Frank McKinney sentenced to Death…Death Valley that is!
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Frank McKinney sentenced to Death…Death Valley that is!
Delray Beach, FL – On July 16-18, real estate artist and philanthro-capitalist Frank McKinney will race in the Death Valley Badwater 135-mile Ultramarathon, the world’s toughest footrace according to National Geographic.
In this, his seventh go at Badwater, McKinney is trying to become only the 15th person to finish the Badwater Ultramarathon seven or more times. To put that potential accomplishment in perspective, consider that more than 3,000 people have successfully climbed Mt. Everest.
Why have so few achieved this?
The Badwater Ultramarathon, established in 1987, is an invitation-only race held during the desert’s hottest time of the year. In 2012 there will be 95 runners from 20 countries. Typically, 30% of these ultra-athletes will not finish the race.
Badwater starts at 282 feet below sea level, the lowest point in the Western Hemisphere. Air temperatures can exceed 130 degrees, while ground temps on the blacktop road are 200+ degrees, high enough to melt the gel in your shoes, not to mention fry your brain right inside your skull.
The course traverses 135 miles through the Mojave, over three mountain ranges, and finishes nearly 8,500 feet above sea level. There are no aid stations.
McKinney chooses to selectively suffer a little for those who are suffering a lot in Haiti, where his Caring House Project Foundation (www.CHPF.org) has built seventeen self-sufficient villages, with the next to be built in Anse Rouge, Haiti. He uses this mind-blowing undertaking as a way to raise money for the villages his Foundation creates.
USA Today crowned McKinney “king of ready-made dream homes,” and The
Wall Street Journal hailed him as a “real-estate rock czar” because he is the creative force behind some of the world’s most magnificent mansions, shattering price records with each new project. McKinney is a true maverick with a rock star look, without peer in the risky world of speculative, high-end real estate.
A five-time bestselling author in three genres, McKinney’s newest release, The Tap (www.The-Tap.com), explains in detail what moved him to undertake the Badwater Ultramarathon. He summarizes it this way:
“We feel most alive when experiencing extremes for the benefit of others. Badwater, and all the suffering and sacrifice prior to and during the race, is endured for those who have no choice but to suffer immensely every day.”
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