Mile 159. Tortoise was accompanied on the first two miles of this walk by his old college roommate and friend, Jeff Peters ... by phone. Jeff was driving with his wife Lynnette from Salt Lake, where they had done some family activities and visited the open house of the Provo City Center Temple. They were on their way to Las Vegas, where their daughter Heidi will be married Saturday to Trey Tagliaferri. Passing the exit for Hurricane, Toquerville, Zion Park, and La Verkin, they thought of Tortoise and called him as he was preparing for his walk ... so he took them along with him. It was very nice ... and the walking thought by Carole Stephens that came in the last mile after the phone call ended fits nicely with this unexpected visit ...
Cheerio!
Today's walk was 3.24 miles and had a 4.8 tortoise rating earned by climbing 217 feet in the 1.62 mile uphill portion. Average elevation was 3285. This walk burned 478 calories in 57:18 minutes, a pace of 17:41 minutes per mile. It was Lou's twentieth 5k walk of 2016.
Here are the overall stats so far for 2016:
159.30 miles walked, compared with Lou's goal for this date of 171.97 miles.
12,006 total feet climbed so far in 2016, compared to a year-to-date goal of 10,584. Lou hopes to climb more than the 61,316 feet he climbed in 2015 -- but in 16 minutes less each day than his 1:07:04 hour average in 2015. So far in 2016 Tortoise's walks have averaged 47:57 minutes each.
His average pace so far in 2016 has been 16:15 minutes per mile, slightly more tortoise like than his goal of 16:05 minutes per mile, but a noticeable difference from his 18:25 minute per mile pace in 2015.
Lou has walked 255 consecutive non-Sundays since his 8 missed days May 2-11, Overall he has walked on 358 of the 367 non-Sundays in 2015-16, a 97.55% consistency rating.
The purpose of the percentages is to have a higher percentage of both distance and of time walked than of the year. This tells Tortoise that he is on track. And of course, he also wants to keep the Boredom Committee supplied with plenty of boring numbers so those good folks will be happy.
And now for today's walking thought ...
"When she arrived at the trailhead, her good friend Ashley approached her. Linking arms with Jeanne, she offered to hike with her, saying, 'I'll go with you.' Ashley, who was 16 years old at the time, had some physical challenges that made it difficult for her to climb very fast. So she and Jeanne walked slowly, noticing Heavenly Father's creations: the rocks on the mountain peak above them and the flowers all around them. Jeanne later said, 'It really didn't take me long to forget about my goal of hiking to the peak, for it soon became an adventure of another kind -- an adventure to point out the beauties along the path, many of which I would have missed had I just hiked to reach the goal of Malan's Peak.'
"As Jeanne and Ashley continued hiking, far behind the rest of the group, they were joined by Emma, another young woman in the ward, who had decided to wait and walk with them. Emma added to their enjoyment. She taught them a song and provided extra support and encouragement. Jeanne recalled: "We sat and rested, we sang, we talked, and we laughed. I was able to get to know Ashley and Emma in a way I wouldn't have been able to do otherwise. It wasn't about the mountain that night -- it was about much, much more. It was about helping each other along the path, one step at a time."
The tortoise is definitely smiling!
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