Kootenai River Run #24 in man's quest
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June 11, 2011 |
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With a look
of steely determination on his face,
Harold Doss crossed the finish line in
the 5K Kootenai River Run, in spite of
the super-human effort it took for him
to get here. With the finish, he's
nearly half-way to his goal of finishing
a fun run in every state in the nation. |
He didn't set any land speed records, but after
what he went through to get here, it's an
amazing feat that Harold Doss finished today's
Kootenai River Run at all.
Doss, of Long Beach, California, set a goal to
participate in a fun run in all 50 of this
nation's states. With the Kootenai River Run, he
chalked off number 24.
He flew to Tacoma, Washington, on Friday to
attend the graduation of a friend's son. On the
way, he searched the web for fun runs in Oregon,
but none fit his schedule. He checked Idaho, and
came across the Kootenai River Run.
Graduation celebrations kept he and his friend,
Yolanda, up well into the night Friday. Arriving
back at her home shortly before midnight, he
said, "Let's go to Bonners Ferry."
"Do you know how far that is?" she asked.
"We can make it!" he said.
Being tired from the days' events, she gave him
the keys to her car and they set out on the
eight-hour drive. Somewhere along the way, she
was awakened by a "thump thump," and saw Harold
looking in the rear view mirror.
"I just ran over a deer!" he said. "It was
already dead!"
"You're tired," Yolanda said, "I'll drive the
rest of the way."
What may have helped tire him out even more than
the hectic schedule, Yolanda said, was Harold's
choice of dress. Bracing himself for the cold,
cold north, he dressed in layers, to include at
least two T-shirts. While cool by California
standards, the weather "up north" proved a
little too balmy.
Coming through the highway realignment project
in Ponderay, red flashing lights came on behind
her, and she pulled over.
"Do you know why I stopped you?" the officer
asked.
"I don't have a clue!" she said.
She was issued a ticket for speeding, having
never seen the sign for the construction slow
down.
"I was so tired, all I said was 'thank you,'"
she said she told the officer. "I did not see
any sign."
After all the excitement of the drive over, two
very tired people arrived at the fairgrounds
about two hours before start time. Harold got a
short nap, but almost backed out of the run. Not
only was he tired, he was suffering a cold and
from allergies, symptoms of the sudden change in
climate between California and the great
northwest.
"We drove all this way! You are going to do this
run!" Yolanda insisted.
A very big man, standing six feet up and up and
up, Harold put on his game face and gave in to
his friend's insistence. and the look on his
face when he crossed the 5K finish line was
golden; 24 down, 26 more states to go, Idaho
crossed off that long list.
"Now we have to drive back!" Yolanda said, "and
he has to fly back home!"
While he didn't win any prizes for
participating, Mr. Harold Doss most certainly
won the admiration of a whole community of
runners. |
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