This past weekend I worked medical at the San Francisco Breast Cancer 3-Day Walk. There were over 1400 walkers and more than 280 volunteers. The walkers walked 60 miles over three days – in an effort to raise money for breast cancer research. The volunteers supported them in any way possible. The experience was great. I had fun.
Every day we set up our ‘Pit stop’ for the walkers to eat lunch and sit. Each of the five to six pit stops, and the camp medical area, were set up the same way. There was a medical tent, a sports medicine tent, and area for several medical folks to help with blister patching, and a self-service area.
The self-service foot care area amazed me. While I worked on someone’s feet, many others were doing self-care. Tables held basins of precut moleskin, containers of Skin-on-Skin (similar to Spenco’s 2nd Skin), tincture of benzoin spray, scissors, and an assortment of Band-Aids. Anyone needing blisters lanced had to find one of the medical team.
It was great to see so many women, and more than a few men, work at managing their feet. I only heard one person complain.
The tables were very organized. Walkers could take what they wanted and find a chair to make their repairs. Occasionally, they would ask for help, but they usually worked by themselves or with their partner walker. Over three hours, we processed hundreds of walkers through the medical area. They applied Skin-on-Skin, tincture of benzoin, and finished it with Band-Aids or moleskin.
I love self-sufficiency in foot care. I would love to see this arrangement at an ultramarathon. It can take a lot of energy to patch everyone’s feet when there are several hundred runners. When athletes know how to patch their feet, it makes life easier for everyone and they have ownership of the work they do.
Next time we’ll talk about moleskin.
