Just another day on the road for the Godbys — not!
The rain has been relentless. The modest shelter is leaking.
In the vicinity, suddenly, wild lions, wolves, tigers, bears and monkeys were on the loose.
The weather turned to almost-freezing mist. Hypothermia became a concern.
A party member went missing.
Was this Robinson Crusoe? Did Locke get off track in a re-run of “Lost?” Certainly this had nothing to do with urban America …
For Davis’ Dr. Dennis Godby, his sons Jeremiah, 17, and Isaiah, 20, and nephew Jonas, 24, their run across the United States on behalf of naturopathic medicine awareness turned surreal.
The 123-day journey, which started July 17 in San Francisco, is on schedule. Had it been behind even one day, the Godby group might have been running through the bizarre menagerie released by a despondent farm owner in Zanesville, Ohio.
The senior Godby reports that a colleague had texted him on Wednesday, asking if they were OK — Dr. Erin Kirwin knew Godby and company were in Zanesville on Tuesday.
Fortunately, the quartet had left the area 18 hours before the keeper released more than 60 wild animals onto Zanesville streets, then committed suicide.
“A very bizarre, strange and sad story,” Godby explained via text message.
The runners, who believes there is room for modern medicine to embrace the natural techniques of naturopathic treatment, is spreading the word wherever they go.
They had appeared at farmers markets across the land, including Davis on July 20. The good doctor has spoken at conferences, most recently last weekend in Columbus, Ohio. Together and individually, the four have appeared on television and given umpteen newspaper interviews.
Their trip down the Ohio rabbit hole got curiouser and curiouser.
Incidently, Dennis Godby entered a discussion with two men in a Cambridge, Ohio, eatery on Wednesday morning. He almost got a thrashing.
“A couple of guys literally threatened me in a restaurant because I had different beliefs than they,” Godby noted in his website blog. “It was kind of a mob mentality in Cambridge.”
Safely away from the situation, the 26-mile run to Barnesville, Ohio, provided little relief.
Thursday and Friday it poured rain. Members of the running party said it was no big deal while on the road, but once they returned to their chaperoning motor home, they found leaks had reopened; leaks they thought were repaired last week.
“Buckets everywhere,” the senior Godby, 54, reports, adding that was the least of his concerns two nights ago. “I thought we lost Isaiah.”
He hadn’t returned to the RV in a timely manner and there was no cell phone coverage in this rural part of eastern Ohio.
A few tense moments evaporated when Isaiah came bounding back. As if a 2,500-mile run across America wasn’t enough, he’d been out sightseeing.
Shortly thereafter, the entourage encountered its first Lancaster buggy. They were in Amish country.
As the foursome trekked into Wheeling, W.Va., a new challenge was emerging — cold and wind.
Temperatures in the high 30s and more rain, combined with a 30-mph wind, built concern about hypothermia.
“Ideal conditions for not being able to stay warm,” the doctor continued. “We are really focusing on making sure (we) get enough hot fluids … enough calories and (are changing) clothes often.”
On Friday and Saturday, Isaiah, Jonah, Dennis and Jeremiah hope to cover 61 miles from Wheeling to Pittsburgh, where they’ll get a day of “rest,” attending Natural Medicine Awareness Day events.
Despite the weather, despite the leaks, despite almost losing a member of the group, the Godbys are intact, their message is getting out and they all report being very happy to have outrun even wild animals.
Notes: The tragedy in Zanesville occurred when 54-year-old animal collector Terry Thompson released his zoo into the not-so-wild bushes of the 25,000-population Ohio town. Local law-enforcement officers reported that Thompson then took his own life. All the exotic animals were killed just before nightfall. “We had no choice,” Muskingum County Sheriff Matt Lutz told the Associated Press. There were South American monkeys, mountain and African lions, Bengal tigers, bears, wolves and horses. The horses were spared. The Humane Society of the United States also said Wednesday it does not fault authorities for using deadly force in such a situation. … Meanwhile, the Godbys mean to complete their historic journey — Isaiah will become the youngest person to contiguously run across the United States — on Nov. 16 when they are expected to arrive in Bridgeport, Conn.
— Reach Bruce Gallaudet at bgallaudet@davisenterprise.net or (530) 747-8047.
Short URL: http://www.davisenterprise.com/?p=95341
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Posted by Bruce Gallaudet
on Oct 20 2011.
Last Login: Tue 22 May 2012 11:46:20 PM PDT
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