Last year, we had the chance to support someone doing something truly extraordinary.
Originally, Troy Croxdale set out to complete the Triple Crown of long-distance trails, the Appalachian Trail, Pacific Crest Trail, and Continental Divide Trail, all in a single year. A huge accomplishment in its own right. But after finishing earlier than planned, Troy realized he still had time and wanted to see just how far he could go.
That led him to set a new goal: 10,000 miles in one year. To get there, he took on the coast of California, going from north to south to close out the year.
By the time the year came to an end, Troy had covered 10,323.8 miles on foot.
We caught up with Troy during his journey along the California coast to talk about what keeps him moving and the lessons learned along the way.
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My name is Troy Croxdale. I’m from Napa California. I first got into outdoor stuff because I originally wasn’t going down a very good path, drinking, drugs, all the stuff and when my dad passed away in 2019, I stopped doing everything and went out for 1 mile run and it just skyrocketed from there. I ran a half marathon full marathon 50 mile did a bunch through hikes 200 mile races and now I’m here about to hit 10,000 miles.
What inspired you to take on the coast of California and why now?
Originally the goal this year was to do the border to border calendar year triple Crown which is the Appalachian Trail, Pacific crest Trail, Continental divide Trail, but I extended the Appalachian Trail to both borders Key West and Canada and that came out to like 8600 miles and finishing that so early in the end of October (293 days), I decided 10,000 miles sounded a little better so I was looking for ways to continue getting miles and we came up with a great idea of running the coast of California so yeah just the goal is to get 10,000 miles for the year.
So, in 2022 I actually rode this route on my bike so I’m always excited to get into the redwoods up north and then around Big Sur is probably my other favorite part but being on foot I was most excited to hit some of the little side trails and stuff that I couldn’t get to on my bike when I was riding down the highway, so yeah just excited to get off on the coast a little bit more basically get on some beaches and some single track. The difference in speed between the bike and running has stuck out to me. It’s a lot slower. I see a lot more stuff not just flying through the town. I actually get to like read some of the signs and check a lot more stuff out. I have a lot more freedom to deviate from any route I have planned to check out a historic downtown or take a longer route along the coast. I threw together a route in Gaia the day before the project started but that only gave me an idea of how many total miles it would be. I usually make a more accurate route the night before and iterate off of that one stop by stop, every 4-7 miles or so.
I just like a good challenge and at the beginning of the year it almost sounded impossible like waking up on night one knowing I had like nearly 9000 miles to get after this year but just take it one step at a time and I guess in the end it gives me a sense of accomplishment. This year has taught me a lot about self discipline and resilience. Day by day, brick by brick, I show up for myself and get it done, no matter how I’m feeling.
What matters most in the gear you bring on a journey like this? How do you think about comfort, durability, and staying present?
The gear that mattered the most to me is probably footwear because without my feet I can’t really go anywhere so yeah I’ve been rotating through shoes on this thousand miles but the rest of the year I was wearing basically the same shoe at least the same shoe model the whole year. I went through like 20+ pairs of shoes this year, but I’ve been wearing East Peak socks, and I have no blisters and on the border the border I was carrying all my gear sleeping bag everything and it was all ultralight stuff where now we are living out of a van and I don’t really have to carry anything throughout the day, but we are wearing high viz because we’re on roadways with the cars.
What does community mean to you on a long journey like this?
Community means everything. The support this year has been incredible. Family, friends, and complete strangers have all gone out of their way in some form or fashion to help me keep moving forward. None of this would be possible without them. The number of messages I’ve received from people who’ve been inspired by my journey is hard to wrap my head around. A lot of these stories make even the hardest days worth it — and they inspire me right back. I always try to remind people that I’m not special; I’m just a guy. I want everyone to know that you can do this too. Take that first step and stick with it.
On the Cali 1000 specifically, my crew is fully bought in. I’ve got friends driving out to run miles, hang out, or offer a shower, a bed, or laundry for a night or two. Many of them had just been at the NorCal Backyard Ultra on November 7th — only 48 hours before we came up with this idea and started the project. Some people might think that’s crazy, but my team is adaptable and great at solving problems. Will “WillyBones” Boardman has cooked nearly every meal on this trip, and Connor Dyer has been documenting the entire journey. These guys work their asses off so the only thing I have to focus on is putting one foot in front of the other, sunup to sundown. This whole program is a full-time job — honestly, more like 24/7.
Because we plan day-to-day, our presence can be last minute, and yet people still show up. That speaks volumes about the running and trail communities. We call them “trail angels” for a reason.
None of us are getting paid. This is a passion project — pushing to see what’s possible and finding your way through big problems. Whether it’s 10,000 miles or 1,000 miles, it all starts with a single step. What began as a solo mission has grown into a collective one, filled with more positivity than any community I’ve ever known.
What do you expect will be the hardest parts?
The hardest parts vary whether you’re unsupported on trail or supported with a crew. On the border on border x3 effort, it was the weather. So, going up to nearly 13,000 feet in Colorado and in the Sierra like trying to time all that stuff out so I’m not going through a bunch of snow, which I did at times, but yeah weather was a big factor on that and now on the Cali 1000 the hard parts are just those tight roads with no shoulder and watching out for cars at high speeds on the highway. My body feels like it’s breaking down at times but the pain eventually subsides or moves around. I’ve been extremely fortunate to have not been injured at all this year, just able to build an insane base of aerobic fitness. I’m doing 40 miles a day right now, but if we had more sunlight I’d be getting at least 50. Shockingly, the running isn’t the hard part.
I hope I’ll walk away with just a sense that anything is possible like at the beginning of the year I did not I mean I had an idea that it is possible but you just never know until you try. And what you may find could ultimately shock you like it did me. We are capable of much much more than we think. What started as a casual idea has blossomed into a journey of a lifetime.
