Free Wheelchair Mission Newsletter: Two Feet, 200 Miles, 200 Lives Changed

The Free Wheelchair Mission featured our fundraiser in their quarterly newsletter (Spring 2010). Click on the image above to enlage the write-up or better yet you can view and read the entire 4-page newsletter online at: www.freewheelchairmission.org/atf/cf/%7BDC270143-044C-4334-B0F1-4BFC36C9CCED%7D/10_366_04bro_FWM_News_Spr10_web.pdf

I am still $3,458.80 short on the fundraising goal of 200 wheelchairs ($11,840.00). Please prayfully consider donating toward this cause. You can donate securely online at: http://fwm.kintera.org/dexterthepunisher

Team Injinji Athlete of the Month

Injinji Performance Toesocks recently named me "Injinji Athlete of the Month" for emboding Injinji’s core values and mission to help everyone achieve their best.

Follow this link to read more: www.injinji.com/team/ultra/ryan_dexter.html

McNaughton Park 200 Mile Trail Run Race Report via EndurancePlanet Interview

I had the pleasure of talking with Kevin Patrick from EndurancePlanet on Monday. Our interview, along with Lou Joline, was part of the Endurance Planet Hour program that was just posted yesterday.

You can listen to the interview online or download it at: www.enduranceplanet.com/the-endurance-planet-hour-15

From the website's description: This week on The Endurance Planet Hour we hear from two guys who have a tremendous understanding of what it means to persevere. Lou Joline is an accomplished runner and race director who discovered running in his 40's and is still going strong thirty years later. He is our "Trail Nerd of the Month." We also check in with Dexter the Punisher---aka Ryan Dexter---who won the 200-mile McNaughton Park ultra marathon. He tells us about the experience and what it took to keep going when he was convinced his race was over.

Although the 200 mile goal has been reached - we still have the goal of 200 wheelchairs and I'm a little short. Can you help me reach this goal? I know we can hit 200 wheelchairs. You can donate securely online at: http://fwm.kintera.org/dexterthepunisher

Petzl ULTRA BELT ACCU4 - An Essential Trail Running Tool

Many people have asked about what supplies my crew and I brought with us to battle it out over 200 trail miles. The Petzl Ultra Belt ACCU4 was one of the most "game changing" supplies we had.

I was fortunate enough to have been given a Petzl Ultra Headlamp as a loaner from Petzl before the start of the McNaughton Park 200 Mile Trail Run. This race is run over a 10-mile looped trail that is not lighted and without a flashlight would be pitch dark. The Ultra Headlamp lit up the course. On medium setting it had more than enough light to brighten the dark woods and also had enough juice to last through the night. Everyone on my crew marveled about how bright the light was - but were also surprised that that battery pack was not very heavy.

The light can certainly be worn by the runner - which I did on one of the laps. But works best when worn by a pacer running right next to you or slightly behind you shooting the light over the runner's shoulder. If the pacer gets too far behind - the light creates shadows that make it hard to see ahead. But when running side-by-side or slightly behind, this light is worth its weight in gold. On the third night, it was raining/snowing and very dark, without the Petzl Ultra Headlamp lighting up the un-runnable spots - I am certain that at least one person from my crew would have been injured during the night. Thank you Petzl - your lights are amazing!

In the following photo, you can see that I was wearing the Petzl MYO XP headlamp and my pacer Darren Fortney was wearing the Petzl Ultra Belt ACCU4.

Wisconsin man wins 200-mile foot race - Rutland Herald Article

A local Vermont newspaper the Rutland Hearld ran a story regarding the McNaughton Park 200 Mile race. You can read it online at:
www.rutlandherald.com/article/20100511/NEWS01/5110349/1002/NEWS01

The following is a photo of my parents and I minutes before the start of the race on Thursday, May 6, 2010. You can see the beautiful mountain in the background that we ran up and down 20 times!

Dexter wins 200-mile footrace - Verona Press Article

My local paper The Verona Press ran a follow-up story on the last weekend's 200 Mile Race. you can read it online at the following link:

http://www.veronapress.com/main.asp?SectionID=4&SubSectionID=4&ArticleID=2595

The following photo was taken at Mile 180. I was ready to stop and had made up my mind to quit. A friend recently watch the YouTube video from the race and stated that a passage from The Message (bible translation in contemporary language) came to their mind. I couldn't agree more.

"My grace is enough; it's all you need. My strength comes into its own in your weakness."

Photos from the 200 Mile Run - McNaughton Park in Vermont

1) Photos taken by Randy Steiner from my crew. Click here to view them.

2) Photos taken by Steve Cabler from my crew. Click here to view them.

You Tube Video: Ryan Dexter wins the McNaughton 200 in Vermont

200 Mile Victory

The following is a link to some photos that Steve Cabler from my crew took throughout the 200 mile event. Extremely humbling experience and I hope people noticed/know that I am not that strong. It was the strength of Jesus Christ at work through me.

Click here to view photos

I will put together some type of report in the next few days and post it on the blog. It was a great experience and something I will never forget.

Although the 200 mile goal has been reached - we still have the goal of 200 wheelchairs and I'm a little short. As of today, we have raised $7,637.60 - enough for 130 wheelchairs. Can you help me reach this goal? You can donate securely online at: http://fwm.kintera.org/dexterthepunisher

Verona's Dexter Goes the Distance to Help Others - NBC 15 News Story From Last Night

Follow Us As We Run The McNaughton Park in Vermont 200 Mile Race

There are several ways to follow the McNaughton 200 in Vermont starting tomorrow (Thursday) night, May 6.

1. Point your web browser to http://twitter.com/dexterpunisher
- No need to sign up for the service just go to the web page and manually refresh it to check for updates

2. Go to http://dexterthepunisher.blogspot.com/ and watch the twitter badge for updates. The badge will update automatically

3. Not going to be by your computer but still want to follow along?
- Sign up for a twitter account at twitter.com
- Go into Settings (upper right hand corner of the screen)
- Once in Settings, go to the Mobile tab and enable your phone
- Go to Ryan's Twitter page at http://twitter.com/dexterpunisher (pictured below)
- Choose to "Follow" (pictured below)
- Click the icon of the phone and updates will be delivered to your phone via text message

Please note that updates will depend on the availability of cellular reception and/or internet access. We will do our best to update as often as possible.

Verona ultrarunner goes for 200-mile marathon - Verona Press Article

My local paper The Verona Press ran an article this week, if you are interested you can read it online: www.veronapress.com/main.asp?SectionID=4&SubSectionID=4&ArticleID=2564

Thanks to the generosity of many of you, we have currently raised $5,871.40 – enough to donate 99 wheelchairs to the Free Wheelchair Mission! We are still looking to donate 101 more chairs.

The race starts this Thursday night at 6 PM Eastern. If you were thinking about donating and haven’t yet – please do so soon. You can donate securely online at: http://fwm.kintera.org/dexterthepunisher

Thanks for your support!

The following is the elevation profile for the 10 mile loop of the upcoming McNaughton Park in Vermont 200 Mile race. We will run this loop 20 times with a total elevation change of 48,000 ft.