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Man, previously bedridden for 2 years, completes record-setting run

Man, previously bedridden for 2 years, completes record-setting run
THINK THAT I’M JUST GOING TO COMPETE NORTH TO SOUTH. THE LAKE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE IS ABOUT 190 MILES. IMAGINE RUNNING IT NOW. IMAGINE DOING THAT IN LESS THAN A WEEK. ONE GRANITE STATER ABOUT TO DO JUST THAT. I’M STAYING OUT THERE. WE’RE GOING TO SLEEP IN THE VAN OR IN A CHAIR. JUSTIN IS GETTING READY FOR THE CHALLENGE OF HIS LIFE, WHICH IS SAYING SOMETHING CONSIDERING ALL HE’S BEEN THROUGH THIS WEEK. THE 36 YEAR OLD MERRIMACK MAN WILL ATTEMPT TO BE THE FASTEST TO EVER RUN FROM THE VERY TOP TO THE VERY BOTTOM OF NEW HAMPSHIRE. I REALLY WANT TO PUSH MYSELF. THERE’S A LOT OF ULTRA RUNNERS OUT THERE THAT ALWAYS LOOK FOR LIKE THE NEXT BIG CHALLENGE, RIGHT? MARY KNOWS ALL ABOUT CHALLENGES. HE’S A FORMER BOXER WHO HAD A SPINAL TAP DONE IN 2017. YOU KNOW, THEY PUT A HOLE IN MY SPINE AND I STARTED LEAKING CEREBRAL SPINAL FLUID. DE MARY WAS BEDRIDDEN AND DEALT WITH COMPLICATIONS FOR TWO YEARS. WHEN HE FINALLY RECOVERED, HE DECIDED TO RUN A5K AND FOUND HIS NEW PASSION. IN TWO YEARS, I’VE DONE OVER 200 RACES. HE’S STARTING HIS BIGGEST RACE YET. ON WEDNESDAY, PITTSBURGH TO NASHUA. PRETTY MUCH WITHOUT STOPPING, HE’LL DO 40 MILES A DAY TRYING TO COMPLETE THE FEAT IN FIVE DAYS. AS FAR AS HE KNOWS, MARY SAYS THE CURRENT RECORD IS EIGHT DAYS. HE’S DOING IT AS A PERSONAL CHALLENGE, BUT ALSO TO RAISE MONEY FOR THE HEATHER ABBOTT FOUNDATION, WHICH PROVIDES CUSTOM PROSTHESIS TO THOSE WHO HAVE LOST LIMBS. JUST AS HEATHER DID AT THE 2013 BOSTON MARATHON BOMBING. I THOUGHT IT’D BE GREAT TO STAND BEHIND THAT CHARITY AND GIVE BACK TO THE AMPUTEES, BECAUSE SOMETIMES INSURANCE DOESN’T COVER IT. AS SOMEONE WHO HAS FACED FRIGHTENING HEALTH ISSUES HIMSELF, MARY HOPES TO BE AN EXAMPLE TO OTHERS TO ALWAYS KEEP MOVING. SO I GUESS THE MINDSET IS JUST WINDSHIELD MENTALITY. KEEP GOING FORWARD NO MATTER WHAT. YEAH, SO NEEDLESS TO SAY, WE’LL BE FOLLOWI
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Updated: 10:41 PM CDT Jul 12, 2025
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Man, previously bedridden for 2 years, completes record-setting run
WMUR logo
Updated: 10:41 PM CDT Jul 12, 2025
Editorial Standards
Whether we mean to or not, we all tend to judge people on first impressions. Right away, when you meet Justin DeFlumeri, you're struck by his sense of humor. Even after finishing a feat that would leave most runners out of breath, he's cracking jokes.“I forgot my car at the starting line. I gotta go back," DeFlumeri said, laughing.That starting line is a three-and-a-half-hour journey by car. But DeFlumeri didn't drive. He ran virtually nonstop. “I took about a 1:30 nap in the car today on a backpack, that was really great. I fell asleep on a beach chair for like 30 seconds, which was great,” DeFlumeri said.The 36-year-old ran from New Hampshire's Canadian border to the Massachusetts border — 197 miles, or the equivalent of almost eight marathons — in less than five days.To be exact, DeFlumeri said the run took four days, four hours and 56 minutes, faster than anyone in state history.“I honestly feel like the whole state was behind us. We were getting so many honks. It was unbelievable,” DeFlumeri said.DeFlumeri loves a challenge. He's been taking them on his whole life.He played baseball and got into boxing and kickboxing.“They had to do a lumbar puncture because they thought I had blood around my brain, and what happened was they put a hole in my spine and I started leaking cerebrospinal fluid,” DeFlumeri said.DeFlumeri was bedridden for two years, and recovery took two more years.When he was finally back on his feet, he ran a 5K and found his new passion.“In two years, I've done over 200 races,” DeFlumeri said.The journey led him to this new challenge, to take on running the length of New Hampshire, from Pittsburg to Nashua.DeFlumeri had a crew of four people to help him along the way.He raised money for the Heather Abbott Foundation, which provides custom prostheses to those who have lost limbs.DeFlumeri ran more than 40 miles a day and did it during the first week of summer, with temperatures hitting the 80s and 90s.“Toughest part was the White Mountains. It was so hard. It was extremely hot, and the elevation was just never-ending,” DeFlumeri said.The difficulty of the route reinforced what he's learned first-hand. When life gets hard, keep going.“No matter what you're going through, always try to find the light at the end of the tunnel and sometimes, that light is burnt out, but just keep digging and keep digging,” DeFlumeri said. “I heard so many remarkable stories along the way. We had somebody who beat brain cancer, lung cancer twice.”At the end of his journey, family and friends, including his 5-year-old daughter Aria, cheered him on.“That was great to have her at the finish line. She gave me this medal and a slice of pizza. Honestly, that's all I wanted,” DeFlumeri said.It will be hard to keep this thrill-seeker away from the next challenge, but for now, he'll enjoy the simple things.“I think I'm just going to eat a bunch of pizza and relax for a little bit and not even think about my next race,” DeFlumeri said.

