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Kootenai River Run #24 in man's quest

June 11, 2011
With a look of steely determination on his face, Harold Doss crossed the finish line in the 5K Kootenai River Run, in spite of the super-human effort it took for him to get here. With the finish, he's nearly half-way to his goal of finishing a fun run in every state in the nation.
He didn't set any land speed records, but after what he went through to get here, it's an amazing feat that Harold Doss finished today's Kootenai River Run at all.

Doss, of Long Beach, California, set a goal to participate in a fun run in all 50 of this nation's states. With the Kootenai River Run, he chalked off number 24.

He flew to Tacoma, Washington, on Friday to attend the graduation of a friend's son. On the way, he searched the web for fun runs in Oregon, but none fit his schedule. He checked Idaho, and came across the Kootenai River Run.

Graduation celebrations kept he and his friend, Yolanda, up well into the night Friday. Arriving back at her home shortly before midnight, he said, "Let's go to Bonners Ferry."

"Do you know how far that is?" she asked.

"We can make it!" he said.

Being tired from the days' events, she gave him the keys to her car and they set out on the eight-hour drive. Somewhere along the way, she was awakened by a "thump thump," and saw Harold looking in the rear view mirror.

"I just ran over a deer!" he said. "It was already dead!"

"You're tired," Yolanda said, "I'll drive the rest of the way."

What may have helped tire him out even more than the hectic schedule, Yolanda said, was Harold's choice of dress. Bracing himself for the cold, cold north, he dressed in layers, to include at least two T-shirts. While cool by California standards, the weather "up north" proved a little too balmy.

Coming through the highway realignment project in Ponderay, red flashing lights came on behind her, and she pulled over.

"Do you know why I stopped you?" the officer asked.

"I don't have a clue!" she said.

She was issued a ticket for speeding, having never seen the sign for the construction slow down.

"I was so tired, all I said was 'thank you,'" she said she told the officer. "I did not see any sign."

After all the excitement of the drive over, two very tired people arrived at the fairgrounds about two hours before start time. Harold got a short nap, but almost backed out of the run. Not only was he tired, he was suffering a cold and from allergies, symptoms of the sudden change in climate between California and the great northwest.

"We drove all this way! You are going to do this run!" Yolanda insisted.

A very big man, standing six feet up and up and up, Harold put on his game face and gave in to his friend's insistence. and the look on his face when he crossed the 5K finish line was golden; 24 down, 26 more states to go, Idaho crossed off that long list.

"Now we have to drive back!" Yolanda said, "and he has to fly back home!"

While he didn't win any prizes for participating, Mr. Harold Doss most certainly won the admiration of a whole community of runners.
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