· Date: Monday July 29, 2019
· Where: Lebanon, New Hampshire to Lancaster, New Hampshire
· Total Distance Covered: 91 miles
· Running Partner: Tyler S.
Going to bed early was a Godsend. I was feeling much more rested physically and mentally. I felt ready to tackle the day and was feeling good about running again. I was also excited to be moving further into New Hampshire. We were slowly making our way to the White Mountains and I loved it there. Growing up we took countless trips into this part of New Hampshire and have made countless family memories.
Today, I was also running with Tyler S. This meant that we treated the seven miles we ran together, like a workout.
The first time we ran together we ran two miles as a warmup. There were rolling hills with plenty of farmland. For a while, fences lined the road, marking pastures and fields. There were hardly any trees either which provided no shade. As we kept running, we ended up stopping at a Mechanic shop that was placed randomly in the middle of nowhere. Tyler had to go to the bathroom.
“Hello?” We shouted, looking for anyone. We could hear the tinker of tools among the trucks and cars scattered throughout the dilapidated garage, but we couldn’t see anyone anywhere.
“What can I do for you folks?” a grease-stained, sweaty farmer asked. He had emerged from the back of the building and was cleaning his hands with a rag that seemed to add more grease to them.
When we explained that we were participating in the 4K for Cancer, a cross-country run that was ending just a few days from now, in Boston, he couldn’t believe it.
“Of course, you can use my bathroom,” he said. “You both can if you have to.”
As Tyler went to the bathroom, I talked with the farmer for a few minutes. At first, he questioned that we would be able to run to Boston in a few days. He seemed to understand more when I explained the rest of our team was waiting for us about a mile down the road. Eventually, he understood how 4K functioned in relay style and was impressed with us. He couldn’t believe that we had come from California!
“I tend to all these fields around us and the ones you’ve run by today,” he said to me. He was waving his arms dramatically. “And I can’t even stand to sit on the tractor in this heat and humidity.”
I laughed and smiled.
“That’s why I’m in here working on the engines!” He explained. “I can’t believe ya’ll have been running in this!”
Once Tyler had finished, we continued talking for a bit and then went on our way. Tyler and I were in disbelief about the unquestioning attitude of the farmer. Two sweaty, young runners had just walked into his garage without asking. Sure, we had nothing with us and weren’t any threat, but how he nonchalantly said, “Oh okay sure you can use my bathroom,” blew our minds. It had us both laughing for a while.
The second time we ran together, we ran the last five miles in a fartlek style run. It was exhausting. We hadn’t looked ahead at the terrain or elevation changes. Fartlek runs are where you run at a faster pace for an extended time and then have a short rest period. We repeated this for the middle three miles, with the first and fifth mile as a warmup and cool down. It seemed every time our watches beeped at us that it was time to run faster, we had just reached the bottom of a hill. Our muscles would scream at us as we started the ascent, causing us to cut down the pace significantly. By the time we reached the van, we were soaked through and our sweat was glistening on our bodies. I was exhausted and glad to be done for the day.
Our last portion of our run ended on a freshly paved road that paralleled the Connecticut River. The river was the border between New Hampshire and Vermont, and we had been crossing over it, and back across again, all throughout the day. It was funny how the route gave us multiple state crossings of the same stateline today! Running alongside the Connecticut River made me feel closer to home, especially since we were in New Hampshire. Seeing the water rushing, knowing that soon it would be near my family made me happy. I so badly wanted to see them in Boston. We had to get to Boston already!
Later, as everyone else finished their miles, we putzed our way to the host for the night. Since we were the first van, we had to continue driving the rest of the way. I hadn’t been placed in the first van in quite some time and had forgotten what this was like. We had a lot of time to kill due to the low mileage, and the number of injuries preventing people from running. So, we explored the area quite a bit.
The Moore Reservoir was my favorite part of the day. Looking on a map, we realized that this was supplied by the Connecticut River, which drained out of the reservoir on the southern end. Although we weren’t near the source of the River, the Fourth Connecticut Lake which was near Canada, it was still interesting to see an aspect of the river I had never seen before. Here, the water that flowed into my home state, sat around for a bit in the reservoir before continuing south.
There was a park here that we stopped off at to have snacks and lunch as well as swim. It was simply called the “Scenic Picnic Area.” Although the name had no cleverness or unique qualities to it, the area was beautiful. I found myself sitting on a bench eating some food as I watched everyone else swim. I didn’t want to get all wet and sit in my wet clothes for the remainder of the drive. We had time, but not as much time as we usually did to dry off before we had to be on our way. The view from the bench showed me the Vermont Wilderness across the water and the beginning of a mountain range that extended to the right. I wanted to go hike, to have s’mores with my family, and to go camping. It was so peaceful and brought back countless memories.
While at the park, I was walking through a small grove of pine trees, when I found my favorite state crossing throughout the entire trip. When you summit mountains, there is a geographical surveyor’s mark in the form of a pin, that signifies the mountain's tallest point. When we climbed the White Mountains growing up, we would run around the top to find the pin that was always pounded into the rock. In the middle of the pine tree grove, there was a pin that looked almost identical. I was confused because I knew we weren’t on top of a summit. As I bent over to read it, I realized that it was used to mark the state borders that ran through the middle of the reservoir. For some reason, I thought that this was the coolest thing and it became my favorite state crossing sign.
As we arrived in Lancaster, I was disappointed. I was so excited to see a New Hampshire town that I hadn’t seen before and was ready to explore. But as we drove through, there was only one main strip of gift shops and restaurants. Even these, were run down, old, and falling apart in some places. You could tell that at one point, the town had been a bustling tourist attraction but had seen better days. We had a rest day here tomorrow, our last of the entire summer. I would use it to rest up before our last days as a team.
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