Woolley Trail Fun Run

Kristjan, Emma, and I moved to Sedro Woolley when I was pregnant with Riley. It was a difficult move for me. Although I was all for making this move I missed Seattle and my network of friends I had there. Once Riley was born I made the decision to start running and maybe, someday run a marathon. I met two of my best friends during that time spending many miles sharing our secrets and dreams. There was this new Rails to Trails trail that started in Sedro- Woolley and went 26 miles to Concrete. It was a nice, dirt packed, flat trail along the Skagit River. I did a lot of my training on that trail. There were property owners along the trail who were unhappy to have people using it. They were very vocal with their opinions concerning runners and bikers passing their homes. Some even posted big signs in their yards expressing their disgust with this new trail. I tried to ignore the signs and just quietly pass by. I would push Emma and Riley in a big Burley bike trailer with stroller attachments (no cool jogger strollers back then) and I would pick up every piece of litter I saw. It was little but I hoped to prove the nay-sayers wrong and show them that this trail would be a great addition to the community, not a hinderance. Well, time went by, my kids are now teenagers, Kristjan, my friends and I have grown up together, and Kristjan and I have moved to another city. Here in Anacortes we have over 50 miles of trails. The community is proud of and supports our forestlands wholeheartedly. We also have a trail called the Tommy Thompson. This is another Rails to Trails paved trail that starts in town and then goes over the water off the island. Several months ago somebody set the trestle on fire. I don't know why this was done and this arsonist has not been found. I do know that this trail was used by young and old alike. Bikers, walkers, joggers, runners. We all shared and took care of this asset to our city. Now we are in the process of raising money to fix the trestle. One of the fundraisers was a fun run today back on the trail I haven't run since living in Sedro- Woolley ten years ago. I decided to run the marathon distance (I hope you are not reading this Howard). I was given the ok to start running again last week. The foot looks good and I have been slowly trying to get my groove back. I was not planning on doing this kind of distance for a while (I removed my name from Way Too Cool and Miwok) but I just couldn't resist. It was such a good cause and it felt right. About 50 people showed up which means around $800 will be donated to the rebuilding of the trestle. It was a beautiful, sunny day and a wonderful start to my return to training.