Hey Friends, 

For the 6th year in a row, I am running the Wild West Relay which will be held on August 4-5th. This is a multi-day event where we run from Fort Collins, CO to Steamboat Springs, CO. It is ~200 miles on foot, with 2 mountain passes that cover some 20,000+ feet in elevation change. We sleep in fields, we run through the night, we run through rain, hail, and wind. We have encountered bears, moose, and bighorn sheep and are hoping to see mountain lions and wolves (not really!) so we can complete our Colorado wild animal bingo card. 

So why would 12, otherwise sane people do such a thing? We do it because we are running to raise money for the Matthews House. The Matthews House is an organization that was founded in 2005 with the mission statement to help kids that were aging out of foster care. They have since expanded their services to help families with varying needs. They provide career services, help kids graduate high school, apply to college and get jobs. Through donations, they are able to provide no-cost after-school care so that parents can work. It allows kids to just be kids and not have to worry about where their next meal is coming from. Many of the families that utilize the assistance of the Matthews House are trying to escape abuse and poverty. Together we can help. Please watch this video that does a better job at explaining the importance of the Matthew's House than I ever could. Supercool update for 2023, because of our commitment to the Mathews House we are being given the Jim Drendel award for community service at an awards dinner this September. I have been told this is sort of a big deal for Northern Colorado as the Mayor of Fort Collins and various other big wigs will be there. This could not have been possible without your kind donations and we will be accepting this award as a team and thanking those that donated.  

Two years ago we contended with and ran through summer wild fires that painted the sky orange and our lungs black. Last year we were hoping for a reprieve but instead got a deluge. During my run up Deadman’s pass the sky opened up and sent a river down hill for me to deal with. I took some pics of that and posted below but had to stow my phone when it got really bad. Running roughly 9 miles and climbing 1100 feet topping out at ~10,200 feet above sea level is just never a fun time and the rain made it pretty brutal. By mile 3 my running shoes were nuked and I was picking up clods of mud with each step. I still managed to beat my time from 2019 by 2 minutes. Get bent Father Time! I spent the next few hours in a van trying to avoid hypothermia. Fun times! The next day I met my twin who had a shirt that matched a bathing suit I have (pic below).

For 2023, I have switched my running position so I will not be running up any mountains. I will be running down them! I am super pumped to ruin my knees and quads and lose a few toenails for the cause! My second leg will be 10 miles long with a net elevation loss of roughly 1500 feet. My goal is to use this downhill to my advantage and set 3 all-time personal best times for a 5k, 10k and 10 miles… age is just a number folks. Also, new for 2023… we have somehow convinced 12 other crazies to to run with us. So now we have 2 full teams running this race!

If you are interested in donating, the instructions are below. I have also included some other links about the race, organization, and my personal stuff. Lots of pictures from 2022 as well.

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to reach out. If you are interested, email me and I will figure out how to live track the event so you can track us on our adventure. I will be posting pictures as cell service allows. 

Important note: All funds that are donated go directly to the Matthews House. No funds are used by the race team in any way. This does not pay for our race entry, this does not cover food, gas, equipment, etc. 100% of the donated money goes to the charity, which means that 100% of it gets spent within our community. No team member wins anything for raising the most funds. We are a self-supported team and donate to the charity as well. Many of us lose a day's wage or burn vacation days to participate in this event. 

Thank you for your time. 

DONATION INSTRUCTIONS:

It is simplified this year, simply click the link and donate. No need to select my name from a list but there is a section for you to write comments to cheer us on.

https://nutrien.benevity.org/community/fundraiser/1128

More information:

https://www.thematthewshouse.org

https://www.wildwestrelay.com/

Social/other:

Personal email: luigiaversano@gmail.com

Strava: https://www.strava.com/athletes/laversano

Instagram: luigi_ave123

Website:  https://www.LuigiAversano.com