MARINE CORPS MARATHON
October 31, 2010
Prologue (by Lenore Dolphin) – When I met Bob Dolphin 19 years ago, he had run over 100 marathons. I had missed out on some of the memorable ones: such as his first marathon, the Heart of America Marathon in Columbia, Missouri, on September 1, 1981, that he ran in a time of 3:53:45; his Personal Record (PR) of 3:00:12 at age 58 at the Emerald City Marathon in Seattle on April 10, 1988; and his 100th marathon, the Heart of America Marathon in Columbia, Missouri, with a 3:40:50 on September 2, 1991, ten years and one day after his first marathon there.
But, I was at the finish line of the Tri Cities Marathon in Richland, Washington in 1992, for Marathon #125. At the finish line of the SRI Chinmoy Marathon in Seattle on June 12, 1994, my daughters, Jan Stensland and Judi Hancock, and my granddaughter, Kristal Hancock, held the banner that Kristal had made for Bob’s 150th marathon. To celebrate, Costco carrot cake was shared with everyone that day.
Michael Dutton adopted us as “grandparents” when he was 27 and went to London to run #200 there with Bob on April 13, 1997. Marathon #250 took us to Houston for the race there on January 16, 2000, to celebrate with the late Rick Worley as he ran his 200th marathon in 159 consecutive weeks that gave him a place in the Guinness Book of World Records.
The banner from race #150 was updated to #300 for the great celebration at the Royal Victoria Marathon in British Columbia on October 13, 2002, when Evan Fagan had champagne for Bob at the finish line. The marathon committee there has treated him like royalty ever since. On March 31, 2007, the banner number changed to 400 and was at the finish line of the Yakima River Canyon Marathon as he reached another milestone.
For many years we shared a Costco carrot cake with friends at the Portland Marathon awards ceremony to celebrate Bob’s October 4th birthday. Because his 80th birthday was the day of the Portland Marathon in Oregon on October 4, 2009, over 100 friends helped him celebrate at a party in the headquarters hotel the day before, and many ran a part or all of the race with him.
All of these happy events became especially memorable to us. There were some other races that became “memorable” for other reasons. Though Bob had some injuries and problems along the way, he finished all of the races he started until April of 1994 when he tore a hamstring at Mile 6 of the WSU 100K in Pullman, WA. He walked four more miles and realized that it would be impossible to finish the last 52 that day. It was his first DNF (did not finish) ever, and he received no sympathy from his friends who were still on the course. He had finally joined them in the DNF category!
His second DNF followed two months later at Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run in California. With little training ahead of time, he ran 1/3 of the race before he missed the cutoff. He qualified for Western States two more times, and I was there as he ran the first 1/3, only to miss the cutoff both times. Hey, he’s run 100 miles at the Western States 100 Mile Run. Unfortunately, it has to be done at the same race.
When Bob was 74 years old, he had memorable races at the Baltimore and Marine Corps Marathons on October 18, 2003, and October 16, 2003, with times of 4:08:05 and 4:15:59 to place first in his age group at both marathons. The next “memorable” marathon was one year and one week later at the City of Trees Marathon on November 7, 2004, in Boise, Idaho. At Mile 2 he tore a muscle in his left hip and walked the next 24.2 miles as he struggled to finish in a time of 5:56:25. He was left with a major tilt that still affects his running six years later. Three weeks after this injury he made it to Mile 15 of the Seattle Marathon on November 28, 2004, before this race became a DNF, his first, and only, incomplete 26.2 mile race.
The effects of the torn muscle at Boise and age have changed his goals. As always, he’s there to do his best and to persevere through injuries and all kinds of weather. His goals now are: to start, to finish and to realize that it’s okay to finish among the last or even to be the very last to cross the finish line.
I’ve shared some of our memorable and “memorable” marathons and ultras, the happiest and the most challenging. We were excited to be in our nation’s capital for Bob’s 11th consecutive Marine Corps Marathon, one that has now been added to the list of “Most Memorable.”
The Marine Corps Marathon (MCM) celebrated its 35th anniversary on October 31, 2010. This is one of our favorite marathons, and I like to associate with my fellow Marines for several days each year.
We had a busy week in the Washington, DC, area that included MCM events on three days, meals with friends on three more and a trip to Annapolis, Maryland, to see the state capitol and the Naval Academy.
The whirlwind of events began on Thursday evening when we were treated to a visit in Georgetown at the home of Marathon Maniac (MM) Lien James and her husband Dennis James, Jr., for a meal with other runners and guests.
On Friday afternoon we attended the Health and Fitness Expo/Packet Pickup at the Washington Convention Center. From there we went to the Washington Post Building to attend the MCM Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony and meal.
Each year the MCM offers a one-mile Healthy Kids Fun Run for several thousand children the day before the MCM. This year another race was added for that day. As a member of the MCM Running Club, I was happy to be a part of it. After running the MCM five times, finishers become eligible to become members of this club, and this year we were invited to participate in the inaugural Runner’s Club “Inspire a Miler.” Our bibs for this race designated in multiples of five how many MCM’s we had run. I proudly wore a #10 as I joined about 40 others in this new event at the North Pentagon Parking Lot on October 30, 2010.
