The runners and supporters enjoying their first beverages after running at the Baywood Ale House

7 YEARS STRONG

This was our 7th year of us running, walking, or biking along on Route 1. By all accounts, you would have thought we'd have slowed down by now. I 'd say were doing just fine. Anyone who knows me by now, knows that I have a bunch of thanking and feelings to express in this blog. Let me share with you the results in statistical fashion for those who don't have the time or patience to read over my humbled ramblings.

Runners - 27
Bikers - 9
Running Miles - 473
Biking Miles - 440
Miles (total) - 913
Money Raised from Run the 1 - 14k
Total Participants from Run the 1 and the Rafiki Runs - 211 (Estimated)
Total Miles from both events - 1488 miles (Estimated)
Average Miles per Participant - 7
Total Money raised from both events - $16,000 and counting!
Average amount of money raised per mile ran or biked - $10 (Rounded)
Good Times Had - Countless

Impromptu rendition of Sweet Home Alabama

THE PALMER COMMUNITY

Most folks who have followed our efforts, probably know that every year, Laura Palmer brings together a wonderful group of people in Menlo Park for a pre-celebration for Run the 1. Over last few years, the kids have been growing up and participating more and more. This year, some of the kids performed Uptown Funk and You've Got a Friend In Me. We all got together at the end and sang Sweet Home Alabama too.

We had a lot of new faces too. I was fortunate to have over 40 adults and kids listen as I explained the past, present, and future of our efforts. I was even more fortunate to have such a compassionate audience; an audience that had a lot of fantastic questions. Even the kids were asking thoughtful and intelligent queries. Each year gets better and more special. My only wish is that those kids could meet all of the great kids we take care of in Rwanda.

RUN THE 1 - RAGGED POINT to THE ALE HOUSE in BAYWOOD - (50 miles)

If you are familiar with Run the 1, you may know our usual route. However, this year was different. Due to the fact that Big Sur is sadly still impassable, there was only one day of running. So Claire, Ben, and myself ran the entire 50 miles this year. I'm really slow so I started very early while Ben is very fast so he started later and caught up to me. Claire started when I did but finished a lot sooner because she is very fast too.

Holmes gave me some support as he made his way to the start later than me. Tradition states we kick things off with a Tecate every year. At this point, I was 10 miles in but I think the Run the 1 Gods forgave us.

Here is a fuzzy photo of Claire just before the official start of the run. We aren't very good at taking photos.

The other runners and bikers scattered themselves around all day as I was the caboose of the operation. Another difference from other years was the planning for supporting the runners which was less thorough than in years past. That, in itself, is a funny statement since we have never put too much thought into support in years' past either! However, something I have always loved about our event and the people who participate in it is how naturally everyone takes care of each other. I never went long before someone was checking up on me. And meanwhile people would be moving vehicles and checking up on others. Take a look at the impressive mileage of everyone this year.

RUNNERS

Claire Mellein - 50 miles
Ben Holmes - 50 miles
Shaun Sullivan - 50 miles
Brett Hildebrandt - 26 miles
Devon Kelsey - 27 miles
Katie - 25 miles
Kona (Devon's dog) - 2 miles
Victoria Torres - 5 miles
Logan - 5 miles
Michael Welker - 12 miles
Jerry Green - 12 miles
Jason Hall - 12 miles
Kyle Nakazawa - 26 miles
Ishmael Canas - 20 miles
Gamm - 12 miles
Jamie Sullivan - 5.5 miles
Nicole Rogers - 5.5 miles
Joshua Blacksmith and his infant daughter Sage in a stroller - 13 miles
Taylor Castanon (Rafiki Run) - 8 miles
Joey Rogers - 3 miles
Courtney Carter - 3 miles
Matt Madrigal - 10 miles
Naomi Townsley - 10 miles
Kallen - 20 miles
Cook - 16 miles
Cooper Boneck - 12 miles
Sam Kane - 20 miles

BIKERS

Doc - 30 miles
Goldstein - 30 miles
Wiley - 75 miles
Taylor - 75 miles
Spencer Gordon - 100 miles
Seth Larson - 15 miles
Matthew Carter - 15 miles
Heidi Esh - 50 miles
Ben Agol - 50 miles

UNSUNG HEROES (PURE SUPPORT)

Melissa Canas
Cain Silvey

Katie, Kona, and Devon joined me for a bit on the south side of Cambria.

