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When Rachael Wittmer feels like she can't run another mile, another yard, or even another foot, she looks down at her right leg.
She reads the word, “Grit.”
Since her days as a cross country and track and field distance runner at Knoch High School, Wittmer has scrawled that word just above her knee before a long run.
Glancing down at it when her legs balk and when her mind barks for her to quit gives her the strength to power through.
It gives her motivation when she needs it the most.
“One of the things my high school coach (Wess Brahler) said that stuck with me wass choose one word to motivate you when you hit that mental wall,” Wittmer said.
The word Wittmer chose is a fitting one, especially now when the coronavirus pandemic is killing people, threatening lives and upending daily routine.
Wittmer, a 2017 Knoch graduate, has a unique perspective on the virus. She is a junior at Penn State University majoring in immunology and infectious disease with a minor in global health.
The coronavirus, COVID-19, is found in droplets from the throat and nose. When someone coughs or sneezes, other people near them can breathe in those droplets.
The virus can also spread when someone touches an object with the virus on it. If that person touches their mouth, face, or eyes, the virus can make them sick.
“I think it allows me to sift through some of the information easier than other people,” Wittmer said. “I understand how respiratory diseases are transmitted and I understand the exponential growth of these infections.“The nature of exponential growth is you could have five or six cases one day and the next day have hundreds.”The coronavirus was a major topic of discussion in her classes at Penn State — more than just the study of the virus itself, but also ways to mitigate the spread.Wittmer said steps taken to curb transmission, such as social distancing, self-isolation and companies instructing their employees to work from home, will help.If they are followed, of course.“I think it's a very difficult adjustment to make for just about everyone,” Wittmer said. “But if it's what experts at places like the CDC and the WHO recommend, then it's important to adhere to those guidelines.”Wittmer, who was a standout runner and swimmer at Knoch, is taking on the virus in her own way.Wittmer qualified for the Boston Marathon this year, but that event has been postponed until September.No matter. Wittmer is going to run a marathon on April 20 anyway.It's what she calls her “Not-Boston Marathon.”She's doing it to raise money for the Jean B. Purvis Community Health Center in Butler. Wittmer has set up a GoFundMe page where people can donate to support her “Outrunning COVID-19” race.Wittmer has been a volunteer with the health center, which provides care to the uninsured and underinsured.When Wittmer found out the Boston Marathon was postponed, she wasn't at all surprised.“They're not going to let 40,000 runners stand shoulder-to-shoulder at a starting line,” she said.She also saw it as an opportunity. That's when she came up with the idea to run a marathon on her own for charity.Now is the hard part for Wittmer: designing her personal marathon course.“Honestly, I haven't thought that entirely through,” she said, chuckling. “I could run a course here or in State College, wherever I am.”Wittmer has been training with solitary runs totally 50 to 60 miles per week.When she does run with others she said, “we stay as far apart as we can.”Wittmer got hooked on long-distance running in high school when she began participating in half-marathons.“I was hooked,” Wittmer said.She ran her first marathon in Pittsburgh in 2018.Wittmer is attending online classes at Penn State while she's home in Butler.She said one of the biggest pieces of advice she has for people is to not panic and to cut through the misinformation.“Another thing I really encourage people to recognize is this illness doesn't discriminate,” Wittmer said. “It doesn't affect just one group of people. This is hitting everyone. Just treat everyone with kindness.”Following is the link to Wittmer's GoFundMe page:https://www.gofundme.com/f/outrunning-covid19
