why I ruck!
- Jay Dunkle
- Oct 26
- 2 min read
Everyone has a reason!
The true reason I started rucking began three years ago when our daughter, Perpetua, was born with Downs Syndrome. Although today we wouldn’t wish for her to be any different than she is- the fear, anxiety, and concern for her and our future was quite the weight to bare. That hasn’t altogether gone away, but has subsided a bit.
The one thing my wife and I don’t do is tuck our tails and run when life gets challenging. We were determined, as we are with all our kids, to give Pet the best childhood and adulthood we could. Part of this was getting early-intervention started through our local county board of disabilities and I will tell you, they were all wonderful and will always remain close to my heart for how they supported our family through the early months/years of Pet’s life. The other thing we insisted on was that we continue on as we alway have and focus on spending time outdoors and maintaining a healthy relationship with hiking! Let me tell you, when you have a large family, you need to opt for as many free activities as you can.
One day, while I was sprinting up the switch-back steps of my former office, I got winded at the first landing and had to stop, wheezing and breathing heavily. This was one of those B.S. moments that make you reconsider your life choices. So, faced with my lack of endurance and the real and present truth that I would be carrying Pet on all our hikes for years to come (due to hypertonia—low muscle tone in DS kiddos) I did what any dad would do…bought a used Medium Molle Pack, loaded it with gear and RUCKED! I knew I was out of shape…but holy malarkey was I ever! Mile after mile I learned to breathe on a four-step count, increased my endurance and strength, and have been able to ruck with Pet for many miles in Hocking Hills, Mohican State Park, and after dinner in our own back yard. Since then I have graduated to a GoRuck with weight plates and started rolling BJJ (which reminded me yet again how out-of-shape I was!)
Some of you already know about Pet as I speak about her often. As this (October) is Down Syndrome Awareness month (which I only recently became aware of) I felt it appropriate to share our story and how we turned a difficult and kind of scary situation into an opportunity to renew our love for the outdoors, stay fit, and grow closer as a family! Keep an eye on mydefaultlife.com in the next month or so as we will have why I ruck patches in blue and yellow for GoRuck and other packs with the 3x2 velcro!
We all have our reasons why we Ruck…mine is Perpetua, what is yours?
What a great post. I am so glad to see you and your family pursuing this adventure.