The Crazy 8: Triumph and Tears at Oxfam Trailwalker

Ever heard the expression “Vegas Mile”?

In simple terms, it means the distance between you and an object that appears close but is really far away. Such as a mountain. Or retirement. Or your vacation. Or losing 20 pounds.

Okay the last three were not the right examples. “Vegas Mile” does refer to the trick your mind plays on you when you eyeball a destination and think it’s much closer than it really is. Try it someday. On the Prairies. On Water. On the Vegas Strip.

I think if there was a contagious disease of having “Vegas Mile,” or “VM” for short, it certainly infected dozens of participants at the Oxfam Trailwalker event last weekend in cottage country Ontario. If you don’t know Trailwalker, it’s a 100-km hike that must be completed in 48 hours by all four members of your team.

To call it a hike is unfair. It’s like calling the Olympics a game of tag.

It’s a mental, physical, spiritual and anthropological challenge.

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