Opening Ceremony
We stood in cold weather for at least 30 minutes for the opening ceremony. Cindy and I were probably not dressed the best for standing around in cold wind so we huddled together to stay warm. Nothing wrong with that! Desert temperatures vary wildly from night to day. We found our way into the civilian corral right behind the barricades of the military corrals. The master of ceremony was counting down the time, "Marchers, 10 minutes before the opening ceremony, take you pre-march positions." This drew a bit of a chuckle from the crowds (more so from the civilians) as marchers posed in running positions. The ceremony was very moving, one of the most emotional ceremonies I have been part of. The Major General was introduced and gave a brief synopsis of the Bataan March in the Philippines. There were 4 survivors in attendance and I wondered what was going through their minds as it was being described. Then there was a ceremonial roll call. As their names were called, the 4 survivors answered a resounding "Here." Names continued to be read but followed by silence. These were survivors that had died since the last memorial death march. It also reflects the thousands of soldiers killed in Bataan both on the march and subsequent POW camps. Leading up to the real Bataan, General MacArthur was ordered to leave the Philippines by President Roosevelt.
"At the time, the thinning ranks of American warriors began to feel abandoned and blamed General MacArthur for leaving when the situation looked bleak. The American GIs told derisive jokes and sang songs focusing their anger toward their absent leader.
Aca,!A"WeAca,!a,,cre the battling bastards of Bataan.
no mama, no papa, no Uncle Sam,
no aunts, no uncles, no cousins, no nieces,
no pills, no planes, no artillery pieces
and nobody gives a damn.Aca,!A?"
The Major General read the "Nobody gives a damn" words. You could feel the helplessness. There were moments of soldiers soluting, standing at attention, the star-spangled banner being sung, and invocation. I have participated in only a handful of marathons that have prayer so I thought that this was something special.
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| My bandit looking appearance |
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| Nothing like the American flag flying over soldiers |
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| Sunrise as Cindy captures the best shots |
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| Panoramic |
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| Ready to run |
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| Just after dawn as the American flag flies in the backdrop of the Organ mountains |
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| Some Marathon Maniacs |
The Start
It was a slow process getting to the start. Cindy stayed with me for a little while but we were moving so slowly that I told her to head for the car to get warm. My plan was to call her every 5 miles so she knew my timing. Luckily this march was chip-timed because it took nearly 40 minutes to get to the starting line. Once there, I could see why. Marchers had the opportunity to shake hands with the survivors. I found one and shook his hand thanking him for his service. At this point you realize that this march/marathon is incomparable to what they faced in Bataan. However, the beauty is in the fact that we are there honoring them, their service, their perseverance, endurance, love of country, love of God. It was at that moment that I knew that I had to do the best I could no matter what struggles I encountered during the day.
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| The start |
The March
In a previous post, I shared comments from previous marches. Certainly, this would be a tough course, but I've wondered how so? The elevation doesn't look as daunting as other races I have done. Granted, much of it was in sand but no obstacles like roots nor rocks nor such. The wind could be fierce as it was a few years ago with 50-60 mph winds creating dust storms. Going into the march, I knew that I had to expect anything, sand, desert temperatures, wind, hills, etc. Maybe this is why I ended up doing so well, relatively speaking. The day weather-wise turned out to be perfect. Some wind, not daunting, good dry temperatures, not hot but the hills and sand were still there.
The first couple of miles were on pavement running around the base. This was a good opportunity to move past some of the walkers and get loose. After standing for over an hour in the cold, my legs needed some blood flow. At about mile 2 or so, we headed into the sand. The first aid station appeared and I took a few of my first pictures. My plan was to take my time through aid stations to stay hydrated. This one appeared to have a little deeper sand around it so it wasn't hard taking my time. So off we go through the open desert of the missile range trouncing through more sand over rolling hills. The temperature was comfortable and I was dressed perfectly. I did buy a buff to put over my nose and mouth in case the it got dusty. The buff actually helped when the cooler wind blew to alleviate some chapping. With so many marchers this early in the race, the dust was being kicked up by them as opposed to the wind. The view was extraordinary, not only of the Organ mountains but of the marchers meandering around the course. In marathons, you see all types of runners but all still civilians. In this march seeing the military mixing with the civilians was a sight to behold. I was so proud marching with them.
