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2008-09-09 6:22 PM

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Subject: Lost Runner at IMLou

I was told by a friend of mine who lives in Louisville that he heard from 2 separate sources about a guy who crossed the timing mat around 9 miles, but didn't cross any more.  He told me that they found him the next day roaming the city without any recollection of where he was or who he was.  The thought is he got too dehydrated, and it took its toll on him.

Did anyone else hear about this? ? ?



2008-09-09 6:54 PM
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Subject: RE: Lost Runner at IMLou
That's the 1st I've heard of it, but it has the makings of a fantastic urban legend.  If it is true I hope the person is OK now.
2008-09-09 7:38 PM
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Wow, news travels fast.

While the story you heard is somewhat exaggerated, it is basically true, as the person in question is a friend of mine. Here is what happened:

My friend, who we'll call "Paul" who rode up to Louisville with me to do the race. I finished the race and went to bed about 10:00. Paul was still out on the course according to the IM tracking. At 3:30 a.m. I get a call from Paul's brother who was not at the race asking if I had seen Paul, as he had not finished the race and had not called anyone. The race director had no record of him receiving aid on the course from an EMT and no hospital had him listed as a patent. The police had searched his hotel room and he was not there, either. My wife and I get up to see whether he checked his bike out of the transition area. The bike was still
there. I let his brother know and go back to the hotel to wait.

I get a call from his wife at 7:00 a.m. Still no sign of him. She’s justifiably hysterical. I try to calm her down and tell her I’ll go talk to the Ironman folks when they open up in a couple of hours. I’m really worried at this point.

Around 8:30 in the morning – almost 10 hours after he went missing -- Paul's brother calls again. Someone had called 9-1-1 reporting a man with a gun walking around a very, very shady part of town. When the police responded to the call, they found Paul approximately 1 ½ miles off the race course, passed out on the sidewalk, with his heart-monitor strap in his hand. He was severely dehydrated, hypothermic, and possibly had a broken hand from falling.

By the time my wife and I got to the hospital around 11 a.m., Paul had been getting fluids for well over an hour. He still didn’t know where he was. The last thing he remembers from the race was passing mile marker 22 on the run (FOUR MILES FROM THE FINISH), then falling down at some point, then being woken up by the cop 10 hours later.

It has been a slow recovery for him. He got home on Tuesday and was re-admitted to the hospital on Wednesday, still suffering from the effects. He finally got back to work this week and may try and register for IM FL next year so he can get that Finisher’s Medal that he came so close to getting at LOU. He’ll be okay, but it goes to show that this distance is no joke.
2008-09-09 7:48 PM
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Subject: RE: Lost Runner at IMLou

Holey smokes!  Pretty scary stuff!  Glad to hear he is recovering!

 

~Mike

2008-09-09 7:51 PM
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Subject: RE: Lost Runner at IMLou
Rogillio - 2008-09-09 8:48 PM

Holey smokes!  Pretty scary stuff!  Glad to hear he is recovering!

 

~Mike

Scary stuff...glad they found him...hope he continues to recover quickly.

2008-09-09 8:09 PM
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Subject: RE: Lost Runner at IMLou

Wow. . .   Sounds like he's recovering slowly, but at least recovering! ! !    My friend in Louisville heard the news from an Firefighter/EMT, and also a neighbor who happend to do the race.  Though I don't know from where she heard it.

Glad to hear he is recovering.  That must have been quite scary for Y'all! ! ! !

Thanks for the report.



2008-09-09 8:10 PM
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Subject: RE: Lost Runner at IMLou
Damn, glad he is recovering. 
2008-09-09 8:33 PM
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Subject: RE: Lost Runner at IMLou
wow..! I am glad he is ok. I saw some areas off of the course that I would not want to walk through alone, at night, being fully aware... I couldn't imagine in his state. Someone was watching over him... I hope he makes a speedy recovery and knocks out his next IM.

Kenny
2008-09-09 8:38 PM
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Subject: RE: Lost Runner at IMLou
Wow, crazy story! I hope his recovery goes well. Keep us posted!
2008-09-09 8:42 PM
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Subject: RE: Lost Runner at IMLou

I was thinking about this while driving kids to and from soccer practice.

How did it happen that no one saw him go off the course? Another athlete? Spectator? Volunteer?

Scary that the race director didn't get concerned they had no knowledge of what happened to this racer...just disappeared? Do lots of people quit and don't tell anyone? I would think they would want to account for everyone who started before they wound down for the night?

 



Edited by KathyG 2008-09-09 8:56 PM
2008-09-09 8:44 PM
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Subject: RE: Lost Runner at IMLou

Now I am even more excited to do IM Lou in 09. 

That is scary and really weird.  Wasn't there anyone around at mile marker 4 to see him wander off? 



2008-09-09 8:51 PM
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Subject: RE: Lost Runner at IMLou
Tell3131 - 2008-09-09 9:44 PM

Now I am even more excited to do IM Lou in 09. 

That is scary and really weird.  Wasn't there anyone around at mile marker 4 to see him wander off? 

I know exactly where that was.  Once it got dark out, it was difficult to see people sometimes, unless you were wearing the glow sticks.  

Plus, most other athletes, at that hour, are in their own worlds and aren't really paying attention to others unless they are walking directly beside them.  I couldn't tell you how many people that Ckinsey and I passed, or passed us, in the time from mile 16 through mile 24.

I can just envision him taking a left turn and going off course into the dark.  And those WERE some scary places to be off in the dark alone.  I'm glad he is okay.

2008-09-09 8:52 PM
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Subject: RE: Lost Runner at IMLou
I can't WAIT to read his race report.
2008-09-09 9:24 PM
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Subject: RE: Lost Runner at IMLou
WOW! Never heard of that happening! Dang.

