David Gilliland is taking a detour – on foot – on his way to Las Vegas Motor Speedway this week. The driver of the No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford will be part of a group hiking more than 20 miles of trails through the Grand Canyon Tuesday and Wednesday.
Gilliland purchased about 40 pounds of gear to carry on the hike, a trip where he will sleep in a sleeping bag and tent on the canyon floor.
“Even though I grew up out west, I’ve never seen the Grand Canyon and I’ve always wanted to. This way I’ll be able to see it all at once. It’s going to be hard. I’ve done three smaller hikes before but nothing like this. I’m going to have a yellow (rookie) stripe on my backpack for sure.
“We’re going down the hardest trail, too. It’s about eight and a half miles in, and then we have a 13-and-a-half-mile hike out. I’m going to be wishing that Love’s Travel Stops had a store on the bottom of the Grand Canyon.”
UPDATE: David Gilliland tweeted that he has completed his Grand Canyon hike and is now on his way to Las Vegas to race this weekend. What did he say about his journey?
“Just made it out of the Grand Canyon! Hardest/coolest thing I’ve done!!! Wow.”
Enjoy these beautiful images, courtesy of David Gilliland and Front Row Motorsports:
