29029 Complete for 2021

I followed all four 29029 events as they were happening on the 29029 website. Each event was well promoted and made you feel as if you were right there with everyone.

As Idaho kicked off, I realized that 29029 was on Instagram. As people were completing ascents, I would see if they were on Instagram as well. I hadn’t used Instagram much, so it was fun to have several people to follow. Idaho was the first 29029 event of the year. The excitement from the 29029 posts on Instagram was inspiring. I had followed a friend’s ascents in 2019 and didn’t think much of starting training for 29029 at that time. I’m not sure what happened this year, but it was a totally different thought process. I started thinking that maybe this would be a fun adventure! Idaho’s second day on the mountain was June 19, 2021. I had nothing planned that Saturday, so I went to the closest ‘hill’ near me as I wanted to climb too. I ended up at Bascom Hill on the campus of the University of Wisconsin Madison, my alma mater. On one side is stairs and on the other side is a walkway. I did the stair side three times, walked down the walkway, then around the block to the stair side. I then turned around, walked around the block and took the walkway up and the stairs down twice. I was exhausted!! But, 5 times around the loop felt great. I asked a lady to take my picture so I would know how far I came a year later when I attended a 29029 event. I knew that as badly out of shape that I was, I needed this next year to get it together. My face looks white due to the sunscreen I used. My doctor would be proud.

Utah #1 and Utah #2 were slated for August. I had made some progress working out since June. I had been doing Beach Body classes four times a week, walked and hiked inside and outside, I started using the stair climber at the gym and started to eat more veggies, fruits and grains. I would say that I did this about 80% of the time. I needed to increase my water intake so I worked on that as well. I also met with a personal trainer in order to see if the plan that I was working on sounded reasonable. I knew that 29029 provided a 5 month training plan, but I wanted to get started so that I would be able to work on the their 5 month training plan. What I had outlined was a good start for me, so I was proud of my planning and what the next 12 months looked like for workouts.

September brought more incline workouts. I hiked outside and also cranked up the treadmill to 10%, 12% and 15% incline. WOW, that hurt! I’ve been taking baby steps so I don’t injure myself so while the incline is up there, I was only hitting a mile or slightly more. I also completed some incline workouts with iFIT and LOVED them. Little did I realize that I was on the most intense hikes that iFIT had. LOL I also completed the 29029 challenge on iFIT!

In September I also volunteered at WI Ironman. I’ve never volunteered at an event like this and I wanted to give back. A friend had posted that they needed more volunteers. I was going to take that weekend as a rest weekend but decided that volunteering was what I wanted to do, so I did and loved every minute of it. The Ironman athletes were out of this world amazing!

I hadn't kayaked in a while, so it was great to get back out on the water again.

I hiked at Elver Park a few times and I plan to continue. Elevation is hard to come by around here, so I take what I can get. I also had another progress picture taken.

October brought the last 29029 event, Vermont. When I first started thinking about 29029 back in June, Vermont was not on my list. I remember telling a friend that there was no way I wanted to hike in cold and snow. The posts from Vermont this year ranged from sun to a downpour, no snow. I also LOVE the fall and went for a walk on Saturday as participants were climbing Stratton. I started to reconsider Vermont as a 2022 option. Why? Most likely cooler than Idaho and Utah, lower elevation, beautiful colors and I’ve always wanted to go to New England in the fall. I asked a few of my Instagram friends about Vermont and if they were to pick between Utah and Vermont for their first 29029, which one would they choose. So far Vermont. So, now I’m torn. I typically can make quick decisions; however, this one I may have to have a pro and con list.

The 29029 2022 list of locations should hit emails this week. I'll continue to toss around locations and then on October 27th I'll make my final decision.