When he was starting his treatment for multiple sclerosis, he dressed as the superhero Captain America to get a medical injection. Perrysburg resident Matthew Knaggs receives one every six months.
“I did it at first to tell my kids I’m getting super soldier serum because it’s kind of a scary thing and I’m like, ‘No, dad’s cool,’” Mr. Knaggs laughed as he recalled.
Like the Marvel superhero, Mr. Knaggs looks to inspire others living with multiple sclerosis. He’ll seek to do it by running 145 miles as part of a 3,230-mile relay hosted by MS Run the US, a nonprofit that raises awareness and funds for multiple sclerosis research.
The marathon runner will run six consecutive days, from June 15 to June 20,
Mr. Knaggs will start in Lincoln, Neb., run through Omaha, and finish in Casey, Iowa.
He will be one of more than 21 runners participating in the relay and one of three with multiple sclerosis.
“For me, it’s a couple of things,” Mr. Knaggs said. “Number one, it’s for my own health but number two, I really want to inspire other people. Whether you’ve got MS or another autoimmune disease or even nothing ... I really believe that if people see this guy who could barely walk and is now doing a marathon for six consecutive days, that can really inspire people.”
He’s been working his way up to be able to run the relay for three years, Mr. Knaggs said.
“I started training to do a marathon and during that training cycle, I came across this organization, MS Run the US, on social media and I saw it’s a group of runners that run across the entire country,” he said. “Seeing that the people are running basically a marathon a day for six consecutive days, that then became the goal that I anchored myself to.”
When Mr. Knaggs was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in March, 2020, he was told by his doctor he would likely be in a wheelchair within five years, he said.
“I didn’t really take that very well,” Mr. Knaggs said. “I said, ‘Well I’m going to try and prove him wrong.’ Then I said, ‘Wouldn’t it be nice if I could one day be able to run a half marathon again. That’d be really significant, to be able to go from barely being able to walk a quarter of a mile without being in excruciating pain to a half marathon.’”
That’s exactly what he did.
About eight months after he was diagnosed, Mr. Knaggs ran a half marathon, which led him to discover the nonprofit.
He later started a support group on Facebook called Running with MS, Mr. Knaggs said, which has garnered over 700 members worldwide.
The group led Mr. Knaggs to meet and become friends with fellow runner and multiple sclerosis patient Colin Goodman, who lives in Northern Ireland.
Mr. Goodman asked Mr. Knaggs if he could put a running event on his page, which Mr. Knaggs agreed to, the Irishman said.
He’s not surprised by the 145-mile relay, Mr. Goodman said, given there’s “nothing off the table” for Mr. Knaggs.
“It’s just something Matt would do,” he said. “It’s class. He’s so supportive of everyone else. It’s just amazing.”
Mr. Knaggs’ wife, Amber, shares the same sentiment.
She said her husband is someone who can do anything he sets his mind to.
“He’s very determined,” she said. “I’ve noticed there are days that he’s not feeling well from some of his MS symptoms, and then when he comes back [from running], he’s feeling a little bit better. Whatever that does, neurologically, I’ve noticed it really does help.”
That’s because it does, Mr. Knaggs said, which is why he began running more consistently.
Studies have shown regular exercise can help prevent further advancement of multiple sclerosis by keeping the immune system healthier, Mr. Knaggs said.
Treatment evolved a decade or two ago, he said, because of additional research.
“There’s a lot more research that supports being active,” Mr. Knaggs said. “Just because you feel symptoms doesn’t mean you’re getting worse. It wasn’t until the early 2000s that they started developing new treatments.”
While he’s running the six-day relay, a crew will meet him every three miles to give him fresh cooling towels, which is important for some with multiple sclerosis, he said.
Heat and humidity can be a brick wall for some runners with the disease, which is why Mr. Knaggs will be trying to stay as cool as possible, the Perrysburg resident said.
“To a certain degree, a lot of it is knowing your body,” he said. “As much as I want to run the whole thing, I also know that it's probably in the mid 90s and super humid. I’ll have to walk some in order for my body to be able to tolerate everything I’m putting it through.”
Ahead of the relay, Mr. Knaggs is hard at work to meet his fund-raising goal of $20,000 for multiple sclerosis research.
“I’m just over $14,000 as of right now so I’m getting pretty close,” he said.
He encourages anyone interested in donating to visit www.mattruns4ms.com .
Mr. Knaggs said he never shies away from sharing “the good and the bad” about his journey.
Though he tells people about the bad, he always wants people to know “it doesn’t have to be the end of your life.”
“I talk about how Captain America says, ‘I can do this all day,’" he said. “That’s my mindset, no matter how tough it gets.”
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