The mountain air parts for the runners in the 50K race. Participants pass as onlookers cheer them on. Hushed voices move through the wispy pines along Lake Siskiyou.
"She's a mermaid," says one spectator.
"No, a unicorn," replies another.
A bright green head of hair appears on the trail, belonging to runner 6. Her smile encourages her fans as much as their shouts propel her on her eight-hour, 31-mile journey.
Heather Banos possesses a mythical persona. She is a living rainbow with an infectious love of life and a soft voice which brings you into her world. Out of a dark storm of drinking into the light of sobriety, her feet now carry her into a life of running. Her addictive personality and eating disorder are transformed to create a disciplined life of exercise and nutrition. She often performs for an audience of one, her 7-year-old son, Jaxson. "I wanted to show my son a life where he would learn to chase his dreams and goals in positive ways," she says.
The lithe spirit in Banos grew to love running. She started running short distances. She looked for local fun runs. In six months, she went from five miles to half-marathons. She found she enjoyed the beauty of the road along with the expanded vistas of mountain trails. She learned to be part of a family, crewing and pacing for other runners.
After 18 months, she was ready to enter the 50K race around the mountain lake. By the time of the grueling race, she adored her new sport. "I didn't want to beat others. I wanted to beat myself," Banos says.