THE BAYWOOD ALE HOUSE

This year was the first time we ended the run at a social gathering rather than a vista point. While we lacked some of the natural beauty of a sunset over the ocean, we gained hospitality, comfort, and community. The Ale House was stoked to have us and we were stoked to have a welcoming place to wind down after the day. The drinks are quality, the food is delicious and the folks there are genuine. For those who have followed us before and remember our nights in Fernwood in Big Sur; this felt like our new version of our Fernwood celebrations.

My cousin Jamie and her rad crew from San Diego made it that day too

THE AFTER PARTY - KREUZBERG - SAN LUIS OBISPO

The party was once again hosted by Kreuzberg cafe in downtown San Luis Obispo. We had a solid line up of music for the night. The biggest thing worth mentioning is that many of the members of The Glorified Gardeners had been in Mexico for a wedding all week. However, they made it a point to be back in time for the show. I was floored by their dedication.

I worked the door during the opener, greeting everyone and taking donations. It was a really nice experience. Our opener was a 15 year old girl named Izzy who was accompanied by her uncle, and half the members of the Glorified Gardeners. With little live experience with a band, you wouldn't have known because Izzy owned it. It was great to see her reaction to it all along with the reaction of her whole family in attendance. Samba Loca came bounding in soon after. We always appreciate them each year. They bring the party to another level. I was laughing watching random people who had been in the cafe before the party started trying to study, giving up, and joining the party. The Glorified Gardeners, including me, finished off the night. I'm not exaggerating when I say it is one of my favorite moments of the year. I'd like to think people were not disappointed. I can say with certainty, I sure wasn't. And I was more grateful than ever for the gang coming back in time to join me. The party helped celebrate a great event, yet again, and brought in a lot of support for the cause. I couldn't have asked for more.

Laura Palmer couldn't resist and she drove down with her son Noah to spend the night wish us. It had been a few years since she had seen the rest of the gang.

AFTER THOUGHTS

I said it last year and I will say it again; I am so grateful that the event has occurred once again. I am now two years removed from the Central Coast of California, and I see others come and go too. And yet, I saw so many familiar faces and I even saw newer ones too. I was humbled to see newer members of the Arroyo Grande Hotshots, new smokejumpers, and folks from other fire modules I had never met before. And it is impossible to forget how many people came together for the Rafiki Runs as well just two weeks prior. Most theories would show us slowing down, yet we had our biggest community coming together ever over the past few weeks, and we raised a substantial amount of support for the kids in Rwanda too.

Every year, I have tried to list all of the amazing things that these events have brought to the kids in Rwanda, myself, and hopefully you too reading this. It is like a revolving door of awesomeness for so many in my opinion. And there were more than a few donations this year that were extremely personal too. All of these things are what allow me to run 50 miles. I don't enjoy running more than 5 miles and I rarely run much more than that at a time. I run 50 miles because I feel I need to earn such generosity in some way. I am able to accomplish the feat because I am constantly reminded and strengthened by the community this event has created, how lucky I feel for being a part of it, and all the ways it reminds me of the best parts of living and being alive.

SO WHAT'S NEXT?

That is a great question. First, before I answer, I must thank everyone else that may not be named in this blog post that has made Run the 1 a reality. You know who you are. The next thing I must do is gather together with the rest of our amazing volunteers to determine our game plan for my trip to Rwanda in January. This will be my tenth trip returning to Rwanda and I am just as excited as ever to get back to the kids and get to work. Look out for a blog post in the new year that will outline my goals for the trip which essentially are now all of our goals. Also lookout for more photos from the run that still haven't drifted towards me yet, along with updated total mileage added in combining all the years of our efforts. I love to look back at those numbers to remind myself of the big picture of all we have done over seven years now but at the end of the day, one can look at any of the kids in any of our pictures and be assured that they helped secure their life and future for another year. And that's what its all about. The kids.

Endless gratitude as always, talk to you soon, happy holidays,

Sully

Run the 1 Results and Stories From 2017