One hundred-eighteen Naval Station Guantanamo Bay (NSGB) residents participated in the Morale, Welfare and Recreation (MWR) Annual Marathon and Half-Marathon, Jan. 27.

The marathon and half-marathon took runners from the MWR Fitness Center and Cooper Field along Sherman Avenue to the Northeast Gate, Nob Hill, and Skyline Drive before heading back to Cooper Field.

Participants took many different avenues to prepare for the event to ensure they could compete at their highest level.

Sally Anne Groomes, half-marathon first place female finisher and mother of two, typically runs about 40-50 miles per week, but has been progressively increasing that to 60-70 miles per week to better prepare for the race.

"I have run one full marathon and five half-marathons," said Groomes. "Even in January, this race was quite a bit hotter than the others. This is also my first half-marathon since I had my two kids!"

In contrast, some took the race a little more in stride. Pavlo Demczur did very little to prepare for the race.

"Per a friend's recommendation, I bought a running belt and some energy chews the evening before the marathon," said Demczur. "I think I did quite well for a first marathon with no preparation. My goal was to finish the marathon and I accomplished that goal."

The safety of participants and logistics are of utmost importance when planning these types of events, according to Jim Holbert, MWR assistant fitness director.

"Heat is No. 1 and is why we start so early," said Holbert. "Dehydration and cramping is the second, which is why we have so many water stations and put fruit out on the route in two locations (500-meter gate and Nob Hill). We still had a few marathon runners cramp up and had to drop out of the event. Logistics: working with multiple departments and making sure we have the run set-up."

Christopher Springer, event participant and half-marathon first place male finisher, explained how he felt after finishing and why he was successful.

"It honestly went better than expected and I wasn't in too much pain until about mile 10 after climbing the massive hill on Skyline Drive," said Springer. "If I hadn't been pushing myself these past few months, the last five miles would have been much more challenging than they were."

Congratulations to all who participated. Here are the top three finishers for each category:

Male Half-Marathon: Chris Springer: 1:23:14, Joseph Dirocco: 1:44:41, Lucas McConaughey- 1:46:31.

Female Half-Marathon: Sally Anne Groomes: 1:40:42, Celeste Dunlap: 1:47:33, Micvhelle Flash: 1:53:09.

Male Marathon: Zachary Ashley: 4:02:02, Eric Antwi: 4:15:54, Manuel Maya: 4:36:47.

Female Marathon: Kimberly Smith: 4:04:30, Joey Reed: 4:44:28, Danielle Barnett: 5:07:56.

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