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Maureen Rohrs wrote:

 

Just and update. I am the runner who broke her leg. The story is below. I want to thank you and your volunteers for helping me. They were wonderful....particularly the lady in the green van who stopped on the side of the road to tell me the ambulance was on the way, and who went off in search of my husband. I certainly hope my break won't add any problems to the staging of next year's race. I have to come back and finish. At the hospital I was in an ER room next to the guy who got his knee ripped open in a fall before the tow path. He was in good spirits when he left....he had 15 stitches. Is it possible to see if you have my drop bag? We forgot to get it. It is red and black cylindrical shape and says Mitre on it. If it is a problem, no worries everything was 'disposable'....although my husband was hoping to get it back. And can I trouble you for the Sharpsville(burg) Ambulance company's email or address, so I can send them a thank you. Also the Park Rangers. Thanks much...am sorry to be such a bother.


 I broke my femur while running in the JFK 50 on Saturday afternoon. Here's the story.....
For those unfamiliar with this race----the course consists of 2 miles on the road, then we hit the trail for about 14 miles...climbing up a mountain, across the mountain and back down, we then come to a flat tow path....packed dirt (perfect running surface) this is about 29 miles long and then the race finishes with about 8 miles of roads.
I was running with Suzie, Laura and Eric. Our goal was to finish without injury and if we could in about 10 hours. Willie was running solo and wanted to finish in 12 hours.  We had delightful weather and everything was fine.
 With a long race like this, we had established a pattern of running for 8 minutes and walking for 2 minutes. Around mile 24 (flat part of the race), I was having some pain in my legs...something that I haven't had before..was kinda on the outside of the thighs. I had been taking motrin and the salt tablets..just as I do in any long race. But the pain didn't go away---like background noise, and I found stopping and starting getting harder. About mile 30 or so, I told the others to go on, I was going to walk more, as something wasn't right. I decided to walk 3 minutes and then run 7.
I walked the 3 minutes, and then ran..about a minute or 2 into the run, I heard a snap, and knew instantly that I broke my femur..no weight could be supported. Down I went. I dragged my body a bit off the path, to let the others get by, so they wouldn't trip on me. (I wasn't feeling any pain, just knew my leg wasn't connected. Very strange sensation.)
There were runners all around, so I asked them to go tell my friends, who were only a bit ahead and then to tell the aid station to get an ambulance as I wasn't going to be able to move on my own. And to please find Willie. I knew his race number (the race committee monitors the runners numbers all day.)
Suzie and Eric came back, Laura came by...they went on to finish the race in under 10 hours...great job everyone. Willie was pulled at mile 28, he was doing great and was going to finish in under 12. (As I said it was a perfect day for a run!)
The ambulance couldn't get on the tow path, only some emergency jeep. The EMT's, put my leg on some contraption, and then cranked it, til the bone snapped into place for transport. I didn't puke or faint...but it wasn't very pleasant. By this time an ambulance came to the street, and then the next  batch of EMT's brought a back board. They had to climb thru the old canal.  I was then strapped onto a back board , carried down and up, over and under, was interesting, like a huge gully...they had to carry me thru trees, brambles, and about 6 inches of water. Once in the ambulance, we stopped to see Willie. He got a ride back to the school to get our car, and then met me at the hospital.Once in ER, I had X rays which confirmed the break.
Washington County Hospital is a trauma center, there was a surgeon on staff. It was decided that I would have a steel rod inserted thru my hip bone, down my femur and bolted above my knee. I don't have to wear a cast, I can bend my leg, and put about 25% of my weight on it when I use crutches. The operation took about 3 hours.
At this point, I can't swim until the staples are removed. He was cautious about when I could start running. I have to check in with a local ortho for follow up care.
For now, I am practicing walking with crutches around my house. I'm up to about 2 laps before I break out in a sweat and get the shakes. So that's the story of my JFK 50. Ugh!