Time to Drain the Blisters

Photo by Mike Bitton
A member of the Primal Quest medical staff at TA 3 near Green River, Utah, uses a needle to drain blisters for athlete Tara Paprocki.

Primal Quest Utah 2006 got underway without me, but I did get some field time last night. Fellow media team member Bob Heady and I rolled out to Transition Area 3 (TA 3) just upstream from the town of Green River, Utah, to see if we could polish off some interviews with teams we've yet to profile.

While there, I did get to interview team Terra Trekkers. Probably more interesting, though, was the time I spent with Tara Paprocki, who I interviewed last week for a profile on her team, AdventureRacingConcepts.com. Tara's feet were in sad shape, and she was about to wake a medic to receive treatment.

The photo says it all. Puffy feet aren't happy feet. Any foot that needs treatment from a needle that's several inches long is not a happy foot. Tara wasn't happy, either. Every time the doc touched Tara'sright pinky toe, Tara let out a yelp. I gave her some pats on the back and told her how sorry I was.

What a difference getting out of race headquarters has made to my outlook. Before, I was almost dreading the upcoming task of escorting media around the course. Now I'm excited, because I'll be with the athletes again. They are absolutely inspiring!