Later that day MM Don (“The Rev”) Kienz became our much-appreciated chauffeur for the remainder of the weekend. “The Rev,” his wife Pam, Lenore and I went to the Hyatt Regency Hotel near our country’s capitol for the Carbo Dining-In event. Emcee Ken Berger made introductions of several people in attendance, and I felt honored as he included me among them. He had nice things to say about my running career and the Yakima River Canyon Marathon that Lenore and I direct. The band from Philadelphia’s New Year’s Day Mummers Parade provided entertainment. After this, Ken welcomed guest speaker Larry Rawson, ESPN track/field and marathon commentator from New York.
The evening “flew by” fast, and soon the day of my 11th MCM arrived. We were ready at 5:15 a.m. on Sunday, October 31, 2010, for our ride with “The Rev” and Pam from Alexandria’s Red Roof Inn to the race. In the VIP tent I was interviewed by Staff Sgt. Leonard Langson, press chief at Marine Corps Base
Quantico. We visited with George Banker (a reporter from a north Virginia newspaper and MCM historian), Rich Benyo (editor/publisher of Marathon & Beyond magazine), and Bob & Kirsten Ellling from Schenectady, New York (who were married in 1996 before the start of the MCM and return each year to celebrate their anniversary by running it together). Then “The Rev” and I left for the mile-long walk to the starting line.
Each year it’s exciting to be in the company of so many Marines, to see the familiar, big, red arch at the starting line and to be there for the national anthem and other pre-race activities.. Within 30 minutes after the starting signal, 25,000 (+ or -) participants crossed the timing mat near Arlington Cemetery on a sunny morning. The first half of my race went well, and along the way I enjoyed seeing MM’s Todd Byers from Long Beach, California, Laura Garrett from Copperas Cove, Texas, and Lora Eklund from Phoenix, Arizona.
The first four runners ran together for 20 miles. Then Jacob Bradosky, 23, (an Air Force Second Lieutenant stationed at Vandenberg Air Force Base near Santa Barbara, CA, and a resident of Centerville, Ohio) surged and passed two others to take the lead. He held it to finish first in a time of 2:23:30. Close behind was Ronald Kurui, 28, (a Kenyan living in Ellicott City, Maryland) who ran a 2:23:41 for second place. In third place was Sean Barrett, 25, of Wilmington, North Carolina.
Janet Cherobon, 32, is a registered nurse and a Kenyan native who lives in Rome, Georgia. She celebrated her imminent U.S. citizenship by running the fifth fastest MCM women’s race with a 2:39:19 for first place for the women and in 32nd place overall. She hopes to return next year for a chance to break the course record. In second place with a 2:43:57 was Gina Slaby, 29, a Navy Lieutenant stationed at Tucson, Arizona. Finishing in third place with a 2:48:35 was Tezata Desalgn, 29, a Turkish native who lives in Ellicott City, MD.
My “usual pace” these days is getting slower, but I was happy that my time was a little over three hours at the halfway point. By then I was walking instead of running, and I knew that I faced a big challenge. Would I “Beat the Bridge?” Participants must be at the bridge five hours and 15 minutes after the race start. Could I do it at my slower pace? I walked as fast as I could, but my heart sank as I approached the Potomac River Bridge and saw several buses lined up at the 20 Mile mark. As I looked ahead, I became relieved to see the runners and walkers immediately in front of me pass the buses and continue across the bridge. I joined them as we “Beat the Bridge” by 5-10 minutes.
I was on the bridge, but I still had to cross it. Leg cramps and a side tilt gave me another challenge. I was passed by about 20 people before I reached the Virginia side of the river, moving slowly and in last place.
Just as I passed the 24 Mile mark, Ray DeFrees of Fairfax, Virginia, waited for me. He’s run 18 MCM’s and since September 11, 2011, he’s carried an American flag in every one of them.
When a policeman saw that I was struggling, he told me that I had to stop, to leave the course and become a dropout! I had only two miles go, and I wanted to continue. Ray made a phone call to the finish area about this situation. He said that he had a Marine who wanted to finish. Within ten minutes we were on our way again! Ray gave me some gels, bystander Summer Rulon of Fairfax, VA, joined us and gave me water to drink, AND “The Rev” was there with lots of moral support as we continued.
A walk/rest routine brought me to the short, steep hill at Mile 26. I met this last challenge and then about 15 feet from the finish line, Ray stopped us, handed the flag to me, ran ahead so that the last person to cross the finish line was carrying the American flag! Ray started this tradition at the MCM in 2001, so I was the 10th “last finisher” to have the honor of bringing in the flag.
A Marine Colonel put the finishers medal around my neck, and Lenore was there with a welcome hug and a much-appreciated chair. Then I had a chance to visit with the last squad of Marines at the finish area. It was indeed an emotional finish!!!
The time for my 475th marathon was 8:05:02. I was finisher #21,784, the last person to cross the finish line of the 35th Marine Corps Marathon.
