Deanne Woods taking on Mackay Marina Run with father, son after recovering from broken spine

A weekly run became the family mold that brought three generations across the finish line, but it’s not the only way it changed one woman’s life after a spinal injury.

Deanne Woods, her father Ray Borg and son Theo Woods will compete in the Marina run on Sunday June 1.

After a severe crash put her in a neck brace for nine weeks, Deanne Woods thought she would never be able to hop back on her bike.

“The PTSD hit and I couldn’t get back,” she said.

But it was a return to a weekly fun run that sparked a turning point in her life, and now she’s facing a 21 km finish line for this year’s Marina Run alongside her 67-year-old father, Ray Borg and eight-year-old son, Theo Woods.

It’s a run that has become a tradition of sorts for the three generations and it’s something Ms Woods cherishes every time she takes to the track.

“I know how lucky I am to still be able to run with my dad. He’s getting closer to 70 and then obviously with my boys running with us as well,” she said.

“But obviously the young one just goes at his own speed.

“Whereas our youngest is a little bit crazy, he just doesn’t stop.”

Deanne Woods after he bike accident that left her with facial injuries and a broken spine, 2021.

In 2021, the mother of two broke her spine in a bike accident while training for the Hans Half Iron Man triathlon.

It left her with facial injuries and in a spine brace for nine weeks while not being able to return to work.

“When I had the accident I couldn’t even lift my camera up for work,” she said.

She said the Mackay Parkrun allowed her to finally switch her mind to running and not only keep the healthy lifestyle she once enjoyed before the crash, but to also overcome the trauma she suffered after the crash.

Deanne Woods’ father Ray Borg and son Theo Woods

Now her week consists of group bike rides, weekly track sessions on the run, social basketball games, swimming, pilates and a Saturday Parkrun with the family, all while keeping up her professional photography business.

“People might think I’m crazy doing all this stuff, a lot of it for me has been for mental clarity,” she said.

“When something happens like that, you can either sit down and drown in your own sorrows.

“But for me I knew what this accident did to my body, if I could get it strong again, I knew how important it is for mental health.”

The weekly Parkrun sparked a turning point in her dad’s life as well who, prior to joining only after he turned 60, rarely misses a week.

“He’s done more now in his older years than he has ever done prior to our childhood,” she said.

“My dad says he’s getting older but he’s still faster than me.”

Ms Woods and her dad completed their first half marathon together in 2022 but more than making it over the finish line, Ms Woods said the Parkrun was the mold that brought her family together each week.

“It’s something that you can slow down right down, have a conversation about your day,” she said.

The 2025 Mackay Marina Run will be held on June 1.

Originally published as Deanne Woods taking on Mackay Marina Run with father, son after recovering from broken spine