Early on Thanksgiving Day I participated in a 15k trail race in Topanga Canyon of the Santa Monica Mountains (part of a series of XTERRA trail races in Southern California). While jogging in place and attempting to stay warm prior to the event I was surprised to see a competitor stroll in to the starting area wearing Thacher sweatpants – it turned out to be Liz Mahoney, fellow faculty member and avid runner and triathlete. What a pleasant surprise! It was fun to talk about how our individual families were preparing for Thanksgiving and how we each had snuck out of our houses early in the morning to avoid waking anybody.

The course was fantastic: steep climbs with tremendous views of the San Fernando Valley and precipitous drops and switchbacks on highly adventurous singe-track (reminiscent of the trail to Twin Peaks above Thacher!). The best part of the event, however, was simply being out on the trails with like-minded runners and giving thanks in our own unique way. Even though I was in the Santa Monica Mountains, I felt distinctly thankful for the natural environment that surrounds where we live and teach at Thacher, not to mention all of the hard work that goes into maintaining the trails that allow us to enjoy it. In short, Thacher is located in a beautiful and inspiring landscape and for that I am deeply thankful.