How scary. At least he was found and is OK. I can see how someone would get lost wandering off course though. Those streets were dark and it wasn't the nice part of town.

In fact, I turned to someone at one point and said, "I don't want to be last... because if I'm alone out here I might get killed." Yep, the area of town was just that nice.

I think this right here is a prime example of why putting a GPS unit on racer is a good idea. Just think. If he had been wearing the My Athlete Tracker they could have found him a lot quicker.

What gets me though is this... didn't anyone notice a guy with a number on him walking around and think that he MIGHT be with the race and lost?

2008-09-09 10:33 PM
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Subject: RE: Lost Runner at IMLou

Why werent the race officials and the authorities mounting a more rigorous search for this guy.  I guess people abandon without notifying someone, but arent there sweepers out on the course who would realize that someone is still out on the course.  You would think around 1AM when they go to close transition and still saw a bike there, it would raise even more red flags.  Glad to hear everything is OK.

As for that part of town, there are sections that are shady, but thats in any 6 mile stretch of a major urban area.  Maybe that was part of my motivation to finish before dark though

2008-09-09 10:42 PM
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Subject: RE: Lost Runner at IMLou

that story is CRAZY!!! 

glad to hear he is ok now.



2008-09-10 6:24 AM
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Subject: RE: Lost Runner at IMLou
Unreal! I am so glad he is okay.

I never thought about someone getting lost or disappearing during a race but with that many people and that many intersections and everything that is going on I guess it really isn't surprising. I did the race in '07 and finished in the dark and remember being glad I wasn't alone out there.



2008-09-10 6:41 AM
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Subject: RE: Lost Runner at IMLou
Here is part of what was so scary: my friend is in law enforement and I assure you that local cops as well as some "higher up" agencies were very aware he was missing and were putting a good bit of effort into locating him.

I think the major problem was: (1) it was nightime; and (2) no one really expected that he would be as far off course as he was. The last time chip checkpoint he crossed was at the turnaround at mile 20. Think about this, if you are checking just ONE block on either side of the racecourse that is approximately 6-8 square miles of area to search (6 miles of racecourse and approx. 1 to 1.5 miles wide). They found my friend like 15-20 blocks off the racecourse, which is a HUGE area to search.

There are a lot of interesting / concerning details about what happened to him. When I was runnning there were at least 2 cops at every intersection, either in the middle or one on each side. I'm not sure what happened after the sun went down, but you would think there should still have been a pretty good presence there.

And while it seems strange that someone could get that disoriented, I remember two interesting things from my own race that somewhat relate:
(1) After about mile 15 I would get to an aid station and couldn't remember if I ate anything at the last station or what I ate if I did;
(2) Around Mile 17 I was trying to calculate how far it was to the turnaround. It is a simple calculation. After trying to concentrate for like 10 minutes, my brain simply would not do the math. Finally I got frustrated and said "f#$%k it, it will be there when I get there....."


Edited by RememberOtto 2008-09-10 6:44 AM
2008-09-10 7:25 AM
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Subject: RE: Lost Runner at IMLou
thank god he is OK. That must have been quite a scare for all involved. I'm not sure my wife would be letting me sign up for another IM after that.

Best of luck to him and a speedy recovery.

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2008-09-10 7:29 AM
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2008-09-10 7:38 AM
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Subject: RE: Lost Runner at IMLou
The course went thru the hood this year b/c of the football game, but last year we stayed on the very nice and not at all shady - one block over - 3rd street. I was trying my darndest to get thru the hood b/f dark b/c it was a little scary. I am so glad he was found & everything turned out o-k. That heat & distance is no joke.


2008-09-10 7:51 AM
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Subject: RE: Lost Runner at IMLou
There were still plenty of police officers out there after dark.  As far as him having a race bib on, I saw people who had finished walking around cheering and such still wearing their bib.  So even to see someone wander off the course, you would not necessarily  know if they were still racing or already finished.
2008-09-10 7:54 AM
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Subject: RE: Lost Runner at IMLou

I am just glad he is on the road to recovery.  There are lessons to be learned on this for all that are reading.  Hydrate Hydrate Hydrate...all should know the signs of dehydration:
Symptoms of mild dehydration include:
Increased thirst, Dry mouth and sticky saliva, Reduced urine output with dark yellow urine.
Symptoms of moderate dehydration include:
Extreme thirst, Dry appearance inside the mouth, and the eyes don't tear, Decreased urination, Lightheadedness, Irritability or restlessness, Arms or legs that feel cool to the touch, Rapid heartbeat,Muscle cramps.
Symptoms of severe dehydration (even if only one of them is present) include: alltered behavior, such as severe anxiety, confusion, or not being able to stay awake, Faintness, or lightheadedness, Inability to stand or walk, Rapid breathing Weak, rapid pulse, Cold, clammy skin or hot, dry skin, Little or no urination for 12 hours or longer,Loss of consciousness.

 Recognizing these early symptoms will help in finishing the IM race.  

 

2008-09-10 12:06 PM
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Subject: RE: Lost Runner at IMLou

I'm glad that he's ok as well.

As far as the race course goes, my sense of reality must be skewed because I didn't think that that was "hood" at all. Not even close. The crackheads were even using complete sentences.



Edited by Frank Amato 2008-09-10 12:06 PM
2008-09-10 12:13 PM
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Subject: RE: Lost Runner at IMLou

That's crazy.  I'm really glad he's okay.  I too am surprised that no one from the race was concerned he didn't finish and didn't report in.  I thought that would be pretty standard...

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