Wanna guess where "Little Donnie Q" and Elaine are going to be for about two weeks, starting late this weekend?
And, do you wanna guess what the two of us are going to be doing during that extended period of time?
You would never guess in a million years, no matter the size of the bet.
It even dazzled me, when I agreed to do what we are about to embark on.
A few weeks ago, Rick Gunn, a photographer for the Nevada Appeal, approached Elaine and I and asked if the two of us would be interested in taking an all-expense paid trip.
Geez, who would be dumb enough to say "No!" to a question like that!
We both instantly said, "You bet."
There was a slight pause as I came to my senses and then remembered to ask, "Oh, by the way, Rick, what kind of trip and to where?"
Rick's reply was, "Well, four of us are going to attempt the Nevada 10-in-10 Challenge during that two weeks and we would like to have you drive a motorhome for us and for Elaine to be our on-board cook.
Totally confused, I said, "Me drive a motorhome and Elaine cook? You got to be kidding! Geez, what in the heck is the Nevada 10-in-10 Challenge?"
Rick grinned and said that the four individuals were himself, Jeremy Evans and Karl Horeis, all of this area, together with K. M. Cannon of Las Vegas.
In that two week period, the four men will attempt to succeed at a multi-sport adventure around the Lake Tahoe area and around the rest of the State of Nevada that has never been done before.
What will they be trying to do?
Stated very simply, they will be trying to be successful in 10 physically demanding challenges in 10 days.
If I now have your attention, here are those 10 mind-boggling challenges:
Aug. 5-8: Challenges No. 1 & No. 2.
Hike and bike for about 165 miles on the Tahoe Rim Trail and the Flume Trail.
Aug. 5: Begin hiking at Echo Summit and end at Barker Pass (a distance of about 34 miles).
Aug. 6 : Begin biking at Barker Pass and end at Brockway Summit. Have lunch at the summit. Begin biking at Brockway Summit and end at Tahoe Meadows on the Mt. Rose Highway (a distance of about 50 miles).
Aug. 7: Begin biking at Tahoe Meadows and end at Spooner Lake. Have lunch at the lake. Begin biking at Spooner Lake and end at Kingsbury Grade (a distance of about 50 miles).
Aug. 8: Begin biking at Kingsbury Grade and end at Luther Pass. Have lunch at the pass. Begin biking at Luther Pass and end at Echo Summit (a distance of about 30 miles).
Then, when they finish, we drive the motorhome from Echo Summit to Sand Mountain, east of Fallon (a driving distance of about 140 miles).
Aug. 09: Challenges No. 3 &No. 4.
Sand boarding off Sand Mountain.
Skate boarding on the Black Rock Desert, north of Gerlach.
This involves sand boarding at Sand Mountain, driving from there to the Block Rock Desert, skate boarding on the Playa and then driving from the Black Rock Desert to Winnemucca (a driving distance of about 220 miles).
Aug. 10: Challenge No. 5.
Biking on the Bloody Shins Trail, just out of Winnemucca (a distance of about 20 miles).
This involves biking on the Bloody Shins Trail and then driving from there to Lamoille, just out of Elko (a driving distance of about 150 miles).
Aug. 11: Challenge No. 6.
Hiking on the Ruby Crest Trail in the Ruby Mountains of Northeast Nevada.
Hiking from Lamoille to Harrison Pass at an elevation of 10,000 feet (a distance of about 32 miles).
This involves hiking on the Ruby crest Trail and then driving from there to Great Basin National Park, near the Utah stateline in Eastern Nevada (a driving distance of about 275 miles).
Aug. 12: Challenge No. 7.
Climb Nevada's third highest peak (Mt. Wheeler -- 13, 063 feet).
This involves climbing Mt. Wheeler and then driving to Las Vegas (a driving distance of about 200 miles.
Aug. 13: Challenges No. 8 & No. 9.
Rock climbing in the Red Rock Canyon, west of Las Vegas.
Sand boarding on the Amargosa Big Dune near Beatty.
This involves rock climbing in Red Rock Canyon, driving to the Amargosa area, sand boarding and then driving to Montgomery Pass, near Boundary Peak (a driving distance of about 275 miles).
Aug. 14: Challenge No. 10.
Climb the highest peak in Nevada (Boundary Peak -- 13, 140 feet).
This involves climbing Boundary Peak and then driving from there to Hawthorne, the trip's end.
Aug. 15: Finally.
If everything has gone well and every challenge has been met, a very tired group of athletes and their support personnel will drive back to Carson City.
The Nevada 10-in-10 Challenge is being sponsored by the Nevada Appeal and the four athletes are all either current employees (Gunn, Evans and Horeis) or a former employee (Cannon) of the Nevada Appeal.
And in regards to the Nevada 10-in-10 Challenge support team, I have a very sneaky suspicion that Rick really wanted the great gourmet cooking of Elaine and to get her to go along, I was invited as the driver of the motor home.
Hey, no sweat!
It will be a great vacation trip for Elaine and I all over Nevada, while the other four will be working and sweating to achieve their 10 challenges.
Elaine will see some parts of Nevada that she has never visited such as Gerlach, the Black Rock Desert, Lamoille, Harrison Pass, Boundary Peak, etc.
I will have a golden opportunity to re-visit many areas of the state that I have not seen for many years such as Harrison Pass, Harrison Pass to U.S. 50, Great Basin National Park, Pioche, Caliente, Panaca, Warm Springs, Pahrump, Lathrop Wells, Beatty, Coledale Junction, Montgomery Pass, etc.
Will Gunn, Evans, Horeis and Cannon be successful in their 10 challenges?
I honestly believe that they will be success. However, I have to temper that statement with the comment that to be successful, everything has to click just perfectly: Physical conditions, weather conditions, time schedules, no accidents, no illnesses, etc.
If everything clicks, they will succeed. There is no doubt in my mind.
However, if by some chance, they do encounter some sort of a problem where, perhaps, one or more of the challenges can not be met, I am still very proud to be a support member of the first ever attempt to accomplish the Nevada 10-in-10 Challenge.
A Super Well Done, in advance, to Rick Gunn, Jeremy Evans, Karl Horeis and K M. Cannon.
See ya, back in Carson City, in two weeks.
-- Bet Your Favorite Pigeon
Bet your favorite pigeon that he can't tell you what Elaine and I will be doing while we wait for the challengers to finish hiking the Ruby Crest Trail.
If he very shrewd, he will tell you that we will be fishing at both South Fork Reservoir and Zunino Reservoir and you will lose this bet.