“If she can do it, you can do it.” That was the statement I heard from a young woman talking to her 7-year-old son as they trudged up the Alpine Ridge Trail, also known as Huffer’s Hill, at Rocky Mountain National Park.
During my “rove” break when volunteering at the Alpine Visitor Center, I always make the 1/3-mile trek up this popular stone step trail. Wildflowers are marked along the way and the views at 12,005 feet looking down on the Alpine Visitor Center are worth the walk.
I wasn’t quite sure what to make of the comment by this parent, but I suspect my white hair carried a certain connotation that I was not likely to make it. It reminded me of another encounter I had had over 30 years ago during a 15k road race.
It was a typical hot and humid summer Sunday in Greensboro, North Carolina. I had been racing regularly for years, and this event was a new one for me. I felt good and was running my consistent 8–9-minute miles.
A young woman came up behind me and started to pass on one of the hills. She nodded at me and then said, “I hope I can run as good as you when I get to your age.” What does one say to that? I nodded back and said, “Thanks, I hope you can too. Have a good race.”
These two incidents remind me of how lucky I have been to be able to do what I can do. Although I have felt less confident in my abilities in the past three years, I am grateful for all the miles and hikes that I have had over the years. It also reminds me not to make assumptions about what age means.
I applaud Dale Sanders, known by his trail name “Grey Beard,” who is the 91-year-old Navy veteran who just became the oldest person in history to complete a thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail. I am not going to undertake such a feat, but I admire the people I have heard about through social media as well as the oldest adults in my community who keep on trekking.
I hope my efforts as well as those all around me continue to inspire little boys as well as young women to keep up their physical efforts. I also continually remind myself that “I can do it!”