Fellow Rotarians, this week I'm pinching myself as I'm sitting in the Kingdom of Bhutan where I'm preparing for a few weeks of work with the local tourism agency to set up and plan an ultramarathon running race along the iconic Snowman Trail in October. This race will be a 5 day stage race between 22 international athletes and 8 of the best Bhutanese trail runners along 138 miles in the Himalayas reaching as high as 17,946 feet above sea level. Next week I'll be joining our International Race Director, the local race directors, and representatives of multiple professional expedition guiding companies to trek the entire route and and create a GPS map for our athletes.
Snowman Race Bhutan: https://snowmanrace.org/
Nestled in the Himalaya between India and China, Bhutan has long been a place far removed from the rest of the world. The country didn't have television or internet until 1999 and to even visit the place tourists must pay more than $200 per day, making it well outside my normal travel budget. This and the fact that I'm exactly 12 hours ahead of where I left from the United States makes me feel like I'm just about as far away from home as I could possibly be. But, take a look at the bumper sticker in the photograph below:
No mater where I am in the world it's always comforting to see the familiar Rotary Wheel and know there are people here I could connect with immediately. The Rotary Club of Bhutan actually met last evening in a place not far from my hotel, but as we're focused on the trek ahead I wasn't able to break away and join them. Hopefully after this trek or when I come back for the race in October I'll be able to do a makeup at what I think might be one of the most unique Rotary Clubs in the world!
Chris Clemens
Rotary Club of Santa Barbara
Rotary Club of Santa Barbara