BOISE, Idaho — Top of Tamarack is returning for its third year at the Tamarack Resort. One local mother says the elevation and exercise from the mountain trek can help start the conversation about mental health.
After being diagnosed with bipolar disorder, Kylee Wiscombe created the non-profit Gr8ter in 2015, and since then she's helped provide resources for the community.
It wasn't until Wiscombe experienced what she calls a fear of missing out moment when she couldn't join her friend who was biking the Tamarack summit.
“I just said next year I’m going to ride to the top of the mountain and that for me turned into me wanting to bring other people with me,” says Wiscombe.
The Top of Tamarack is a 15-mile-long trek.
Wiscombe's son, Trevor, completed the entire summit at both ages 8 and 9.
“I think that you'd have a fun time and that you can go as far as you want and the views are great and you'll have an awesome time,” says Trevor.
You can run, hike, or bike and you don't have to complete the entire trek
Wiscombe says, "It meets people where they're at and it sets a goal go one mile collect one token, we will have these little cool tokens and just get out there and step forward to the life that you want.”
You can collect a total of 7 tokens during the summit. There's also a memorial mile that honors those who have passed away from the battle of mental health...
"I want it to provide healing to people I want it to be a good experience for everyone that does it,”
The first year the event was open to homeowners in the Tamarack area. around 50 showed up, last year in 2022 there were nearly 200 participants and as of August 27th of this year, there are around 250 people registered.
And if you think you can’t do it, Wiscombe’s son Trevor had no prior training before the run.
He says, “The first time it happened I was like “Yo can I do it?’ and she was like sure, and I was like I'm going to climb to the top and she was trying to let me down and, in the end, I just climbed to the top." Kylee Wiscombe continues, “even if you go one mile and set that goal and achieve it that feels amazing and then the next year you can come back and you can set your next goal // and man nothing feels better than seeing how far you've come.”
Registration is open for the Top of Tamarack, the event starts on September 30th, but to receive free swag gear from Gr8er you need to register by September 15.
A new addition to this year's Top of Tamarack is the team ambassador program, where a captain can register a team of three or more. To learn more about registration for the event, check the page on the Gr8ter website.
