Community Corner

Woodbridge Resident Training for Marine Corps Marathon

Daryl Ferguson will run in this year's Marine Corps Marathon on Oct. 31.

Woodbridge resident Daryl Ferguson is a business management analyst for Booz Allen Hamilton by day, a member of the U.S. Army Reserves once a weekend and now he's on a journey to become a marathoner.

Specifically, Ferguson will be running with Team in Training  (TNT) in the 35th Annual Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, D.C. on Oct. 31 to raise money for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

For Ferguson, a veteran and lifelong runner, running the marathon is greater than just achieving a lifetime goal, he's doing it to help save the lives of others.

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"If I am ever tired and frustrated while I'm training or running I just think about what I'm doing and how these people with Leukemia are living," said Ferguson.

Ferguson's wife convinced her husband to join her in the marathon this year.

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"My wife did a marathon seven years ago to raise money for the Whitman-Walker AIDS clinic in DC," said Ferguson. "She's the one who convinced me to do this. Now its just me in Team Ferguson."

But, Ferguson won't be running alone. As a part of Team in Training, Ferguson does training runs with other Northern Virginia area runners as a way of bonding before the big race, and to keep the regime up.

Ferguson trains with Team in Training most weeks, except when he's out of the country doing his training for the U.S. Army Reserves.

"I was training in Poland last week and there aren't too many other six-foot three inch black guys running around," said Ferguson, of his latest training session overseas.

It was his first time decked out in cold-weather gear, but Ferguson ran seven miles out and seven miles back in an area that is not too far away from the Baltic Sea.

"When I got back to the dining hall people told me they saw me running," said Ferguson. When he asked them where he was going, Ferguson said his colleagues responded, "I don't know, but it looked far."

Far is an understatement when training for the Marine Corps Marathon. The race loops around downtown DC for a total of 26.2 miles. The marathon is a mighty beast of a race of time for any runner, but Ferguson is no stranger to long-distance running.

"I grew up running and a buddy of mine in 9th grade told me to join cross country," said Ferguson. "I feel in love with running."

Ferguson is one fit gentleman, but that wasn't the reason why he wanted to get involved with Team in Training or the Marine Corps Marathon.

"I wanted to raise money," said Ferguson. "Team in Training is great, a lot of people have a life goal of running long races or marathons but you can do that and help eradicate blood cancer."

Teams in Training's 440,000 total participants have raised over $1 billion dollars in 22 years for cancer research and patient services.

For four to five months, the athletes receive high caliber training with certified coaches who prepare them for their specific event. They attend local workshops on nutrition, technique, injury prevention, event day strategy, and fundraising skills, and build friendships with others on their team.

Members receive guidance from the TNT Mentor Program, which matches them with past TNT participants who share their training, fundraising and event day experiences.

Ferguson reflected on his cross country running days and said he once had a team t-shirt that said, "Pain is weakness leaving the body." Now, he's reminded of that pain as he trains for the longest and first marathon he has ever run.

Ferguson will be checking in with Woodbridge Patch throughout the duration of his training, up until the big race day on Oct. 3

 


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