In between his endless adventures, we finally managed to catch up with our #FindYourStrong athlete Jim Willet and found our more about his upcoming MEC Project, along with how you can support the cause.
iRun: Jim, it has been awhile! You ran a stage race in June. Can you tell us about the Desert R.A.T.S. Stage Race?
JW: It was a five stage, 143-mile race along the Kokopelli Trail in Colorado and Utah. The area is a high altitude desert, so as you’d expect it was hot! I ended up getting my first ever DNF after a navigational error caused me to miss a check point on day one. That was a very humbling experience and I was upset that I’d let people down. But regardless, I decided to run every stage and make the most of it. And I’m very glad I did because the terrain was amazing and the views were some of the most incredible I’ve ever witnessed in a race! I may not have received a medal but I feel like I gained much more.
iRun: What does a typical week of running look like for you?
JW: I’m pretty unconventional in my training, but I probably run six days a week on average. I‘m a big believer of listening to my body to dictate my mileage so it can vary quite a bit from week to week.
iRun: Can you give us an update on your plan to raise awareness and funds in support the health of Lake Simcoe?
JW: On August 8th, I’ll be running around Lake Simcoe. The plan is to start and finish at the waterfront in Barrie, Ontario. It’s about a 200 km trip around the Lake. I’m running as part of The MEC Homewaters Project, which, is a campaign to raise funds for the Canadian Freshwater Alliance. Every time you tag a photo with #myhomewaters on instagram, they’ll donate $5, up to $20,000.
iRun: You are a positive guy you share positive messages on social media, reminding us to look for the positives in any situation. How can we better shape our thinking to use it as a tool to help us grind through tough races and training runs?
JW: I think it works both ways. Running helps shape our thinking to become stronger in our everyday lives. Your mind set changes when you train it to change in the same way our running changes and improves when we put in the training to complete our goals. Bottom line, if you want find the positives in any situation you have to look for them. And it becomes easier the more you do it.
Looking for more motivation? Read additional #FindYourStrong stories here.
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