Run, Gregory, Run: Part II

I posted a blog August 29 about the participation of my friend and co-founder, Best Friends CEO Gregory Castle, in this year�s Grand to Grand Ultra. It�s a 170-mile race across some of the most unforgiving terrain in the world, stretching from the North Rim of the Grand Canyon to the cliffs of Bryce Canyon overlooking the Grand Staircase�Escalante National Monument. The course includes scrambles up steep red-rock cliffs and a nighttime trek across Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park.

Best Friends is located in the middle of all of this natural grandeur, and on Tuesday, September 23, the remaining racers (some having dropped out earlier) passed through Best Friends Animal Sanctuary roughly halfway through the third and most challenging stage of the six-stage, seven-day event.

A group of us gathered in the early evening to cheer on the racers and show our support for Gregory as he passed through. This is what he looked like � pretty amazing for a guy who just turned 72! Gregory has set a fundraising goal of $1,000 per mile, all of which will go to his other passion, the no-kill mission of Best Friends Animal Society. You can help reach that goal by clicking here to make a sponsorship donation.

Race organizers describe the third stage as follows:

�The day started with an exposed flat run/hike across open country and a sandy track before taking participants on an uphill climb, including a scramble over red rock for 500 meters, before emerging at a stunning viewpoint at the top. The sandy trail continued, exposed to the heat of the sun for 17 kilometers/10.5 miles before participants were faced with a dry riverbed and canyon section. At Checkpoint 4, just before Best Friends Animal Sanctuary, the public was invited to come cheer on the runners.�

Best Friends is located at about the 28-mile mark of the 54-mile third stage, which lasted through the night, with the sand dune trek still to come.

While runners are not permitted to text or email during the stages, there is an official shared email opportunity at various points during the seven days. Gregory checked in this morning with the following:

�I came in with a time of about 31 hours, three hours less than the cut-off. Hot sun was horrible. Sand Dunes pretty wild. I ran them barefoot because sand was cold early morning. Now need some sleep!�

Get some rest, my friend. We are all very proud of you.

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Francis Battista

Co-founder

Best Friends Animal Society

 


 


 


 


 


 


 


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Best Friends Animal Society

Best Friends is a nonprofit organization building no-kill programs and partnerships nationwide, all coordinated from our Kanab, Utah headquarters - the largest no-kill sanctuary for homeless companion animals.

At the core of our work is the dream that one day kindness will replace cruelty, and animals will no longer be destroyed because they are unwanted or imperfect. Spaying and neutering will be the rule for all pets and adoption from local animal shelters and rescues will be the first option for everyone. Those same shelters and rescues will have the knowledge and resources to help rehabilitate special-needs animals and find the right family for every animal.

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