Teen With Obstacles Of His Own Trains For 4th Fenway Park Spartan Sprint
FRANKLIN (CBS) - Fourteen year old Will Doggett trains in his Franklin backyard. Whether it's running laps or hoisting himself up a tree on a rope, Will vows to be ready for his 4th Fenway Park Spartan Sprint on Saturday.
"It's basically an obstacle course. There are walls you have to climb over. There's a spear throw, and there's plenty of burpees you have to do," he explains.
Will is one of about 12,000 people who will compete, but the course isn't the only thing he'll have to overcome.
When Will was just one month old he contracted a respiratory virus.
"He got med-flighted to Children's Hospital in Boston, and spent 3 months there in intensive care," says Will's mother, Ariel Doggett.
The virus permanently damaged his lungs.
"He was on numerous ventilators. His lungs actually shredded," she says.
At the same time he suffered a stroke that damaged his eyesight.
"I didn't want to leave the room because I didn't know if he was going to be there when I came back," Ariel says.
But when he was about 10, Will decided he wanted to run a grueling Spartan race with his mother, and he's never looked back.
"I'm always kind of worried to make sure my breathing is fine, but overall I'm always having a blast. I hope someone will see me as a person who has overcome tons of obstacles, and maybe they can overcome a lot of obstacles of their down," Will explains.