Another Bump In The Road
I started this year with some ambitious running goals. Running my first Boston Marathon, returning to the Waldow 100k after 15 years, and fast packing the last section of the Pacific Crest Trail into Canada.
I’ve been running marathons for 40 years, I don’t really like running them anymore, so I thought I would run Boston as my last marathon.
The Waldow 100K is a special memory for me, way back when, I raced it when it was the National USTAF 100K championship and I got 2nd in my age group!
Over the last few years, a group of us have been fast packing sections of the PCT, and this fall, we were completing the last 100 or so miles into Canada.
So I was stoked about my running plan this year, and training was going well for Boston… then I suffered a heart attack in March.
It was a bad one, and out of the blue, (I hadn’t noticed any symptoms) and though my outlook was good, I had to drop out of Boston and the Waldo 100K.
That all was devastating, but one thing I had going for me, was I could probably still make the PCT fast pack. The most fun thing I can imagine doing!
So during my recovery, I continued to train, short run/walks, then slowly transitioning into running non-stop for 6 to 8 miles. I was behind of my normal training, but feeling pretty good so I decided to enter a mountain 50K on September 7th as a fitness test prior to committing to our PCT hike.
I was excited about running the Wy’east Wonder 50K next to Mt Hood in Oregon. The course had 4,000 ft of gain and was net downhill, a great course to test my fitness on.
A week prior to the race, I developed a tender spot on the bottom of my foot. I went to the doctor and he said I had a corn, it would take a podiatrist to take it out and there was no time for that before my race, so I decided to run my race anyway. I knew it might hurt, but it was more important to me to assess my ability in the mountains for our upcoming fast pack adventure.
True to form, my foot hurt like hell during the race. I wanted to drop at each aid station, but I continued on. I was the oldest guy in the race and I didn’t want to DNF. I did finish, and although my foot was a mess, I passed the fitness test and knew I was ready for our fast pack.
Then on Monday, I met with the podiatrist.
I told him to patch up my foot as I had a great adventure in a week. He explained to me that it looked like a deep blister, and he could cut away the dead skin to drill down to the affected area for treatment.
Unfortunately, he had to dig deep. It was a deep ulcer, prone to infection, and it would take antibiotics and 3 weeks in a boot (sandal) to heal. No PCT hike!
So here I sit, with my foot in a boot, out of commission till the end of the month.
As far as running goes, this is turning out to be a very disappointing year. I had high hopes to what I could accomplish and I managed to miss all of them. However, I’m still alive, and with the continued support of my family and our awesome running community. I’m thankful that I’m back running again and I’m already busy putting together my running adventures for next year.
After all, it’s just another bump in the road!