Inline Skating Notebook

TRANS US - 67 days 13 hour 45 minutes!

by Danny Dannels

"Trans-USA 67 days, 10 hours, 45 minutes.... I just set a new world record!"

Thanks for all of the support. I was quite delirious at the end, and doing math was not one of my strong points. I really appreciate having Team FAST there at the end. They help me keep my bearings and focus so that I could finish. What a great group of skaters.

Rain

Mar. 7, 2008

We are completly rained in with a string of thunderstorms until around 3am. I am going to ice my ankle and my wrist until then. Looks like Hillary gets that hotel room she has been asking for.

Thunderstorms

We are just outside of Lake City. I have about 85 miles left.

If you have been watching the radar, there is a nasty storm over us right now. It won't be clear for another four hours. Retired Air Force Master Sergeant Robert Murders has been our personal weatherman on this journey. I was about to make another run, but he called to make sure we were safe. The line that is about to pass is pretty nasty. I will hang on to my burning desire to finalize this for a few more hours.

I couldn't sleep last night. I was so tired, but, I kept waking up and listening to the rain. I kept waiting for it to stop so I could skate more.

I had a nasty wreck in Live Oak last night. I slipped on something. It might have been water, it might have been my own shadow. Irreguardless, I broke my right wrist. We had it taped tight within 2 minutes. I am wearing a tape cast on it like my ankle. It crunches when I move it. It feels like when I broke my scaphiod and radius two years ago. I am currently having to skate with my right hand raised so it doesn't throb too bad.

I made the run to Lake City in tears. It was less from the pain of my broken body. It was more from frustration of my journey. God is making sure that I earn this. I know I am never given more than I can handle. I just never knew I could handle this much.

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96 Hours

Mar. 6, 2008

My husband must be crazy. His ankle is mostly shattered, but he keeps going. He winces every time he takes a step out of his skates, but he keeps pushing towards his goal. He is such an inspiration to me, as well as many others. I don't know how he keeps going, I just know that he does.

It has been 96 hours since we began our run through Florida. The roads have been more forgiving than any other. The bike lane has been there about 95% of the time. Tallahassee was tough, but we made it. After that battle, he passed out for about 14 hours. He had his skates back on at 10am EST. He is currently in Greenville, FL. He has not stopped since he started skating this morning. He doesn't plan to, until he meets up with me in Live Oak for lunch/dinner.

To those that plan on skating with Danny in Jacksonville, I believe we plan on arriving there tomorrow. I am not sure what time, but I will do my best to keep everyone updated between now and then. We were having problems accessing our blogs this morning, so keep an eye on the bulletins as well. If I cannot post a blog, I will post a bulletin instead.

Thank you, everyone, for your continued support. We couldn't have done this without you.

Hillary

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12 hours to go....

Dec. 31, 2007

The stress and anticipation has been close to unbearable. I was in a state of complete freak out this evening, until my mom called about 6:30. Mom's have a way of putting things right. They've been there and know your pain. They know you and your weaknesses. They also know how to console their children. Just talking to my mom put my soul at ease. I also have a great step-dad. It's pretty amazing how someone unrelated to you is willing to drop anything at a moments notice to come to your aid. I have a wonderful support system. That's how I have been able to go do something like this. My family and friends are there for me, but only because I am there for them.

The great circle of life is fascinating. You get out of it everything that you put into it, but you have to pay into it first. I have not had a perfect life. I am not a perfect person. I have been telling myself for years that I have been paying for something that I hadn't received yet. I was training for something that I didn't understand. I have had to believe in myself when I thought that noone else did. (I was never alone) It never gets easier. It only gets harder. Fortunately, you only get stronger. God only gives you as much as you can handle. What doesn't kill you, only makes you stronger. Those words were only words before.

I have had many people ask me why I am doing this. It's because I have to. I have always had to. It was the culmination of everything I have ever been. It is the essence of everything that I will ever be. Tomorrow at 8:00 a.m., I start the rest of my life. I conquer my fear. I become what I am meant to be. There is no going back.

"Come home a hero, or don't come home at all"