From Vienna, to Krakow to Warsaw in three days. My we are moving quickly. Krakow’s central square, the oldest in Europe I am told, was empty at 5am Wednesday, aside from some Polish high school students who had not yet gone to bed. They ran in 100 yards to the exchange point with Rudy, holding the baton with delight; we stickered them and sent them on their way to spread the BPR word. Luckily, we hit Warsaw at a decent morning hour and on a busy street corner we had not only several DOW employees from the nearby office, but morning commuters. These central exchange points are alive with action—always several BPR running teams, media crews, support staff, local kids who have been persuaded to dole out BPR info and stickers, and various city officials. Even the Ministry of Sport joined us in Vienna. While we may not always have large crowds gathered at each city exchange point, we always have local media. And this is key to getting the word out.

It’s not the actual running that’s tough, 10 miles a day is standard procedure for most of us. Rather, it’s the constant travel, the constant movement forward, onward, that is exhausting and taxes your body differently than any workout. Each day, we spend anywhere from 4 to 7 hours driving, in addition to the 6 hours on the relay course moving at 10 mile increments. Our Siberian van with psychedelic seat patterns serves as a living room, dining room, bedroom and kitchen. Napping, eating, sleeping, singing, dancing can occur at any given hour. Although I have run the equivalent of three marathons in the past 8 days, I am not tired of running, I am tired of driving and moving in and out of hotels. Check-in. Eat. Sleep. Check-out. Eat. Drive. Run. Drive. Repeat. At Day 25, we have crossed 10 countries and stayed in 25 different beds. But, like the first few miles of a long run, I am finally settling into the rhythm of life on the road. If I survive this trip, by September it will be an absolute luxury to stay in one spot longer than a night. Till then, I will have to occasionally sacrifice exploration of my new environs for rest, and settle for sight-seeing from the van window. But, at least we can look.