Lakeshore Miracle Run

July 2008

This past Saturday, I attended the Lakeshore Miracle Run south of Holland, MI. The race was started nine years ago by Adam Kunkel, and is a fund raiser for the Helen DeVos Children's Hospital Foundation. Adam is both a great endurance athlete who has done marathons, Ironman triathlons, and adventure races and a creative, caring businessman who loves to give back to his community and kids. He envisioned a one of a kind event that would absorb runners into the beauty of the Lake shore at it's best while raising money for children in need.

This 10K is no ordinary 10K - it is simply one of the most beautiful courses I have ever run (or walked or biked or hiked). The day started with a bang of thunder and lighting alerting the adventurous that they were invited to a special day of running. The storm gave way to a nice rain and while some decided to stay in bed, it provided others another dimension to enjoy under the canopy of hard woods as they ran through the trails.

It starts on a country road, but quickly heads into single track trails through the wooded coast line along Lake Michigan. As runners wind through the tight turns and loose dirt trails, they are immersed in a canvas of nature's colors and textures that speak deeply to their soul. Although the running is laborious, all the senses are super-charged with a raw energy that lifts up the spirit and encourages runners to find out what's behind the next bend.

The trails give way to beach and dunes as the run hits the second third, and the run dumps out onto the Lake Michigan beach. And again, although movement is slowed and more difficult through the shifting sand, nature invites the runners to keep moving and enjoy her diversity.
They are now stimulated by the view, smell, taste, feel and sounds of the greatest body of fresh water in the world and the beauty of it's ever changing shore. Runners find hard packed sand to make the run easier, but soon see the way out of this beach will be a huge challenge. Into site comes the turn off the beach - a giant bowl of a dune that clearly is a test just to walk up.

Now the wonder the landscape that has tickled the senses change to focused intention and survival to find the top of this sand mountain and nothing else. It is not a quest for the timid, but for the brave who endure the dune, the sight at the top (along with the water provided by awesome volunteers who haul it up in the morning) is inspirational. Some competitors move on quickly, but most linger a bit to enjoy their conquest and the victor's view of the sky, water, sand, plants and woods that have lined their way. Now they move on (carefully) down the back side of the dune. Gravity is the challenge now and a quick lean forward or a careless footplant will cause a tumble and roll that a child would welcome but the runners would like to avoid.

Back into the woods, now two thirds complete, the runners find the orange markers that Adam placed along the course in the early morning rain and wind. The trails feel easier than the sand, but difficult enough that there is little rhythm, just movement though the woods in an individual dedication to completion. However hard the running has become, the soft surface, quiet surroundings, and energy of nature invigorates and propels the body forward. The last of the trails change back to a packed dirt road then a paved road and soon the finish line.

The race has been completed, and now the neural paths of memory are fired as the runners share stories of the trails, sand, dunes, woods, and the endurance it took to finish. The storm that threatened has since past and the sun shines down with renewing energy. The trail veterans and the newbies have a shared experience that reminds each that roads may be a necessary place that the body can use to train, but trails are where the runner's soul sings loudest!

Along with Adam Kunkel, I want to recognize and thank Dr. Joe Junewick and Advanced Radiology Services for the meaningful support that they provide to make this special event happen. And I want to thank Gloria dela Garza, who is a patient at the DeVos Children's Hospital, for helping us start the 2008 Lakeshore Miracle Run.

Keep Moving,
Chris