I work at an adventure travel tour company called Mountain Travel Sobek.  In 2007, a handful of my women coworkers and myself decided to climb Mount Shasta together.  One of the women who worked in our office at that time, Cathy Ann Taylor, was the guide for the Bay Area team of Climb Against the Odds; and CAT invited us to train together with the Breast Cancer Fund, in exchange for fund raising for the cause.  That’s the simple explanation, though really we were all friends, and would have loved to hike together or fundraise for her anyway – but the point is, 5 Mountain Travel Sobek women spent the next 7 months hiking regularly with about 10 women who were in it for a bigger purpose – to raise money for the Breast Cancer Fund.

This turned out to be a life-changing experience for me.  At the time, I was experiencing some serious problems at home.  My marriage was compramised, and trying to work through those issues, while working a full-time exempt position, and being an attentive and responsible parent to a young daughter, was an immense challenge.  To be honest, 90% of my motivation to climb Shasta was to be stuck to a rigorous fitness schedule, which (combined with running 25 miles per week) was an anti-depressant for me.  Time in my head with my thoughts, and a daily dose of endorphins was my coping mechanism.

What I discovered was that many of the women training for the Climb Against the Odds were also struggling.  Struggling to achieve a goal, struggling to come to terms with a loss of a friend or family member, struggling to stay healthy themselves.  But the feeling in this group was anything but blue.  In fact, quite the opposite.

Have you ever wondered why it “takes a village” to raise a child?  I think it’s because a “village” used to be a group of women who stayed home while their man-folk went in search of food.  And when women get together with a purpose, they can do anything – anything.  The confidence, strength, and zaney humor of these women empowering eachother to do something many of them had never done – to climb a mountain and raise thousands of Dollars in the process – was (and still is) truly indescribable.

After my failed summit, it would have been very easy for me to walk away from ‘peak bagging’ for eternity, but I couldn’t seem to let Shasta go.  That’s because I realized the Climb Against the Odds is really not at all about the climb itself.  It’s about the journey there.  Being a part of a village, and trying to do the impossible. After almost a year of training, I was able to make crucial life decisions that needed to be made.  I’m grateful for that, and eager to give back.

So, who are the Dipsea Chicks?  Anybody who is insane enough to choose to drive all the way over to Mill Valley after work in the dark and some times in the rain to march up and down 671 uneven, wood and slanted stone, slippery, steep, shady, dark, God-foresaken steps FIVE times every week… for fun.

You need an especially good friend to motivate you to do that to yourself.  Mine is Alice Dunning, who did summit back in 2007.  Alice is my training buddy, and my tent mate for Shasta.  She was a professional rower for years, has two grown kids, and a lively sense of humor.

Other Dipsea Chicks – Connie George of the Breast Cancer Fund, Laura Lifland (now 3 or 4 time climber with Climb Against the Odds), CAT (our guide), and a host of other crazies.  Between now and June 21, we will run up and down 671 steps 5x on at least 16 occasions, meaning I have to run 10,736 steps between now and the climb.

Starting today…

Anne and Lauren

It’s been over a year since my last climb of Shasta in support of the Breast Cancer Fund.  Since descending from about 12,000′ in tears, after a failed attempt at the summit , I have debated whether to do that to myself again, or to admit I’m getting older and spend too many hours sitting at my desk now to even think about climbing a mountain.  After all, I’m turning 40 in 2009.  Do 40 year olds climb mountains?

YES THEY DO!!

Since 2007, I have continued to do those nasty Dipsea Steps with my good friend Alice, who made it to the summit with the Climb Against the Odds that year.  I don’t know Alice’s age, but she’s older than me.  One of her sons is getting married, and my daughter is in the 4th grade, so you know.  Anyway, I have to run to keep up with Alice, so I can’t use my age as an excuse.  

But more importantly, that I have a choice is why I choose to work at this again.  Can you imagine being really tired…wanting to go home, get into your fuzzy ‘Life is Good’ socks and unattractive slobby clothes, eat cold ravioli and watch ‘Project Runway;’ but instead you have no choice but to go for a 10-mile run, hike up and down 671 steps five times, and carry 35 pounds for fifteen miles, hope-hope-hoping your hard work eventually helps you meet your goal?  Only, the goal is not to climb a mountain, but to get cancer out of your body.

The Climb Against the Odds mirrors, in many ways, the struggle to overcome personal obstacles.  I’m fortunate.  So far, I have not been diagnosed with Breast Cancer.  I have my health.  However, not long ago, a family member was diagnosed with breast cancer, though the disease does not run in our family. Well, we soon learned that when all factors are added together, including family history, genetics, smoking and obesity, more than 50% of breast cancer cases remain unexplained.

So, one day I counted the number of women we knew personally who had been diagnosed with breast cancer. The number was a mind-boggling 37…OMG! Breast cancer diagnoses’ have more than doubled among women in this country since the 1940′s. Did you know that more American women have died of breast cancer in the last 20 years than the number of Americans killed in World War I and II and the Korean and Vietnam Wars combined?

Anyway, I now have a 9-year-old daughter, and I am raising her in an area with one of the highest rates of breast cancer in all of California. Lauren’s odds of being diagnosed with breast cancer at some time in her life are greater than 1 in 8. This scares me a lot!

That is why I do this.  What else can I do?  I have no money, I’m not famous.  But I can try to climb Mount Shasta, and maybe motivate others to support me along the way.

And meanwhile, I will benefit personally from the experience too, because – let’s face it – we all have our challenges to overcome.  And if training to climb a mountain with a group of wonderful women doesn’t empower you, what will?

I’ll try to keep a journal of this experience, for those of you who are interested, and for those of you who are thinking about Climbing Against the Odds next year…or the next.  Because, if I can do it – so can you.  

Yes you can!  :-)

Support my climb!  http://www.breastcancerfund.org/climb09/annewood