING (I THOUGHT THIS WAS A "JAUNT" WE WERE ON!) WE STOPPED AND PINNED OUR POPPIES ON TREES, REMOVED OUR HATS AND HAD A MOMENT'S SILENCE EACH REFLECTING ON OUR OWN THOUGHTS OF THE MEN & WOMEN WHO FOUGHT FOR OUR FREEDOM.

BEING VERY CAREFUL TO HYDRATE WELL AND CONSUME POWER GELS AND BARS (ON THE HOUR EVERY HOUR), WE SOON DIPPED INTO THE ABUNDANT LAKES FOR OUR FRESH (VERY BROWN) WATER SUPPLY. WE OF COURSE ALL AGREED THAT THE BROWN COLOR WAS THE IRON WE ALL NEEDED TO GET THROUGH OUR LITTLE ADVENTURE!

TIME & MILES WENT ON, STORIES WERE TOLD TO PASS AWAY THE TIME & HELP WITH THE MUSCLES THAT WERE QUICKLY REVOLTING AGAINST THE ENDURING CONTINUAL MOVEMENT! WE SOON WALKED UP THE HILLS, RAN THE DOWNS AND I SPEED-WALKED THE STRAIGHTS (MUCH TO THE ANNOYANCE OF VIKING WHO THOUGHT I WAS SHOWING OFF MY YOUTHFUL 10 YEAR ADVANTAGE ON MY FRIENDS). HECK! IT WAS HOW I SURVIVED! ON & ON WE WENT, SEEING ONLY SQUIRRELS, GROUSE AND A LOT OF SCAT ON THE TRAIL - WHICH ANSWERED THAT BURNING QUESTION - DO BEARS SHIT IN THE WOODS? THE ANSWER IS CLEARLY NO! THEY COME OUT & DO IT ON THE TRAIL FOR US SUCKERS TO STEP IN!!! (ASK GABBY).

A SHORT 5 MINUTE LUNCH BREAK (THE ONLY TIME WE SAT DOWN), CAUSE ONE WOULDN'T WANT TO REST ONES LEGS TOO LONG, WOULD ONE????? ON & ON WE GO THROUGH TRAILS, OVER ROCKS, SLIPPING AND SLIDING OVER TREE ROOTS, WET MOSS & THROUGH BOGS (AND AS MALCOLM PAIN SAYS: YOUR FEET ONLY GET WET ONCE!) FINALLY WE CAME OUT TO MASON'S CABIN (ABOUT 3:00) WE WERE GREETED BY SUN GOD, DIPPER & FIREBALL (DUDLEY HAD JUST LEFT TO RUN OUT FROM MASON'S - I THINK THAT ONCE HE SAW GABBY, JERRY & JIM DASH BY @2:30 HE FIGURED HIS LITTLE BROTHER WAS SOOO FAR BACK - HE DIDN'T WANT TO WAIT, OR THAT AFTER 45 ODD KMS I MIGHT BE ABLE TO RUN THE FINAL 11 KMS FASTER THAN HIM??? ) WILL WE EVER KNOW?!!

TEA WAS SERVED BY THE BRUCES (THANKS SO VERY MUCH FOR THAT) AND KIND WORDS OF ENCOURAGEMENT WAS HEARD & THE THREE MUSKOTEERS TREKKED ON! I DECIDED THAT I HAD A LITTLE MORE STEAM LEFT IN ME SO I RAN A LITTLE FASTER THAN MY COMRADES FOR THAT 11KMS BACK TO THE PARKING LOT (WHICH I MUST SAY WAS THE HARDEST PART OF THE ENTIRE DAY, EVEN THOUGH THE TRAIL WAS GOOD - I THINK KNOWING THAT YOU WERE ALMOST OUT - MADE IT THAT MORE DIFFICULT). I FINISHED AFTER RUNNING/WALKING FOR 8 HOURS AND 29 MINUTES, WAS MET BY MY DEAR BROTHER WHO SHOOK MY HAND IN CONGRATULATIONS....BOY, DID IT FEEL GOOD TO STOP!!! I GAINED ABOUT 30 MINUTES ON MY PALS, SO I TOOK THAT TIME TO CHANGE & DO SOME STRETCHES WHICH SAVED ME FROM THE CRIPPLING EFFECTS OF THIS YEARS' "JAUNT AROUND KEJI". FOR THE RECORD - A WONDERFUL CHALLENGING DAY FOR ALL - I'D DO IT AGAIN - HERE'S HOPING WE ALL HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY NEXT YEAR! IT CAN BE DONE - AFTER ALL: "IF IT CAN'T BE DONE - IT DOESN'T EXIST!". BY THE WAY, I'M GOING FOR A RUN THIS AFTERNOON - ANYONE WHAT TO JOIN ME?

SEE YOU ALL ON THE 25TH AT OUR HOUSE FOR THE 2001 PLANNING MEETING/POT LUCK!