My favorite View

"The best part of a hill is the view from above"

Where's your favorite view?

+Altra Zero Drop Footwear It is almost impossible to describe one favorite view while running.  Running has taken me to so many beautiful places, and each, individual view or memory has a special place. When I close my eyes though, I see views from when I first found this love of running:

      I was living on the Pacific Coast in Washington State.  It was my first year in the military, and life was brutal.  Days were were long and stress was high, and I was only nineteen years old.  While my friends were off in high school, I was conducting search and rescue missions in some of the world's most dangerous seas, and then strapping on a pistol to board fishing boats.  While friends were gearing up for the weekend after a long week of school, I was boarding a Charter boat to give CPR to an eighty year old man named Howard.  Howard went out with his boots on.

    So I would spend my days off running down that beach.  I would run from half moon bay, South, all the way to a group of condos that were miles off in the distance.  On one side of me, I would pass the eight story tall watch tower that I spent twelve hour shifts cramped up in.  Essentially it was a continuously manned, ten foot by ten foot box that overlooked many miles of the coast.  I hated the confines of that box. On my days off, I would fly right by it though, happy to not be inside.  As I ran south, I would look off into the west and notice the bright red sun sinking down over the Pacific Ocean.  On a clear day, the sun would reflect across the ocean, and if I ran close enough to the water, it would be almost as if the sun was washing up against my legs as I ran.  As the sun sank lower into the horizon, I would imagine that I could take my thumb and forefinger, and pick it back up for just a few more moments.  I never wanted those last few moments to end.   Then the twilight would turn to dark, and it would be only me on the beach as I turned back around and headed north.  All I would hear is the crashing of the waves, the barking of sea lions in the distance, and the sounds of my feet thudding against the sand.  I was free, with nothing to think about, but the moment.  It was beautiful.  That's my favorite view. 

The top of Old Rag Mountain in Virginia

One of my favorite Running moments:  Steps Beach in Puerta Rico

The local tack.  Sometimes its a view from ground level that gives me the motivation I need

I took this one the other day in Charleston, SC.  My favorite views, and deepest thoughts come at sunset runs.