Kensington Resident Prepares for Marine Corps Marathon

Soon-to-be 60-year-old Kensington resident Paul Vamvas, will run the Marine Corps Marathon on Oct. 31, to raise money for a good cause. In exchange for training help and tips from Team in Training, Vamvas will raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

A three-day-a-week jog turned into the urge to want to run a marathon to fight what Tom Wolfe calls "the Grim Slid," according to Vamvas who will turn 60 two weeks before his first marathon. When searching around for trainers and a support system, he stumbled upon the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

"What I found out when I went to their kick off meeting was that there were even
more important reasons to run this race than [to] test my late-middle-aged
stamina and endurance," Vamvas said. "Without being in the least lachrymose or preachy, it is full of people who have survived these diseases or lost loved ones or who have children or husbands or wives or partners who are fighting these
diseases."

Vamvas said that the people at the meeting told stories full of courgae and sorrow that he couldn't help but want to raise money for the cause. As of Tuesday, Oct. 5, Vamvas has raised 82 percent of his ultimate goal of $1,775. 

For the past 22 years the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's Team in Training have been helping people work towards completing challenging events. With a group of coaches, mentors and teammates, Team in Training sets up a training regimine, nutriotional guidance and workouts to prepare seasoned athletes or novices to complete a marathon, triathalon, 100 mile bike ride and other events.

Team in Training is very thorough according to Vamvas. They cover every aspect of running the marathon and have people available to talk to runners about any issues or problems they might be having, Vamvas said.

"And while they do everything they can to help you succeed they are not the
kind of crazed ultra athletes that try to get you to 'run through the pain,' " Vamvas said.

In preparation for the marathon, Team in Training participants are supposed to run three times a week on their own and then get together for  a long group run every Saturday, Vamvas said. Training starts out with short distances of three to four miles and increases slowly over the months from June until October, he explained.

In addition to helping runners learn how to pace themselves and run without causing injury, Team in Training gives participants motivation by shining light on the number of people who suffer from Leukemia and Lymphoma.

"The other thing they tell you when you sign up is how many people are affected by these diseases that you never hear about," Vamvas said. "And they are right."

Shortly after signing up to raise money for the society, Vamvas learned that a friend from his office, (where he is a lawyer with the federal court system), has a 6-year-old niece with leukemia. He decided then to run the race in honor of his co-workers niece, Sarah Neary.

Vamvas's running has always been for recreational purposes until signing up for the Marine Corps Marathon. He runs the 10K Turkey Chase at the Bethesda Chevy Chase YMCA every Thanksgiving just for fun, but he hopes to do much better this year after stepping up his training regimine in preparation for the marathon. When it comes to finishing the marathon, Vamvas is keeping his objective reasonable.

"My goal for race day is to get across the finish line on my own two feet in about five hours," Vamvas said. "That will be enough of a challenge for my first marathon."

Editor's Note: This is the first in a series of stories covering Paul Vamvas's Marine Corps Marathon experience. To learn more about Vamvas or to make a donation toward his goal, visit his fundraising page.

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