Steve Gaul did it. The 44-year-old Burlington father of two is once again a Guinness World Record holder, after his 134-hour drum-a-thon came to an end at 10:04 p.m. Wednesday night.
“Mostly I’m drained. I want to do things but I don’t have a lot of energy. You can’t sleep that much at once; you can’t just go to bed and sleep for 12, 15, 20 hours and be better,” Gaul said yesterday (Thursday).
Gaul sat down behind his Yamaha-donated drum set early last Friday morning at the Burlington Music Centre, and with the exception of sanctioned breaks, did not put his drum sticks down until the record was broken. Gaul originally held the record but his time of 121 hours was broken. That drum solo in 2011 was dedicated to his sister Toni who was fighting cancer; this time, Gaul was determined to raise tens of thousands of dollars for Cardiac Kids in honour of his two-year-old daughter Jersey, who was born with a congenital heart defect. (Volunteer organization Cardiac Kids then invests the money in the SickKids Labatt Family Heart Centre)
Approximately $25,000 has been raised to date.
With hours left to go on Wednesday, and Gaul asleep after banking some break time, his team set up his drum set outside the music centre so the event could end under the stars and accommodate the supportive crowd that had gathered.
Once the record was broken, Gaul’s crack team of medical and support people gave him some brief moments for hugs and words of thanks, and then insisted he lie down while they checked his physical condition.
A trip to his osteopath to begin “the healing process” was on his agenda yesterday.
“Physically, my back is really sore. My wrist is pretty sore. Everything hurts, but it’s not bad.”
Gaul is quick to point out that he could not have accomplished what he did without his ace team, which included the triathlete and marathoner’s longtime nutritionist Deanne Dietz who travelled from her Newfoundland home for the event. Gaul spent the past four months fine-tuning his body to get himself into the best shape possible. His fitness regimen included strength training, running, cycling and roller blading.
“I had the best seat in the house. I watched a group of people get together and complete an event and make things work in a way that’s so amazing. You’ve got to think on your feet; all these people had to make decisions to make things happen.”
The first obstacle came earlier than expected when he dislocated his thumb on the first day. Massage and creams were initially used, but when the pain worsened, a chiropractor discovered the dislocation and snapped his thumb back in place.
“The way I looked at it when there were obstacles, it was my job to suffer long enough to give my team time to find solutions. You just have to suffer — there’s no way around it. But then I watch what my daughter and all these other kids have to go through daily.”
The worst moment, in a series of unforgettable moments over 134 hours, was when a treatment used for his back spasms caused a burn that plagued him for the next several hours.
“I’m crying and I’m angry and I’m ready to give up,” said Gaul. A quick search online, an applied oatmeal spread, supplemented by a “talk” with Dietz, did the trick.
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“She managed to talk me out of this place I was in my head. She said, ‘Don’t quit now you’ll never forgive yourself.'”
During that difficult time, Jersey stepped up on the stage with her toys and sat down beside her dad.
“She just starts playing all by herself. How did she know that I needed her right there at that moment in time to remind me why I’m suffering through this.”
Gaul wanted to thank his team and the entire community that rallied around “a common goal that everyone can relate to — helping kids.”
He was particularly touched by the number of Cardiac Kids families who came out to show their support, making “the ‘heart’ family an even tighter family.”
“Jersey will be fighting for her life the rest of her life. With congenital heart disease, there’s never a cure.”
Jersey has already undergone four procedures including open-heart surgery and has suffered a stroke, which caused some brain damage.
“She will have to have multiples surgeries for the rest of her life. I believe in paying it forward, being part of the solution, rather than part of the problem. When you’re faced with a traumatic situation like this, your whole family, your whole world is turned upside down.”
The grueling six-day drum solo was so much more than breaking a record and raising money,” said Gaul.
“It’s bringing families together, recognizing the need for a community, for people, to help kids with congenital heart disease because it’s life changing.”
Gaul said this will be his last drum-a-thon. He can now appreciate the mindset of a veteran NFL quarterback calling it quits after years of punishing hits take their toll.
Donations to Cardiac Kids can be made by visiting http://www.cardiackids.ca/.
