Who has not heard of the infamous Death Valley in California? the Death Valley brings up visions of desert, dryness, withered trees, blazing heat, and death of course. Of course this world is always full of those looking for the next adventure and challenge, and that definatley true of Ryan Mills.

Inspired by a trip with a friend to Death Valley in 2011, Ryan meet some people on a multi-continent trip. So from that moment the idea of "A Rude Awakening : Running to Inspire" was born and ever since Ryan and his four partners have been trying to make the expedition possible. The idea behind this ambitious plan is the run the complete lenght of Death Valley, CA in 8 days, for a whopping 184 miles.

A team of two jeeps will follow for support and to try to document the journey with photos and videos, with the possiblity of a documantery being produced. The Expedition is still looking for and dependant upon support from outside. If you believe in people getting of the couch and living an adventurous life, head over to the website to show your support. Check out this video by Ryan about the trip.

Ryan was kind enough to answer some questions for the ShareThisAdventure.com readers.

1. Why do you think having some adventure in life is important?
Having adventure in your life is necessary because it help build broader perspective of things. When your out there climbing that mountain, running that trail, or scuba diving that reef, you grow a greater respect for this world and begin to understand how small we are in comparison to everything else. Adventure also contributes to self discovery because you find out things about yourself that you wouldn't if you were just sitting at home.

2. Do you have a favorite adventure or outdoor activity? What do you like about it?
I like doing a little bit of everything ranging from scuba diving, trail running, backpacking to just hopping in the car and exploring new places that way. Currently though, I've really gotten into trail running.

I've always been a runner since my highschool years, but as someone who grew up in Chicago most of their life, I was never exposed to the variety of places that I have available to me now, (in california) when I go out for a run. There's something about running in the mountains that's quite therapeutic. Kind of like some sort of meditation. Your out on that trail, taking in the views and focusing on nothing but your form and breathing. During that time, nothing else matters and your mind is clear....Pretty cool.

3. How do you keep yourself going when the going gets tough?
How do I keep going? I try to run in new places or trails that I haven't been to before to keep it interesting. There's something about exploring a new place that makes you want to keep going around that next curve and see what's on the other side. The though of stopping and turning around doesn't come as easily this way.

4. Is their a piece of gear that you can’t live without?
I suppose if i had to choose one piece of gear that would be most important to me would actually be one that I have recently been exposed to...the SPOT device. When your by yourself, someone should always know where your at it anything were to happen, this piece of gear does a great job at doing just that.

Don't forget to drop by the expedition website to support them in their endevor to inspire adventure. Also, please sign up for our free newsletter with content not found on the website.