By Dr. John Thomas
Special to The Citizen

Editor’s note: Dr. John N. Thomas, “The Running Doctor,” is an avid runner who has competed in a number of races in the region and the nation. As someone who has run in triathlons before and also competed in a marathon, Dr. Thomas, head of Allied Healthcare Clinics, is always looking for a challenge. Allied Healthcare is a healthcare and wellness center that targets the running and triathlon community of Fayette County.

Dr. Thomas has been providing athletes all over Metro Atlanta incredible alternatives to preventing sports injuries while increasing performance, speed, strength, power, flexibility and endurance. His proven protocols are well known as he has helped thousands of athletes, including national and world-class runners, achieve total physical and mental wellness that has allowed them to achieve personal records without injuries.

When one of his patients, Jeff Stebar, continued to bring up The Great Wall Marathon in China, the two decided they should go for it. They applied and went through a lengthy acceptance process and got in. Dr. Thomas was joined in China by his mother, Elsie Dockins, and the two were able to tour parts of the country before the race. Dockins, 64, completed the 5K distance of the race, while Dr. Thomas had all he could handle taking on The Great Wall Marathon. This is his story.

There was a time during my training that I thought I wouldn’t be able to toe the finish line in China at The Great Wall Marathon. I had done my peak training run of 21 miles. Three hours later, my lower back seized up. I could not walk. I could not bend or twist. I could not sit. I could not drive. I could not do anything without assistance. I was like this for four days straight. I had to be driven to my clinic. The orthopedic exam and x-rays pointed to a bulging disc at the L5-S1 level. I only had one month before I was to get on the plane for a three-hour flight to Toronto followed by a 13-hour flight to China to run this grueling marathon. The treatments to get me back into shape consisted of 20 consecutive spinal decompression sessions with the IDD Therapy machine, along with lots of ice, ultrasound and electric stimulation.

On Monday, May 12, I left Atlanta for China, flying for three hours to Toronto, Canada, first, waiting for six hours, then flying to Beijing on Tuesday, May 13, landing at 11:45 p.m., nearly 13 hours later. Surprisingly, my 6’2 frame did not have any back pain whatsoever from riding in the tiny airplane seats. At this point I was very hopeful that I would be fine on Saturday, May 17th, marathon day. I greeted my very happy mother, Elsie, and we went to sleep, anxious to get started with our itinerary for the rest of the week in China.

Wednesday May 14th
Our tour group was wonderful. There were 32 of us. And our tour guide, Lily, took us to Tiananmen Square, Mao’s Mausoleum, The Forbidden City, Coal Hill, the Temple of Heaven, a Silk Exhibition Hall and experienced a Peking Opera. Tiananmen Square was absolutely amazing. It was first built during the Ming Dynasty. Located in the heart of modern Beijing, it’s the largest public square in the world. It is the main entrance into the Forbidden City. It covers an area of 44 hectares. On the four sides of the square are Mao’s Mausoleum, the Great Hall of the People, the National Museum, and the front entrance to the former Imperial Palace, The Forbidden City.
The Forbidden City is the largest imperial palace ever built in the world. It has more than 800 buildings and over 9000 rooms , plus beautifully designed golden glazed roofs, red lacquered pillars and wonderful vermilion walls.
Just as amazing was the Temple of Heaven, which is the largest temple and altar complex in China. This was the place where the emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties worshiped heaven and prayed for bountiful harvests.
The Beijing opera was something I will never forget. The beauty of the costumes and the unique sounds and dancing made it an excellent way to top the evening.

Thursday May 15th
Have you ever heard of a marathon venue that makes it a mandatory requirement for you to inspect the course before running it? Well, we had to inspect the Great Wall itself before the day of the marathon because of the danger of the 3.5 km climb. After climbing the wall for the first time, I began to realize what I was in for. We were the few of us in the whole world who would ever have the opportunity to climb the portions of the wall we experienced. I had much respect for the wall after today.

Friday May 16th
Today we went to a Cloisonne’ Factory. I got the chance to see how fancy decorative Chinese copperware is made and decorated by hand. We also walked down the Sacred Road and visited the Chang Tomb of the Ming Tombs Area. We got a chance to spend time with each other as runners during the pasta dinner. It was now time to get back to the hotel and get our stuff ready for the big day!

