My name is Heidi (she/her), and I will be attempting a Flip-Flop thru-hike of the AT after I graduate from college in mid-May and before I start my job as a software engineer in October. After the pandemic derailed my chance at a normal end to high school—and beginning to college—I'm looking forward to taking a long-awaited break from school to reflect on the past few years while challenging myself to do something completely different than anything I've done before. I've always been a big fan of the outdoors, but in the past couple of years, I have gotten really into long-distance running, completing several marathons and ultramarathons and fueling my desire to take on an even longer challenge—2198.4 miles long to be exact.