Paul Erway & 50 Races and 50 States
In the book series "50 Abilities, Unlimited Possibilities" the athlete, Paul Erway, talks about his experiences as an avid marathon competitor, who has some qualities that set him aside from other components. Unlike most runners, Paul Erway competes with a wheelchair after a sustaining a spinal cord injury from a car wreck in 1980 (paulerway.com). Instead of letting this accident dictate his future, he found new ways to pursue his interests and began racing in marathons across the United States.
For my two chapters I choose to read about his races in Honolulu, Hawaii and Knoxville, TN. In the chapter about Hawaii, or the "Pinnacle", Erway describes the island's picturesque views and how excited he was to be ending his year with this race; while still getting to relax and admire the beauty around him. Upon arriving to the track, the road was so crowded that the wheelchair racers actually had to be escorted by police to the starting line. This issue is something "normal" runners never have to think twice about. For them, getting to the starting point of a race is a simple walk, but for wheelchair racers, they have to consider their own safety while maneuvering in large crowds and hope people will be considerate enough to let them through. As they were escorted through, the crowd erupted with cheers and applause for Paul Erway and fellow wheelchair racers. This was especially moving to me because upon reading these chapters, I had no knowledge of how the racing community treats people who compete with wheelchairs. As a future Occupational Therapist, I love how these racers with disabilities are lifted up in their desired occupations by the people around them! Another part of this chapter that stuck out to me was how positive and appreciative Erway was even in the worst situations. In the last stretch of the race, one of his tires blew. Instead of letting this ruin his spirit and effect his end time, he decided to just finish the race and worry about the damage later. With one tire being damaged, I cannot imagine how difficult it must have been continuing to push towards the finish line after miles and miles of strenuous roads, but Paul Erway persevered and was able to finish in 7th. Mechanical problems such as this are issues runners never have to consider but are a common issue in wheelchair racers; this just goes to show how much determination these athletes put into to their sport.
In the chapter about his race in Knoxville, I was moved once again by reading more about how Paul Erway draws support from the people around him. In this chapter titled "COMRADESHIP" Erway discusses some of the new and old friendships he has made along the way on his racing journey, and how they continue to inspire him. One of my favorite parts of this chapter was him meeting two young boys, Ethan and Tanner. Both boys had sustained spinal cord injuries at a young age and were just getting started in the world of wheelchair sports. Ethan and Tanner were very eager to learn more about racing and even reminded Erway and his friend about the importance of comradeship and how crucial it is to have someone to lean on. Paul Erway's grit and determination are second to none and he faces challenges that other runners take for granted every single day, such as have to carefully consider entering races based on the hosting cities terrain. Paul Erway was among the first group of wheelchair racers to compete in this particular marathon due to knoxville's rolling landscape. He was even asked if he would consider using his hand cycle for this race, but he declined and said, "Those of us who use racing wheelchairs are like a runner who uses sneakers- they are our way of competing in running races" (Erway, 2017). He declined using his hand cycle and went on to finish the race in 3rd place! Wheelchair racers also have to face doubts broadcasted onto them when compared to other runners. Such as being asked to use a completely different type of chair when an able-bodied person would never be asked to switch their shoes to roller blades or sandals. While this comment was not intentionally said to be harmful, one should be considerate of the challenges wheelchair racers face and only offer words of support instead of thinking of ways to "fix" their problems they may face when racing.
References
Erway, P. (2017). 50 abilities, unlimited possibilities: Racing to the final finish line from Salt Lake City to the mountains of Montana. Silver Tree Publishing.
50 marathons... 50 states... 50 weeks. Paul Erway. (2021, June 3). https://www.paulerway.com/
Hi Savanna!
ReplyDeleteI loved how you mentioned occupational therapy in this post! It is so cool that we can think of our future jobs while reading things like this because we could possibly have clients like this! Being adaptable and flexible is something we will have to do and teach everyday, and I love how Erway is so open and passionate about that part of his journey. Great reflexion!
Hello Savanna, I like your two chapters and how you talked about them. It's very eye opening the challenges people with wheelchairs face. In similarity, the chapters I read talked about the support they got from some people. A difference is that nobody recommended them to use something different but rather cheered them on. My takeaway from this is learning about Paul's passion and motivation to keep going and also i learnt that we shouldn't just offer something when we think its right in our opinion but rather ask because it could be offensive to the individual.
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