Doing hard things is inherent to endurance sports. As we become more capable in our chosen discipline, it feels natural for some of us to do things faster, farther, and more difficult. We climb onto the precipice of our previous capabilities and take a step beyond for the very purpose of not knowing how we will land. Then, rarely, maybe once or twice in a lifetime relationship with sport, we begin something hard, somehow already knowing that we will do it.
Even in picturesque California, few landscapes are as stunning - or as fragile - as Big Sur. The constant storms and seismic activity that forged its dramatic cliffs and canyons also make its infrastructure a nightmare to maintain. The primary road through the region, world-famous Highway 1, which clings to cliffs high above the Pacific Ocean in postcard worthy fashion, is almost constantly closed by landslides, isolating communities and stranding weary travelers.
