Team CMT News

We had Team CMT members doing events in four states this weekend.  First up are sisters Megan Seebeck and Erin Truitt.  They ran the Chicago half marathon this weekend.

Erin Truitt and Megan Seebeck

Megan has been a team member for some time. Erin just joined. Erin is from Bell Vista Arkansas where she lives with her husband  and daughters Lyric (4) and Wren (1).  Erin started running back in college over 10 years ago, but it was just for fitness. She did a number of fitness programs over the years, but as her sister Megan started doing marathons she decided to start running again. 

Megan convinced her to do a half marathon with her this past weekend. She says it was exhilarating! Her goal is to now do any 5k, 10k, half marathons, and since she is a decent swimmer, probably do triathlons at some point as well. Right now she said she is  just doing these races for fun, but maybe as the kiddos get older and she have more time to train, she'll actually try to race competitively. Her father was diagnosed with CMT as a teenager and her sister just this year. Her Dad's mother has it as well but with the family history Erin knows she may also have CMT.

I am proud of both of you, you look great in your Team CMT singlets. You don't even look tired. I look forward to hearing allot more from Erin in the future. You are off to a great start.

Dallas Team CMT member Shelly Kautz ( 2nd from the right) did her first triathlon this weekend.  Shelly did the Cooper Sprint Tri in Dallas, Texas.  I got to meet Shelly and her husband Doug when I was visiting my family in Texas in May. Doug manages the Move On running store in Flower Mound just a few minutes from my brothers house.  Doug is a long distance runner and coaches running form. Shelly is a runner and in line skater. She has done several marathons on in-line skates.  Shelly runs for her dad whose has CMT. She had a great time at the triathlon and I think we will see her do more.  One of the best parts about being on Team CMT are all the great athletes I get to meet around the country. It was great to meet Shelly! Congratulations on completing your first triathlon.

Team CMT members Robert Kearney and Cheryl Monnat are I think pretty familiar to those of us on the team. I think they do more events than anyone else on the team, always wearing their Team CMT uniforms.  This weekend they took on the challenge of the Racine Half Iron man in Racine Wisconsin.  That is a 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike ride and 13.1 mile run.  The swim alone is  a challenge because it is in Lake Michigan. The lake can be rough and cold. So the swim alone is an accomplishment.  It took them both around 6 1/2 hours. Cheryl finished 15th in her age group which is great for a first 1/2 Iron man.  Robert will be doing Iron man Tucson in November so this is a great training race.  You guys look great, I can't believe you just finished the race. Thanks for all you do for Team CMT.

Doug Bolton and Chris Wodke

This weekend I participated Midwest  Paratriathlon Regional Championship in Omaha Nebraska. I got to meet fellow CMT affected athlete Doug Bolton and his wife.  Doug will be joining our team. He also competed in Austin at Nationals, so I am looking forward to seeing him again at the National Championships. I took 1st place at the event and will write more about the experience later in the week. It was a really fun weekend. Thanks to everyone in Omaha for putting on such a fantastic event.

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Chris Wodke

Founder & Manager Team CMT

www.run4cmt.com

Team CMT is a group of athletes and supporters working to raise awareness and to find a cure for CMT. We have 127 members in 27 states. We also have members in Canada, Vietnam, Turkey, Finland and Iran. If you wish to join us visit our web site.

CMT or Charcot-Marie-Tooth is the most commonly inherited peripheral neuropathy. It affects over 155,000 Americans (as many as MS).  It is a disease of the nerves that control the muscles. It is slowly progressive, causing loss of normal function and or sensation in the lower legs/feet and arms/hands.

Symptoms include; muscle wasting in the lower legs and feet leading to foot drop, poor balance and gait problems Atrophy in the hands causes difficulty with manual dexterity.

Structural foot deformities such as high arches and hammer toes are common.

Poor tolerance for cool or cold temperatures and many people have chronically cold hands and feet.

Additional symptoms may include fatigue, sleep apnea, breathing difficulties and hearing loss.