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Team Sheppard takes on marathon

  • Published
  • By Debi Smith
  • 82nd Training Wing Public Affairs
SHEPPARD AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --  The 14th annual race of the Air Force marathon made a lot of dreams come true for more than 12,000 participants, including several Team Sheppard runners.

Capt. Jerry Fausch, 82nd Training Wing Executive Officer, placed 340th with a time of four hours and thirty five minutes. He ran his first Air Force marathon in 2008. He trained for several months, alternating his routine between bicycling and running so he could enter both the Hotter'n Hell 100 bike race and the marathon.

"It's an experience you will never forget. It's a matter of going for your personal best. I believe success in running is like success in life, staying the course and finishing what you started," he said.

Tech. Sgt. Jason Thompson, 363rd Training Squadron Nuclear Weapons Instructor, placed 386th in four hours and forty five minutes. Both he and his wife, Leah, a nursing student at Midwestern State University, competed for the first time.

"Our goal was to prove to ourselves that we could do it. The challenge was getting the time to train but we plan on competing again and will also run in the Music City Marathon in Nashville, TN in April of next year."

Tech. Sgt. Lisa Jaworski, 382nd Training Squadron, placed 410th in four hours and fifty minutes. She entered the full marathon as a way of recognizing everything the Air Force means to her after serving for 17 years.

"I have never run 26.2 miles ever before and at mile 23, I felt like I just wanted to lay down and quit....then a woman ran in front of me and the back of her shirt said: I can do everything through Him who gives me strength. At the point, I felt I can do this!

Walking down to receive the medal from the officers in full service dress was so emotional for me, and I know, no other marathon will ever make a difference in me as this one, not only because it's the first but because it's the first Air Force Marathon! I will attend again, and I am planning to run two more marathons before the end of the year."

Staff Sgt. Thomas Heinig and Staff Sgt. Aaron Williams, both of the 372 Training Squadron Detachment 9, ran the full marathon and finished within seconds of each other in just over four hours and eight minutes.

Senior Master Sgt. John Lium, 372nd Training Squadron Detachment 22, ran the half-marathon of 13 miles for the first time in two hours and thirty eight minutes, stopping at mile nine to get his knee taped and stretched. He also participated in the five kilometer race, finishing in the top 100 of 1,611 participants.

Virginia "Jenny" Fausch, Health and Wellness Center Running Improvement Program coordinator, ran in the half-marathon and can feel there is an increased national focus on fitness. She has run two full marathons, six half-marathons, and several five and ten kilometer runs.

"I work with fifteen volunteer coaches at the HAWC where we help people get a different perspective and tools to achieve their own fitness level. We start a class every six weeks for everyone on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. We'll get you to enjoy running with sprints, stairs, easy runs, hills and the base track.

Running becomes a life-long activity. It doesn't cost a lot of money, you don't need a lot of equipment and you can do it anywhere."

Staff Sgt. Clayton Kitts, 364th Training Squadron, also ran the half-marathon for the first time, and ended with a time of one hour and 46 minutes. As a volunteer coach with the Health and Wellness Center's Running Improvement Program, he determined that part of his 2010 fitness plan was to compete in the Hotter'n Hell 100 bicycle race and the Air Force Marathon. Goals achieved.

From the 372nd Training Squadron Detachment 5, Tech. Sgt. Michael Hollister ran the full marathon and the 5 K; Tech. Sgt. Jason Brownell ran the full marathon; Tech. Sgt. Mauricio Aguirre participated in the 10K and 5K and Staff Sgt. Joseph Strange ran the 10K.

The Air Force Marathon is sanctioned by the USA Track & Field Association and is a qualifier for the Boston Marathon.

The three-day event featured a Fitness Expo, B-52 and F-16 flyovers and traveled a course showcasing historical sites on the base and throughout downtown Fairborn near Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio.

The event was opened by Lt. Gen. Janet C. Wolfenbarger, Air Force Materiel Command vice commander.

"This is truly a record breaking day," General Wolfenbarger said. "There are representatives from every state, along with 6 nations, and 44 folks who have attended every U.S. Air Force Marathon start since its inception in 1997."

For a complete listing of race results visit www.usafmarathon.com.