Semper fi…………………
Epilogue (by Lenore) – It was a hot day at the 2005 Crater Lake Marathon in Oregon that I waited at the finish line with three doctors. One had completed the marathon and the other two were volunteers. A fourth doctor was on the course with Bob as he completed the last, grueling, four miles. The altitude and heat had taken their toll, but Bob won out and was the last finisher of the day, another “first” for him. Crater Lake Marathon race director Bob Freirich gives the last finisher of his race a plaque. We proudly display the “I DID IT” Award on a wall at our Yakima home.
At the Boston Marathon on April 19th this year, Bob fell at Mile 17. With a handerchief in the fist of his bleeding left hand, he walked the last nine miles, was given his finishers medal and then taken to the medical tent in a wheelchair. I watched that marathon on TV from our motel room in Framingham, MA, but our friend MM Dave Goodrich from Maine was with Bob all the way. He kept me informed of everything via cell phone: the fall, the 9-mile walk, the finish, the medical tent, the ambulance ride to the hospital, X-rays, 8 stitches and finally the drive from Boston to our motel that ended at 1:00 a.m. the next morning!
Bob isn’t a quitter. He was a part of the inaugural Boston2Big Sur Challenge with marathons six days and 3,000 miles apart. He needed the Boston finishers medal to continue in the Challenge six days later.
He was among the last to finish on the scenic and challenging Big Sur course. There were about a dozen Marine volunteers at the finish area who wanted to meet “one of their own,” an 80 year old who had just completed the marathon. It was an emotional time as they stood in a semi-circle, facing him, in a nearby tent to let him know that he was an inspiration to them.
On October 31, 2010, as the computer in the VIP tent projected Bob’s finish time to be 6:30, 6:45 and then 7:00, I felt that he was having more “challenges” than he needed. Race director Rick Nealis let me know that he “Beat the Bridge,” but he wasn’t encouraging about anything after that. At the finish area we were given mixed messages with one that we really didn’t like to hear, “Bob quit at Mile 23!” That’s when “The Rev,” Pam and I tried to figure out where to find him. Before we could make plans a new message came to us, “Bob is going to finish after all, and Ray, ‘the flag guy,’ is with him.”
I had never before seen the last runner come in at the MCM, and I didn’t know the significance of “Ray and his flag.” When Bob and Ray stopped about 15 feet from the finish line, I was surprised to see Ray give the flag to Bob and run in ahead of him. It was an emotional time for all of us. Bob carried the flag across the finish line, received his medal from the Marine Colonel and was greeted by each of the Marines who were still at the finish line.
The Marine Corps Marathon is one of our favorites, and we want to say “THANK YOU” to Race director Rick Nealis, his friendly staff who take such good care of both of us, and the Marines who helped make this year’s People’s Marathon one of our “Most Memorable.”
………………………………………Written by Bob and Lenore Dolphin
Edited, Typed and Distributed by Lenore Dolphin
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2:23:30 Jacob Bradosky, 23, Centerville, OH, OVERALL WINNER First in Age Group
2:23:41 Ronald Kurui, 28, Ellicott City, MD, SECOND OVERALL, 1st
2:24:08 Sean Barrett, 25, Wilmington, NC, THIRD OVERALL, 2nd
2:39:19 Janet Cherobon, 32, Rome GA, FIRST WOMAN OVERALL, 1st
2:46:58 Gina Slaby, 29, Tucson, AZ, SECOND WOMAN OVERALL, 1st
2:48:35 Tezata Desalgn, 29, Ellicott City, MD, THIRD WOMAN OVERALL, 2nd
3:37:37 Traci Falbo, 38, Charlestown, IN
4:13:43 Dave Crowe, 47, Mississauga, Canada
4:15:32 Nora Wilson, 54 The Woodlands, TX
4:20:40 Kirsten Elling, 48, Schenectady, NY
4:20:59 Denise Munson, 52, Bradford, Canada
4:23:31 Ali Cumbalon, 31, Mississauga, Canada
4:25:33 Dan Shuff, 75, San Antonio, TX, 2nd
4:27:27 Philip Holt, 55, Chantilly, VA
4:32:22 Richard Harms, 48, Huntington, NY
4:33:51 Susan Harms, 55, Huntington, NY
4:54:29 Xiao Tu, 35, Elkridge, MD
5:21:57 Todd Byers, 47, Long Beach, CA
5:34:22 George Banker, 60, Oxon Hill, MD
5:40:40 Don “The Rev” Kienz, 55, Exton, PA
5:43:53 Bob Elling, 56, Schenectady, NY
6:19:16 Mas Yoshimura, 82, Arvada, CO, 1st
6:19:43 Lora Eklund, 52, Phoenix, AZ
6:25:48 Laura Garrett, 54, Copperas Cove, TX
6:39:05 Eugene Defronzo, 74, Cheshire, CT
6:54:10 Domenick Irrera, 84, Jacksonville, NC 2nd
8:05:02 Bob Dolphin, 81, Renton/Yakima, WA 3rd