Marathon run, half a world away

Thursday, December 07, 2006

By BRUCE McLELLAN

Associate Sports Editor bruce.mclellan@htimes.com

Runners in Afghanistan have same goals as thosein Rocket City

The differences in Huntsville's Rocket City Marathon and its affiliate in Afghanistan are expected.

It's the similarities that are surprising.

That begins with the eerie coincidence that the site of the Rocket City Marathon/Afghanistan - a base known as Salerno - seems to lie due east of Huntsville (by more than 7,000 miles) on a world map.

Then there are the motivations and goals of the runners. The soldiers planning to run 26.2 miles Saturday on dirt and gravel roads within Salerno's fenced perimeter sound just like runners who'll compete on asphalt streets in Huntsville the same day, with a 101/2 -hour time difference.

"I decided to run the marathon because it is a test, a goal to overcome," Army Staff Sgt. Warren Beasley wrote in an e-mail, which is how all interviews were conducted. "I will be 30 next year and I am healthier now than ever. I have quit smoking, and one of the things that helped was the running."

Another soldier attempting his first marathon, Capt. Anthony A. Borowski, had similar thoughts.

"I wanted to push myself and see what I am made of," Borowski wrote. "I have run half marathons before but being able to go the distance and finish such an undertaking is one of my many accomplishments I would like to achieve during my life."

The Army encourages exercise, according to 1st Lt. Andrew Lea, who has previously run marathons and even a 50-mile race.

"If I couldn't run, then I would definitely struggle with depression and stress," Lea wrote. "I know as the clock gets closer to my run time (I like to run in the evenings), I get a bit happier and I know that I will have at least an hour all to myself that no one can complain about."

Marathon run, half a world away

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Of course, there are also factors the military marathoners experience that are unique.

"I am running this marathon for my wife, Tina, and four children - Luke, Seth, Reanna and Bryan," wrote Maj. Carleton Birch. "They have weathered this past year without a husband and father in an incredible way.

"As a chaplain, I know that war always stretches soldiers both physically and mentally. Training for this marathon has helped me with both."

The Rocket City Marathon/Afghanistan will take place at the base near Khowst, Afghanistan, not far from the Pakistan border. For the record, Khowst has a latitude of 33 degrees north; Huntsville is 34 degrees north.

The Salerno base is surrounded by mountains, according to 1st Lt. Sarah Destremps, the Afghanistan race coordinator. She said some of the mountains are snowcapped and others are covered in greenery. The base has trees and shrubs but there's not a lot of shade, which she said won't be a factor during the race.

"It's started to cool down quite a bit compared to the 115 degrees we reached on some days this summer," she wrote. "The temperature on race day will most likely be in the 30-40 (degree) range."

There are about 80 runners entered in Saturday's marathon, with about half planning to attempt the full distance and the other half planning to compete on 2- or 4-person teams. They'll run on a course of about 6.5 miles and four laps will make up the marathon.

The Huntsville Track Club is supplying to the runners in Afghanistan the same Rocket City Marathon T-shirts and caps that finishers in the Huntsville race will receive but is not charging an entry fee. The entry list for the Afghanistan race includes men and women primarily from the Army. They aren't all stationed at Salerno and there are a couple of civilians.

Maj. Charles Reynolds said he has previously run two marathons, in Frankfurt and Berlin, and will do the Rocket City/Afghanistan because he wanted to do another before he got too old.

"Everybody needs some outlet when you are deployed and this has been my outlet," Reynolds wrote. "This is something I am doing for myself.

"I also think it is a great witness and motivation to the troops for a 52-year-old chaplain to run a marathon."

You can say amen to that - whether you're in Huntsville or Afghanistan.