Mountainside Medical Equipment Helps Keep Boilermaker Runners Hydrated

Once again the team from Mountainside Medical Equipment teamed up with the Utica Firefighters Friends and Family Association to cheer on and help keep hydrated the record breaking11,900 runners that participated in the 37^th Annual Boilermaker Road Race, which was held on Sunday July 13, 2014 in Utica, NY. Thankfully the storms held off for a safe and successful race.   Keeping the runners hydrated during the 15K race (9.3 miles) is especially important with the hot and humid weather that we’ve been having lately, in fact it was so hot yesterday that ice seemed to be a hot commodity. In addition to eating it, the runners were dumping the ice chips on themselves and in their clothing to help keep themselves as cool as possible.   As a volunteer, it’s always nice to hear the runners thanking the volunteers and spectators for coming out and supporting them as they run by us. As first-time Boilermaker volunteer Stacey Yates (from the Sales team here at Mountainside Medical) explained, “It felt great that every exhausted sweaty, winded runner still used up some of their breath to thank us for being out there handing out something as simple as water and ice and how grateful they were for it each time. It was such an experience to watch thousands of people run by, all with the same goal.” It’s also nice to see the local community come together and support the runners. All along the 9.3 mile course are a number of ice and water stations, live bands and other forms of entertainment, and thousands of spectators lining the streets to help cheer on the runners with their signs and posters, high-fives, ringing cowbells, and so on.  

As any of the runners will tell you, the Boilermaker is not an easy course to run (even the ‘expert’ runners from Kenya have been quoted talking about the challenging Boilermaker course), which can be especially challenging if you have not trained for the event…but as we’ve heard many of the runners explain, the crowd helps keeps you motivated and the feeling you get when crossing that finish line makes the aches and pains in your feet and ankles, as well as the pounding in your chest well worth it!   We also want to take a moment to thank all of the coordinators, volunteers, and officials who have worked so hard to put on such a safe and successful event!    

From all of us here at Mountainside Medical Equipment,

congratulations to all of the Boilermaker participants!