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Moines Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa], we cycled 76 miles one day on hills with a con- stant 20-mile-per-hour headwind. It was a tough day, but I made it! My divorce was becoming final that sum- mer, and completing that day gave me the encouraging inner message: ‘If I can cycle Iowa on the toughest day, I can re-cycle my life after divorce.’” She’s still moving along. Recently, she joined 500 other cyclists doing 60 miles a day for a week in Wisconsin.


Bill Murphy, of Annapolis, Mary- land, made his breakthrough at the Boulder Outdoor Survival School (boss-inc.com). “While I wanted an adventure and to put myself out there, I also wanted to know that I was in good hands,” he says about why he chose a guided trip. Murphy was already in good shape, having competed in a local Ironman event. Following an initial fitness assessment that involved testing his heart rate after running at high altitude, he was deemed fit to take part in an outdoor survival experi- ence in Utah’s desert country. With a knife, wool jacket, cap, gloves, long underwear and suitable shoes—but no tent, sleeping bag or food—his group learned to live off the land with the as- sistance of three instructors in an initial phase of the program.


“After two days we were given our backpack with the critical blanket, poncho and food rations. I have never been so happy to hear the words ‘1,500 calories’ in my life, and though I have


34 Collier/Lee Counties swfl.naturalawakeningsmag.com


eaten at some wonderful restaurants, the soups we made with those rations tasted better than anything I have eaten in my life,” he says.


Murphy learned how to purify wa- ter, make a tent from his poncho, start a fire with minimal tools and bed down in the cold without a sleeping bag or blanket. A crucial part of the survival training was the need to go even further when the group thought their adventure had ended. “We didn’t know whether that would be in 10 miles or 30,” he re- calls. His ability to physically push past the mentally established timeframe led Murphy to see that he could also move beyond his either/or boundaries: either family or business; either business or adventure. “I realized that I don’t have to choose one over the other. I feel a better sense of balance now.” In other parts of the country, Outward Bound Adult Renewal also of- fers new experiences that test physical limits and present breakthrough oppor- tunities (OutwardBound.org). It’s also known for programs that help teens get a better handle on life. Participants often rock climb the Blue Ridge Moun- tains of Virginia or sea kayak along the Pacific Northwest or North Carolina’s Outer Banks. Options for growth and renewal appear endless.


Nearby or far away, for a few days or longer, a healthy escape can be truly restorative.


Judith Fertig regularly contributes to Natural Awakenings.


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