Today, 2-20-11 I was on the medical staff for the USATF open and masters indoor track and field championships at the John Bennett Indoor Athletic Complex in Toms River. As many of my patients already know, I have been their medical director since 1992 and also do my best to make sure that their events have medical staffing which is typically all volunteer. This particular event features athletes who are at lease 18 years of age and some are in the 80's. Pictured above was the start of the 50 yard dash. Below to the left is one of our patients, Jane Vaneewan who got into track and field when her doctor told her she had some health issues. Rather than take pills, she found track and field and on a given weekend, is a national competitor, often doing at least one if not more events, To the right was an older high jumper. I was watching his jumps which were quite good for his age group. Lastly, the bottom photo was of a high jumper.
I was quite busy today, since we had one runner who I suspect fractured his ankle and another who severely pulled his hamstring. Stuff happens but I was also able to help quite a few runners. When I was packing up and leaving, one of the runners I worked on came over to thank me. I turned out that he had some problems that continually were occurring and he had been through all sorts of therapies which did not work. He ran after I taped his feet and worked on him free of pain for the first time in years. He is planning to visit and bring members of his team he trains with to the office from Pennsylvania because he believes he finally found someone who understands running problems.
It is nice to receive that type of endorsement. I also met a number of coaches who brought over their team members because the liked the way I helped their athletes.I love working with runners and seeing them improve with my treatment. It is quite rewarding which is why I will work for pizza and soda and the occasional T Shirt I receive at an event.