Our virtual tour route included 18 national parks .
AWCH Fitness Challenge : Every Mile Counts !
63 team members encouraged each other along a fun virtual tour of US national parks
After the success of our 2021 Summer Challenge , AWCH members with their friends and family members embarked on a second challenge from May 1 to June 30 of this year .
In a virtual competition across the United States , 63 participants toured 18 national parks , monuments , and seashores . Working in three teams , together they covered the 6,176.8-mile journey by running , walking , rowing , cycling , swimming , high-intensity interval training , and just counting steps . By far the most popular sport was cycling , making up roughly 30 percent of the traveled miles . A friendly battle to the end , all three teams crossed the finish line .
As each team member passed a milestone , they were treated to a photo and a description of the national site . The US historic monuments commemorated places or events from the colonial days through to the civil rights movements . The national parks — ranging from the rarely visited Big Bend National Park to the highly popular Sequoia National Park — reflected the spectacular and varied beauty of the US .
Our sea-to-shining-sea mission also included the Assateague Island National Seashore on the east coast and Point Reyes National Seashore on the west . The final leg of the journey brought us to LA International Airport , where we got on a virtual plane to Hawaii — just in time to celebrate the Fourth of July ! Thank you to all who made the journey possible and cheered us on .
Of special note , 45 AWCH members covered a total of 11,264 miles , a median of circa 200 miles per member . Way to go ! ( Carol H .)
The winners of the Spring Challenge won pineapple trophies for their accomplishments , in keeping with the Hawaiian theme !
( Photo by Jordan W .)