The 26.2-mile Marine Corps challenge in D.C.

Christine Carrillo

The Marine Corps Marathon in Washington D.C. sparked a fire under

four members of the Newport Beach Cal Coast Track Club late October,

giving them a simultaneous chance to revisit the capital and achieve

a 26.2-mile goal.

Mary Fletcher of Newport Beach, John Kenney of Corona del Mar, Tom

Boris of Newport Coast and Gloria LaCommare of West Covina started

and ended their run near the Iwo Jima Monument and got the chance to

hit a number of other monuments along their route before reaching an

exhausting finish.

“I had no intention of running a marathon again,” said Kenney, who

admitted to having a little trouble during the last leg of the run.

“I didn’t like them ... but I thought it was pretty exciting because

there was a lot of people lining the streets ... applauding.”

With the support of the crowds of people on the streets and

hundreds of Marines lending a helping hand, the Newport Beach Cal

Coasters, which was their team name, couldn’t help but be moved by

the spirit of the capital.

The group even managed to squeeze a few days of sightseeing into

their trip.

“The people back there were awesome ... but what sticks out in my

mind is the hundreds and hundreds of Marines giving a hand, they did

a great job,” Kenney said. “They kind of made everybody feel proud.”

The event, which took place in October only days after the two

suspected snipers were arrested, seemed to have brought out a sense

of camaraderie among the spectators, as well as the 17,000 runners.

With people handing out pretzels and Starburst candies to the

runners as they trekked on mile after mile, passing monument after

monument, Fletcher and Kenney were grateful and comforted by the

support and the locale.

“The monuments are beautiful; the people are friendly and there’s

a feeling of pride for our country,” said Fletcher, whose parents

were both in the Marine Corps. “I’ve never seen so much military

personal any where in the country. I just felt really safe ... and if

you can’t run in the nation’s capital in a Marine Corps Marathon and

feel safe, then where can you.”

While the team members had a few days as tourists visiting the

Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Arlington National Cemetery, the United

States Holocaust Memorial Museum and much more, their participation

in the marathon left them with an even more memorable feeling of

accomplishment and pride.

“I think that’s an awesome place to run a marathon,” said Kenney,

who has recently adopted the nickname 5K John.

“I’ll always remember around mile 20, it was getting difficult and

there were a couple people deep around this one stretch and the

encouragement the people were giving, it took your mind off of your

suffering. It was awesome and extremely well run, except for us

running it.”

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