Reach The Summit

I'm a slug...or my friends are freaks. No offense to slugs (or freaks), but compared to buddies who have achieved amazing athletic feats like marathons, the Iron Man, and the Century Ride, I'm quite the slow mover. The latest physical challenge I'm hearing about is CR's Reach The Summit trek to the top of Mount Hood, Oregon's highest peak, in June. He's doing it in support of the American Lung Association of Oregon.

From underground to the top of the world... I first met the guy in 1995 during my summer internship at Lava Beds National Monument ("Club Beds") where we explored caves and monitored bat colonies. Not sure how deep underground we ventured, but I remember many hours of hiking in dark catacombs illuminated only by our headlamps, and eerie silence except for our steady boot steps and occasional *thunk* of a hardhat against a low overhang.

Now CR is training to hike from about 4,000 to 11,237 feet in two days! (You go!) He has a fundraising goal of $6K, which will be used to support... [excerpted from his letter]:

• Research into promoting lung health and preventing lung diseases;
  
• Being pro-active in environmental health issues and the fight against outdoor air pollutants;
• Reducing tobacco use, especially among young people, which is responsible for >40,000 deaths in the U.S. each year.
  

I'll send you more info if you'd like to sponsor him.