On Thursday, May 1, at dawn, six athletes gathered on Solana Beach. Their purpose was to set off the beginning of the California Speed Project which is a 640 mile non stop relay race to raise awareness and fund the California Strong Foundation. The race starts in Solana Beach and ends at the Golden Gate Bridge; they hope to reach their final destination on Sunday. Their trail consists of California’s coastline. 

At sunrise, two women and four men set off on their journey. This race will be filmed by a documentary crew who will be following the athletes in an RV to support them if needed and be a space to rest and refuel throughout the race. 

The project was born in San Diego by founders William Stull and Cole Mueller. The two met during an Ultramarathon. Both of their passions for challenges and advocacy led them to creating this idea. The project’s GoFundMe says that “This isn’t about medals – It’s about purpose”. They further go on to explain that “This challenge is a powerful test of endurance – physically and mentally – representing resilience, unity and strength that comes from deep commitment”. 

As of Friday morning, the team has raised $7,700/25,000. About $16,300 of that is going to documentary work and production along with necessary travel expenses. All remaining proceedings go directly to the California Strong Foundation. 

Mueller states, “We’re raising money for California Strong because we thought it would be fitting. They’re an organization that gives money to firefighters, their families, and communities affected by the fires. Since we’re running from San Diego to San Francisco-pretty much covering the whole state- we thought it would be fitting to donate to an organization like that”.

If you’d like to support this cause, visit californiastrong.org to get involved for a good cause. You could also donate to their GoFundMe to aid them on this journey.