Marine Corps Marathon: Miles of Achievements

The 35th annual Marine Corps Marathon on Sunday, Oct. 31, brought runners from the world over, many wearing festive attire as they pounded the streets of Arlington and D.C. At the Pentagon at 8 a.m., Dr. Jill Biden, Vice President Biden's wife, fired the starting gun and runners slowly filtered out of the waiting area, beginning the journey of 26.2 miles one step at a time. 

Runners passed through Rosslyn and crossed the Key Bridge, stopped for water at a station there, and continued into Georgetown. After looping around the Georgetown Reservoir, runners were welcomed by cheering crowds lining M St. and Wisconsin Ave., marking 9 miles as they moved down along to K St. 

Georgetown's welcoming reception would not be matched until runners reached the Lincoln Monument at mile 10. Pushing ever forward, marathoners passed the monuments, had moments of solitude as they rounded Hains Point and later ran to the Capitol building, only to loop back along the Mall. 

All along the route family and friends cheered, held signs, shouted words of support to perfect strangers and always offered more cowbell.

After stopping for water, enjoying oranges, chugging powerade and consuming their "goo" along the Mall, marathoners pushed to "beat the bridge." Runners had to reach the 14th Street Bridge, the 20-mile marker, by 1:15 p.m. when it would reopen to cars; those who couldn't beat the bridge had to board a bus. A harsh reality of the marathon.

The People's Marathon, as it is called, ends in Arlington just steps from the Iwo Jima Memorial. Even as thousands still waited to cross the start line this morning, the announcer broadcast that the first two runners had reached the 3-mile mark in just 16 minutes. Just over an hour after the race began another announcement rang out: the lead runners had made it to the half-way mark. 

In the end, Air Force 2nd Lt. Jacob Bradosky won the men's division at 2:23:30 seconds; this was his first marathon. Janet Cherobon took the prize for the women's division with a time of 2:42:38, making this her sixth marathon win.

Despite the recently announced increased security after shootings at Marine Corps-related locations, the measures did not noticeably impact the timing or flow of the race.