Photo of Stacey Gualandi at the Las Vegas Overlook by Bill Yadao

The Trailblaze Challenge

25 MILES OF MEMORIES, MILESTONES, AND MAKING WISHES COME TRUE

By Stacey Gualandi

For anyone who has hiked with me for hours on end, they know I’m never at a loss for words. Add in some caffeine, and I can chat with the best of ‘em.

But two weeks after completing the inaugural Trailblaze Challenge for Make-A-Wish Southern Nevada with my husband Marty and 50 other “Trailblazers,” I’m finding it hard to put into words exactly what this experience meant to me. I’m getting emotional just writing about it.

Not only did this group raise $206,000 to help grant over 115 wishes to kids with critical illnesses AND finish a 25-mile hike in the Valley of Fire’s breathtaking backcountry (Yes! 25!), but us ‘Blazers also formed a bond that went beyond my expectations.

The Trailblaze Challenge mantra is simple: “It’s not a race. It’s a journey.”  Truer words have never been written.

Our journey began last October, thanks to my fellow thrill-seeking and same-named friend Stacey Escalante, Make-A-Wish SN’s Development Director. By accepting the challenge, Marty and I each committed to raising a minimum of $2500; training weekly for three months; and hiking 25 miles. (Emphasis on “challenge!”)

We chose the Team name “You’ll Never Walk Alone” in honor of our beloved Liverpool Football Club, a club renowned for its sense of community; support for the disadvantaged; and belief in the power of the people, all of which is embodied in LFC’s poignant pre-game anthem: You’ll Never Walk Alone.

Initially, it was easy to answer the question, “Why do you hike?”

• We hike for all eligible wish kids.
• We hike to grant wishes.
• We hike for our health.
• We hike for the scenery.
• We hike for Big Horn Sheep sightings.

We did see sheep (and burros!); we did lose weight; we did raise money and we did catch the sun rise without emerging from a casino. But somewhere along the way, the hike also became about camaraderie, compassion, and community.

Life moves quickly, so the opportunity to meet and root for a great group of like-minded hikers who took the time to connect for hours of meaningful, uninterrupted conversation was a tremendous, unexpected bonus.

We gained new friends, including a research scientist; a mother of a transitioning child; endurance athletes; one woman who lost 35 pounds!; several of Las Vegas Metro’s finest; and, of course, Mick, the world’s happiest trail dog.

“At Make-A-Wish Southern Nevada, two of our core values are ‘Collaborate with the Community,’ and ‘Imagine and Have Fun,’” says Escalante. “Mission accomplished with the Trailblaze Challenge.”

Boy is she right. Escalante says by joining forces with community partner Heidi Dove, who owns Triple Dare Running Company, M-A-WSN was a trailblazer in every sense of the word.

“Heidi mapped out unique courses, marking every twist and turn through very rugged terrain,” says Escalante. “Plus, she guided us on every weekend training hike for 12 weeks leading up to the Challenge. She’s the Pied Piper who we trusted because of her expertise and her ability to rally people, all while having an absolute ball.”

(Sidebar: the Las Vegas area is truly an underrated hiking center. Each week as we increased our mileage, we got to discover more incredible desert landscape trails, from the summits of Black Mountain and Las Vegas Overlook to the never-ending trails of Red Rock and McCullough Hills.)

By the time February 5th finally arrived (officially proclaimed “Make-A-Wish Trailblaze Challenge Day” by Mesquite Mayor Al Litman), we Trailblazers were fired up, carbo-loaded, and pumped to hit the trail hard…for 25 miles.

At 5 am, it was headlamps up at the Logandale trailhead. And cold.

So many things stick out in my mind during that day on the dirt:

• Watching stars disappear as the sun rose above the majestic mountains.
• Wearing a “thank you” badge with 19-year-old wish kid Christian’s photo.
• Making an angel in the sand.
• Thinking of all the people whose support helped Team YNWA raise $5500.
• Reading inspirational quotes posted along the route by the MAW team.
• Hiking the Loop of Torture. (Hills, hills, so many hills!)
• Eating Uncrustables.

But there was one person we walked alongside for many miles who reminded us just why we were making this sacrifice:  Metro Dept. Chief James Larochelle. His 14-year-old daughter Rosa was diagnosed with leukemia six years ago.

Larochelle shared how difficult his family’s personal cancer journey has been, but through the efforts of Make-A-Wish, Rosa’s dream to see her hero Harry Potter at Universal Studios came true. It was extremely therapeutic, so he hikes and fundraises for other kids, just like his daughter. And great news. Rosa, he says, is now cancer free!

We eventually crossed the finish line…10 hours later!  The experience was exhilarating and exhausting; I felt empowered yet emotional. It was a beast, but the Trailblaze Challenge was also an exceptional life-changing journey. If it were easy, everyone would do it, right?

It was Heidi Dove who said post-Challenge that, while extremely difficult, all those horrible hills (see Loop of Torture) we had to endure over and over and over, represent the tremendous peaks and valleys kids with critical illnesses face each and every day of their lives. Talk about putting everything in perspective.

I am so grateful to our family, friends and donors who supported us both emotionally and financially.  Without that support, we would never have finished.

Thank you to the Make-A-Wish Southern Nevada team for working so tirelessly to make this 25-mile dream come true; Stacey Escalante for telling me to “go take a hike;” Heidi Dove for leading the whole way; and to all our fellow hikers who blazed the trails (and never told me to stop talking).  But most of all, to Marty. There is no one I’d rather hike with the rest of my life.

Fundraising continues through March 1st.  If you would like to donate, just click on this link:  site.wish.org/goto/YoullNeverWalkAlone

Additional photos courtesy of Kevin Youngblood.