Editor’s note: Because Purpose2Play has been telling the stories of athletes, coaches, and fans for more than three years, we figure it’s about time to catch up with some of them to find out where they are now. As you’ll see, they’re still inspiring others and making the world a better place to live in.
Where Are They Now? Catching Up with Beth Sanden (“Beth Sanden Becomes First Athlete With A Disability To Complete A Marathon On Seven Continents” published March, 2015)
Beth Sanden is an incomplete paraplegic, but don’t even think of trying to tell her she can’t complete something.
Yes, the 62-year-old from San Clemente, Calif. became the first athlete with a disability to complete seven marathons on seven continents, but she also just finished a marathon on the North Pole.
Her most recent 26.2-mile race in her custom-built 43-pound handcycle was completed on April 16 in minus-40-degree temperatures at the northern most point on the globe; the most unlivable place on the planet.
Now with the North Pole Marathon under her belt, she holds the Guinness World Record for being the fastest person to handcycle marathons on all seven continents and the North Pole.
Photo courtesy of Beth Sanden
“I did this just to set an example,” Sanden said. “You know what? Even if I’m an old lady, I can still do things. I’m not young enough or fast enough to go to the Paralympics, but there are still big things you can do.”
Running All Over The World
In 2002, Sanden was participating in a 50-mile bike race to help her get ready for an IRONMAN. That’s when she hit a patch of broken asphalt and flipped head over heels. She crushed two vertebrae in her thoracic spine and was in a body cast for six months. Once the cast was removed, doctors discovered she had just 35% movement in her right leg and 10% in her left.
That, in a sense, was the official start of her handcycling career. Since becoming a paraplegic, she’s done 50 marathons and more than 48 triathlons.
She got her start on the seven marathons on seven continents in 2012 with the Kilimanjaro Marathon in Tanzania. Then came the Ross Marathon in Tasmania, the Lima42K Marathon in Peru, the Boston Marathon, the Rome Marathon, the White Continent Marathon in Antarctica and the Phu Quoc International Marathon in Vietnam.
Why end in Vietnam? Well, she actually started her seven-marathon quest in 2011 with the Great Wall of China Marathon. However, a corrupt system got in the way when she tried to get the race directors to sign off on her certificate for the Guinness Book of World Records.
“Last year, when I was filing everything with Guinness on the seven continents, the race director from China would not sign my papers. He wanted money,” she explained. “So, I went to Vietnam to make sure I had Asia on my list. They were more than happy to sign my certificate.”
Her most difficult marathon? That would be in Antarctica, where she was out on the icy, rocky, and hilly course for 10 hours, 58 minutes and 57 seconds.
The North Pole Marathon was just as brutal. She has the remnants of frostbite on her fingers to prove it.
Sanden and her “tattoo.” Photo courtesy of Beth Sanden
“I had battery-operated gloves and underneath those, I had liners and regular gloves, but my batteries got zapped because of the cold,” Sanden explained. “I came back with a natural tattoo — frostbite on my right little finger and on the tops of all my fingers. They’re peeling, but they’re all healing. If that’s the least I got away with, I’m happy.”
Because her legs were in a fixed position in the chair, she had to wear battery-operated hunting pants and socks. Luckily, the batteries on those didn’t die.
Sanden spent weekends in Big Bear, Calif. three-and-a-half months before the race to try and prep her body for the cold, but according to her, nothing can prepare you for that kind of weather.
Weather was one threat. Arctic animals were another. Paratroopers with rifles were scattered along the course to keep an eye out for polar bears.
“They don’t fire at the bears. They fire in the air just to startle them, and keep them away from the runners,” she said.
Sanden crossed the finish line in 7 hours, 31 minutes and 40 seconds to be one of the 50 people who took part in and completed this year’s race — the largest since its inception in 2002.
However, she knows she’s not the lone inspiration in this pack of hearty and rugged competitors.
“One gal, her name was Regina, and she was diagnosed with a congenital heart problem four weeks before the race,” Sanden said. “She came up to me after everyone left the tent and was going to the start line and she says, ‘Beth, I’ve been diagnosed, and I’ll probably only do the half marathon at the most.’ She ended up doing the whole marathon and it took her 12 hours.”
Guiding Others Through ‘It’
Sanden’s adventures and race efforts extend far beyond herself. She often raises money for the Challenged Athletes Foundation, which provides grants to athletes who have physical disabilities. She also mentors athletes in the program.
Photo courtesy of Beth Sanden
Additionally, she volunteers for Camp Pendleton’s Wounded Warrior Battalion, helping those who have been injured in combat reclaim their lives by teaching them how to swim, bike, and handcycle.
“They have about 50 coaches, and I’m the only one that’s disabled,” Sanden said.
As a self-employed USA Triathlon coach and para tri coach, she also holds training camps for triathletes nine months out of the year.
“There’s really nothing that can hold you back with a disability,” she said. “You can complete marathons, play tennis with your family, or even go back to college. I’ve got some friends and they just went back. The key is not to get stuck.”
