Day 20

Rapid City, SD ➡️ Philip, SD

Today was a shorter mileage day - we each ran 9 miles, which made our running fly by, even though it was only a few of miles shorter than the past few running days. We were also very efficient in our timing so that we would have some time to explore the Badlands.

I got to run with a teammate who has a very similar connection to cancer; her dad was diagnosed with lymphoma right after she graduated high school. Her dad’s treatments seem to be very similar to my dad’s, as multiple myeloma and lymphoma are both blood cancers. As we ran, we shared some stories about difficulties as well as triumphs in having our fathers going through treatments, and discussed our support networks through family, sports, and friends. It was great to be able to connect with such a sweet, loving teammate in such a meaningful way, and to have a mutual understanding of what it can be like to have a parent with cancer. I feel so blessed to have had such an incredible support network throughout everything and am so grateful that my dad is doing so well, and I will keep my teammate’s father in my prayers as well.

Exploring the Badlands was beautiful today. We only had time to drive through and stop at some overlooks, but the views were some of the best I’ve seen so far throughout 4K. We also went though some very stereotypical, tiny old Western towns throughout the day (including Scenic, SD, which has a population of 62 people), which was pretty cool. My teammates and I kept talking about how we didn’t expect much from South Dakota, but it actually has some pretty underrated landscapes and has some cool places to stop during a road trip (or a run across the country). We still have four more days in SD, and I’m excited to see what else the region has to offer. We’ll also be crossing into central time tomorrow - one step closer to the east coast and Boston, which is so exciting but actually really sad! Someone mentioned that in a month we’ll be done with 4K, and I’m not ready to think about that yet! I’m definitely excited to make it to Boston eventually, but for now I’m really loving every moment of the journey and am trying to live in the moment before it all flies by.