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| Aid Station 1 |
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| The first hill and the picture on the 1st page of their website |
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| Medium sand |
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| Thicker sand but still runnable - just needed to search for spots |
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| Aid Station 2 - Wonderful volunteers at all aid stations |
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| Took most picture while running |
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| famous cow bell guy |
From miles 2 - 6, the stretch was rolling sand, some deep and some hardened. I called Cindy at mile 5 at around 52 minutes. My goal was 55 minutes so I was doing well. The first major obstacle was the hill up around the mountain from miles 6 - 13. To me, this would be the biggest challenge (except for the infamous sand pit)because its a long but gradual stretch. I decided to run the entire hill with just a few walk breaks. Four miles of this was also on wide road which allowed more passing of the walking marchers. This is also where I saw the eventual winner coming down the hill at mile 19 while I was at mile 9. He finished in 3:02 which is really indicative of the course difficulty. I felt really good heading up the hill, knowing that once I reach mile 13, I would have a long 6-7 mile downhill/rolling hills to make up some time. At around mile 10, we moved off of the pavement and onto sand again. I thought to myself, "that hill could have been much tougher if it was sand, so be appreciative of that!" I finally see mile 13, half way, and it felt as if the race was going by quickly. In some marathons, time drags between miles. Miami was like that. Here, time probably moved quickly because of all of the various marchers, the beautiful scenery of the Organ mountains, aid stations set up as MASH units and of course the desert terrain. Once I hit mile 13, the course turned fast, even with portions of it being rolling hills. There was one stretch around mile 14-16 where I just flew down the mountain, feeling great. I couldn't call Cindy at mile 10 because of lack of reception, but during this stretch I called and said that I was feeling great and thinking I could break 5 hours. I heard someone pacing behind me keeping up with my short-lived 9 minute pace. It ended after a couple of miles but it did help hearing those foot steps. Miles 16-18 were rolling. There were fewer marchers at this point and I did thank some of the military guys for their service. At this point most people were runners. It was also at this point where I thought of the real marchers getting beaten and tortured if they stopped. It gave me incentive to keep going. We were then back to the same road we ran up. There were still many marchers going up the hill at mile 9 while I was running down at mile 19. This was a very fast stretch for me, how easier it is to run down gradual hills. I hit mile 20 at about 3:335-3:40. I called Cindy and told her that I will be there soon. Then we get to the infamous "sand pit".
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| Mile 7 and well into the journey going uphill now. |
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| Another aid station at mile 8 |
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| Time for the Sand Pit |
The sand pit is about 1 1/2 miles in length and the sand is about 3-4 inches deep. The sand is more course than you would find on most beaches. There is no reason to try and run it. The energy spent would likely work against you during the last 4 miles. I had heard and read of the sand pit so I was expecting it. I mostly powerwalked/shuffled through the sand. I wore gaiters which prevented most sand from entering my shoes but not all. I could feel small pebbles but none was so bothersome that I had to stop to clear my shoes. If you have ever tried running on the beach, not by the shoreline, but in the middle of the beach, then you will know what this is like. Being mentally prepared for it is most important. This next group of pictures are from the sand pit.
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| Looks like I am actually enjoying it! |
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| The Sand Pit |
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| Cactus in the desert |
After the sand pit came the road home to the finish. These long 4 miles were slightly uphill on hard packed sandy road. There were some rocks strewn about that could turn an ankle, nothing like a trail run, but certainly worth caution. In the last 6 miles, we had caught up to the 14 mile marchers as well. It was nice to see some of courageous spirits attempting this event, many who probably have never walked this far before. The long uphill of 4 miles ended at mile 26 as we turned toward the Frontier Club and the finish. This put us back on road for the last .2 miles I felt great coming down the stretch trying to spot Cindy. She is my real finish line and I also look for her to give her a hug and kiss. She raised a hand near the finish and I outstretched my arms as she welcomed me home and I made her a part of the finish. I crossed the line in 4:55, way under my goal. Once I crossed, I shook the hands of 3 other survivors, thanked them for their service and told them they were heroes.
Stats: Civilian Light 95/1117: All Marathoners: 154/3354
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| Teamwork |
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| Civilian Female Light |
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| Civilian Team Light |
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| World War II Vet in Half |
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| Teams must finish within 20 seconds of each other |
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| Camaraderie |
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| Military Team Heavy |
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| This looks extra heavy |
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| Carrying his son through the finish |
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| Taking care of a fallen comrade |
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| Hi Cynthia Anne! |
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| Only to the red tent! |
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| Obeying the speed limit! |
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| Ahhhh, Praise God! |
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| Cynthia Anne putting my dog tag on me! |
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| Dog tags instead of medals, very appropriate! The real Bataan marchers deserve medals. |
Bataan is an experience. I suspect some runners will scoff at it because they can't run their best times or its not a pure running event because many marchers walk. Certainly, as runners, we always want to do our best but Bataan is about so much more. It about memorializing an atrocious event in history exposing the horrors of war and recognizing the heroes that put their lives on the line not only during Bataan and in World War II but every day to keep us a free, God-loving country.
We honor the Battling Bastards of Bataan.
Days 86-89: 23 miles: 2014: 480 miles
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