Marine Corps News Room

http://www.connectionnewspapers.com/article.asp?article=89610&paper=60&cat=152

Eric J. Gilmore
October 30, 2007

“To see that cross-section of America, and the world, was really reinforcing of one’s faith,” Keithley said. “It meant a lot personally to see the motivation of the individuals here.”

There was Team Travis. And Team in Training. And the Hokie Memorial Runners. All 20,677 runners fighting for a cause — either someone else or themselves.

After buckling back on Route 110, a winding road in the heart of Rosslyn, the runners funneled onto Marshall Drive, sandwiched between the awe-inspiring Arlington Cemetery and the Iwo Jima Memorial, to complete the final portion of the 26.2-mile road course.

And for nearly five hours, the sea of humanity mounted the final half-mile incline with fist pumps and high-fives. Every runner, jogger and walker had a story.

There was Peggy Starbuck, who for her 60th birthday promised herself that she could overcome her biggest challenge. Out of shape and from Carlise, Pa., Starbuck sauntered the race in 7 hours 29 minutes — just 19 seconds before the race officials stopped timing.

“I was really nervous about turning 60,” Starbuck said. “I figured my life was downhill from then on. But today is one of the happiest days of my life so far. Life gets better as you get older.”

‘The people’s marathon’ was the mantra, inspiring another woman, Shannon Royce, from Falls Church, to conquer her own physical demons. Just 16 months removed from overcoming cancer — follicular lymphoma — she ran as part of the National Chapter of Team in Training, a charity designed to fund cancer research and help families cope with inevitable expenses.

While juggling two children, Royce, 47, discovered the pea-sized lump in her neck, and asked her doctor to remove it, even though he felt it was benign. Her oncologist found cancer in the lump, but nowhere else in her body, which meant she had detected the cancer at its earliest stage.

"After months of treatment, I couldn't walk around the block with my husband without experiencing heart palpitations and shortness of breath," Royce said.

But after months of training, Royce finished the course in a shade under six hours to champion a greater cause — helping to raise money towards cancer research.

“It’s hard to believe that these are the couch potatoes and people with real physical difficulties,” said Marine Corps Marathon Race Director Rick Nealis, who has commanded the post since 1993.

At the front, the top men’s runner was Tamrat Ayalew, 33, who was born in Ethiopia and is seeking political asylum in the United States. His 2 hours 22 minutes 20 seconds time beat out two-time winner and crowd favorite, Ruben Garcia, a 36-year-old from Mexico. Garcia finished exactly two minutes behind Ayalew.

Georgetown University graduate Kristen Henehan, a 28-year-old first-time runner from nearby Silver Spring, Md., won the women’s division. Henehan passed second-place finisher Lisa Thomas, 31, with a half-mile to go to finish in 2 hours 51 minutes 14 seconds. Claudia Colita, 28, a Romanian runner training in Portland, Ore., added more international flavor by finishing third.

The marathon route started on Jefferson Davis Highway and wound through Rosslyn. It took some runners nearly five minutes to cross the starting line, and estimates had 500 people moving through the streets per minute. The path looped through Rosslyn, Georgetown, Rock Creek Park, West Potomac Park, the National Mall, Hains Point, and Crystal City. The route was altered this year because of road construction.

With nearly forty percent of the participants as rookie runners, race officials were pleasantly surprised that only nine runners were transported to local hospitals, including a Marine who collapsed near the finish line.

The tradition began in 1976 with a mere 2,000 runners. Now the race has morphed into an international attraction, boosting the metro area’s economy an estimated $31.7 million, according to a George Washington University study. The race solicited runners from nearly 50 different countries, including Zimbabwe and Venezuela.

Including 20,625th-place finisher Daniela Zahner. The 50-year-old woman, who speaks only broken English, flew from Switzerland to compete. Unable to use her left leg because of a car accident in 1979, Zahner walks with the assistance of two purple canes, which she uses to support her body like ski poles.

She hobbled through her first marathon nine years later — the New York Marathon in 1988 — and thrived on the sense of accomplishment. Now Zahner, whose hands were severely blistered, travels the world to marathons and ultra marathons to rekindle that feeling she first had back in 1988. Since her accident, she now travels internationally to compete in distance competitions, for herself, but also for Peruvian children born with cleft palates. She has a Web site, translated in eight languages, and solicits donations for corrective operations and treatment.

“She’s here and has traveled all of that distance and is absolutely speechless,” said Nealis, after meeting Zahner for the first time at the finish line. “She is just blown away with what she saw in our nation’s capitol and with our U.S. Marines.”

Nealis cited four water tents that went unmanned this year because of increased troop deployments. Nearly 240 Marines that participated on a volunteer basis will be shipped overseas within the week.

“These moms who’ve lost their sons, you think of all the incredible heartache it’s caused them and they’re still here to share their faith with us,” Keithley said. “It was inspirational.” Keithley alluded to a family that embraced him upon learning of their son’s impending deployment.

“Watching the tears well up in their eyes as they told me their son was going back for the third tour was really something that was amazing.”

The Marines embraced the clouds of men and women as they crossed the finish line. Some soldiers smooched runners on the cheek, when wanted, and dispersed red-white-and-blue capes, along with a medal signifying their accomplishment. The subtle gestures allowed for the community to build rapport with its elite fighting force.

“This was a great chance for the public to interact with men and women in our service,” said Nealis, a former Marine officer and longtime runner.