The Big Day
Saturday May 17th

Today was the big day! We left Beijing at 3 a.m. to head to the Great Wall. I didn’t get to bed until 11 p.m. the previous night. Of course I couldn’t sleep and probably kept my eyes closed for two or three hours before getting up at 2 a.m. We got to the starting line at around 6:30 a.m. and the run was going to start at 7:35 a.m. After saying hi and taking pictures of the scene, I joined the warm-up group and did a few stretches and aerobic dances and then it was time. The gun went off and I was ready to go, camera, energy gels and all. I took all kinds of pictures along the way. The first three miles of the course was up the mountain that lead to the Great Wall. I had never run three consecutive miles straight uphill.

If this was any indication of how difficult the run was going to be, I should have taken note right then. After the three miles upward bound towards the Pearly Gates of Heaven, we entered the entrance of the wall towards hell. Despite what was in store, my excitement level was still high and I was still feeling great!

So many steps, so very steep, I decided that I would briskly walk most of this. I didn’t want to fall, twist my ankle, waste my energy, or over do it for the sake of my back. I finished the 3.5-mile wall portion in about 45 minutes and headed into the first of five villages we had to run through. The terrain was more like an adventure cross-country trail suitable for four-wheelers and dirt bikes. I snapped more pictures and hi-fived the hands of the little boys and girls that were there to greet us and cheer us on along the way. The sights and sounds were amazing and inspiring up to about the 14th mile.

It was here that I started feeling the first effects of what the wall was capable of inflicting. I was starting to feel the need to concentrate on myself instead of the scenery. I was also thinking about the fact that at mile 21 I was going to have to go up that dreaded wall again in reverse! I kept on going. Most of the course up to now was uphill with no end in sight for a down hill break. I met up with a few people who helped me out with some nutrition because I had totally run out of my own stash by mile 16 or 17. One of them was Priscilla, who had also been in my tour group. We encouraged each other with crazy talk and she gave me some stuff to chew on.

A bit worried about whether I would make the first cutoff of six hours, I picked up my super slow shuffle pace to maybe an 11-minute pace. Eventually I ran into another fellow foot dragger who I coached along all the way to the 21-mile mark. Her name was Franca, and she was from Italy. She was adorable. At the time I knew that if I didn’t help her, she wouldn’t make it. I later would come to realize that by helping her, I helped myself. Little did she know that every time I told her that “we” were going to make it, it forced me to keep my word. I could not let and would not let her down. Every time I told her that we were almost there, I had to believe it too. But we had not reached the point of the run that would truly challenge every ounce of strength we had left and that was the Great Wall all over again.

Before getting to the wall again, we had to pass through the finish line area and hear all of the accolades for runners who finished their race. At this point I was emotionally, mentally and physically shattered. It was at this precise moment that I seriously considered throwing in the towel. All I had to do was turn around and walk a few yards to the finish line and get disqualified and that seemed like no big deal at the time. It sure felt like the better choice. But I had 6 more miles to go and the next three of those miles were up that dreaded wall. I could not go back home to tell everyone that I gave up. It was the look of sincere understanding from Franca, the young lady I had helped up to this point, that enabled me to take the next step. I literally crawled up most of the wall on all fours. It was somewhat comforting to know that I was not the only one crawling.

Halfway up the wall, a lady by the name of Roxy who had helped me early on the wall with an electrolyte gel asked me to take her hand and pull her up the wall. I don’t know how I did it, but I did. I had two hours to finish the run or else I would be pulled off the course at the eight-hour cutoff.

Two hours seemed like plenty of time to finish six miles, but it was actually barely enough. I finished proudly fifth from last with a time of 7:50:09. This was my second marathon. I did my first in 5:09:40. They say that the Great Wall Marathon typically takes runners 50 percent longer to complete than their average marathon. I almost didn’t make it. I reached somewhere from deep within and pulled it out of me. I screamed with joy until I was hoarse right under the finish banner and the crowd cheered me on. Tears of joy for this amazing accomplishment rolled down my cheeks. I did it.

I learned a lot about myself that day. I learned that even in the midst of self-defeat, I had it in me to reach out to help others as others reached out to help me. This is what I believe carried me across the line in the nick of time. All five of us (the last five) stuck it out together and became winners! Franca finished third from last and Roxy finished last.

Priscilla didn’t finish, but she received a medal and in my book she deserved it because of all she did along the way to help not just me but other people too. I am truly a changed man.
They have a saying in China, “He who has not climbed the Great Wall is not a true man.” Close to 1,600 of us toed the line from 49 different countries and all of us are true winners!

login to post comments