Day 12 - Friday, April 2
Day 12 was the toughest day so far. After a nice surprise visit from Jacqueline & Yash, getting up the next morning was not that easy. Lower body is hurting right now, mostly the right shin but everything else is stiff, sore and fatigued. So at 5:04am on a 30 degree morning, I pushed myself out, layered up and dreaded the 28 miles of walking on a busy highway with no shoulder on a shin that was aching.
A week ago i could run 15 miles easily and then meet up with Alex for refreshment then do 10 and another 10 and before i knew it, 35 miles done and ready to repeat. We are now at a point where Alex has to meet me in 6 miles to make sure it isn’t over!
Pain has a way of hijacking your soul. And, as I walked/death marched onward, I wasn’t aware of much other than the pain i was feeling and using whatever spare force I had to focus one step after another. And then after dancing on and off of the tiny shoulder for 28 miles it was over!
Most of today was a blur to me - I didn’t see anyone other than cars and trucks screaming by until I finished in our overnight parking spot behind a Publix shopping center in Watkinsville. A few things that struck me though: Fred & Essie Thomas buried on the side of the road in front of a house, the miles of serenity through Oconee National Forest, the cold piercing dry air which is so in contrast from hot/humid Jacksonville, the scent of freshly cut pine trees on an overfilled logging truck storming by and finally how quickly our fate can turn from invincibility to only memories of how it was - a microcosm of life.
Except, I also know that the last mile will bring a shower, a meal, a familiar face, a furry friend, a great nights sleep and I am 100% confident and energized that all will be reset and ready to attack another day’s adventure!
My doc at Mayo knows what I am up to and we did a video conference at 4:30pm today todiscuss shin. While we hope it is shin splint, he wants to rule out stress fracture or compartmental syndrome which i had back in 2012 after BR135 so he got me scheduled for an MRI in Athens on Monday morning. In the interim, I plan to continue walking with lower mileage - from 35 mile runs to 20-25 mile walks so we can keep moving. Treatment plan is Aleve, ice, voltaren, compression, elevation and no running.
On food side, we ate at small in line family owned Italian restaurant called Martinos. Alex had solid chicken parm. I had a Caesar salad w extra anchovies and a great rigatoni carbonara made w the traditional pancetta and onion but also shrimp and mushroom which was excellent - even the rigatoni was all dente!
That’s it for now -
Thank you all for the generous support.
Cheers,
David