Whether we mean to or not, we all tend to judge people on first impressions.

Right away, when you meet Justin DeFlumeri, you're struck by his sense of humor.

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Even after finishing a feat that would leave most runners out of breath, he's cracking jokes.

“I forgot my car at the starting line. I gotta go back," DeFlumeri said, laughing.

That starting line is a three-and-a-half-hour journey by car. But DeFlumeri didn't drive. He ran virtually nonstop.

“I took about a 1:30 nap in the car today on a backpack, that was really great. I fell asleep on a beach chair for like 30 seconds, which was great,” DeFlumeri said.

The 36-year-old ran from New Hampshire's Canadian border to the Massachusetts border — 197 miles, or the equivalent of almost eight marathons — in less than five days.

To be exact, DeFlumeri said the run took four days, four hours and 56 minutes, faster than anyone in state history.

“I honestly feel like the whole state was behind us. We were getting so many honks. It was unbelievable,” DeFlumeri said.

DeFlumeri loves a challenge. He's been taking them on his whole life.

He played baseball and got into boxing and kickboxing.

“They had to do a lumbar puncture because they thought I had blood around my brain, and what happened was they put a hole in my spine and I started leaking cerebrospinal fluid,” DeFlumeri said.

DeFlumeri was bedridden for two years, and recovery took two more years.

When he was finally back on his feet, he ran a 5K and found his new passion.

“In two years, I've done over 200 races,” DeFlumeri said.

The journey led him to this new challenge, to take on running the length of New Hampshire, from Pittsburg to Nashua.

DeFlumeri had a crew of four people to help him along the way.

He raised money for the Heather Abbott Foundation, which provides custom prostheses to those who have lost limbs.

DeFlumeri ran more than 40 miles a day and did it during the first week of summer, with temperatures hitting the 80s and 90s.

“Toughest part was the White Mountains. It was so hard. It was extremely hot, and the elevation was just never-ending,” DeFlumeri said.

The difficulty of the route reinforced what he's learned first-hand. When life gets hard, keep going.

“No matter what you're going through, always try to find the light at the end of the tunnel and sometimes, that light is burnt out, but just keep digging and keep digging,” DeFlumeri said. “I heard so many remarkable stories along the way. We had somebody who beat brain cancer, lung cancer twice.”

At the end of his journey, family and friends, including his 5-year-old daughter Aria, cheered him on.

“That was great to have her at the finish line. She gave me this medal and a slice of pizza. Honestly, that's all I wanted,” DeFlumeri said.

It will be hard to keep this thrill-seeker away from the next challenge, but for now, he'll enjoy the simple things.

“I think I'm just going to eat a bunch of pizza and relax for a little bit and not even think about my next race,” DeFlumeri said.