Marine Corps Marathon – Registration is now Closed
Run to Serve Those Who Preserve Our Freedom
Sunday October 26, 2008 • 7:50am
The 2008 Marine Corps Marathon, also affectionately known as "The People's Marathon," takes runners on a new journey through the nation's capitol. Featuring all the great milestones of recent courses, the 2008 course will showcase the best of Arlington, VA and Washington, D.C. The USATF certified course starts in Arlington, VA, and winds its way through Rosslyn along Lee Highway before turning on Spout Run and the George Washington Parkway. Runners will experience a climb on Lee Highway in the first few miles of the new course, but are rewarded with a descent along Spout Run and the parkway. After crossing the Key Bridge into Georgetown, runners will be on familiar territory through the District of Columbia. The course returns to the Palisades Community for a scenic view of Canal Road, and returning to Georgetown. Runners will enjoy the spectator friendly streets of Georgetown as they travel down M Street, turning on Wisconsin Avenue and then K Street.
In a significant change for 2008, the course passes the Kennedy Center and takes runners into Hains Point at approximately the halfway point of the race. Afterwards, runners pass the Jefferson Memorial before entering the National Mall and pass numerous monuments, memorials and landmarks, such as, the Lincoln, FDR, Korean War and Vietnam Veteran's memorials, Washington Monument, and the U.S. Capitol. Runners continue along Jefferson Drive and cross the 14th Street Bridge back to Virginia. For the last 10K runners will venture to Crystal City, return past the Pentagon and finish at the Marine Corps War Memorial. It is truly a beautiful course and aptly nicknamed "The Marathon of the Monuments."
Hello MCM Runners!
We're getting close! As always, we encourage all of you to read below carefully so as not to miss any
Team Semper Fi Community Athlete happenings.
MCM Official Registration
Thank you to all that have signed up to run on behalf of the Fund. At this time, we are no longer able to accept any additional registrations. We appreciate your support and efforts on our behalf. If you are interested in competing in an event to raise fund on our behalf, please visit our
Community Athletic Events page.
The Marine Corps Marathon is a qualifier for the Boston Marathon. If you are interested in running in the Boston Marathon, please visit:
www.baa.org to find out more.
Lodging
We have secured a block of 25 rooms at the Residence Inn National Harbor/ DC by Marriott. It is a new hotel that will be opened in one month and its right there on the Potomac River. You will have the choice of taking the shuttle/ Metro or the water taxi as well. It is about 5 miles from the Pentagon via Metro. All the rooms are studio with a king and a pull out sofa bed. We have secured a rate of $159 per night for Oct. 25(Saturday Check-in) through Oct. 27 (Monday morning Check-out)
There is a shuttle bus from the Harbor area hotels that runs constantly to take you to the metro, but I am trying to work into our concessions a private shuttle directly to the Pentagon parking lot. If you decide to use the hotel shuttle you will take it to the metro where you will ride the green line for 5 stops, transfer to yellow line and 1 stop is the Pentagon. It should take no longer than 15 minutes.
The metro will run from 5:00 am until 2:00 am daily.
For the airport, same scenario, but you go four stops on the yellow line and the metro station is in front of Delta.
To take a cab from the airport to the hotel will cost about $16 and the metro $4.
It’s about $3 for metro to Pentagon.
We already have a contract with the hotel so please contact Cathy Lindquist at
cathy@gerlingsports.com. Cathy is our travel agent and dear friend of the Semper Fi Fund. She will generate a room list on a first come first served basis. Please note that you will be responsible for your room charges and any incidental charges that are applied. You will simply provide her with your credit card info and that’s it! Super easy!
Here is the link to the Residence Inn National Harbor/DC:
www.marriott.com to gather more information about the area.
Training
Many of you have asked about training and coaches. Below is the contact
information and website of a coach that is highly recommended by some of
your fellow Team Semper Fi Community Athletes! Whether you are overseas or across the country, you can still utilize this awesome coach! Check him out!
Dr. Mike Schreiber (Mad Dog Mike)
Website:
www.training2run.com
Email:
training2run@yahoo.com
Fundraising
We are almost three months into our Fundraising campaign, and we have reached the 50% mark of our goal:
Fundraising Goal: $150,000.00
# of Donations: 1088
Number of Fundraisers: 390
Total Funds Raised: $74,994
You can monitor our progress at:
www.active.com/donate/teamsemperfi08.
Fundraising Tips
If you are considering an email letter, you may want to take a look at this
fundraising article that gives ideas for effective fundraising. This article gives you some good things to think about before you send the letter. The only thing I can add to this is that most emails/letters will not drive fundraising alone. Unfortunately, it’s just not as easy as writing a letter and watching money roll in!!! In any good campaign, you usually will have several steps to ensure success and maximum penetration. So, here is what was suggested to me:
Step 1: Send an email/letter telling people about what you are planning (maybe 25 at a time)
Step 2: Follow-up each email/letter with a phone call. The conversation will be...did you get the email I sent? What do you think about the event? Do you have any suggestions on how I could be more successful? (engage people in the event...make them a part of it...they will be more likely to participate). How has the military touched your life? Family? Friends? Use the Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund website to illustrate what their contributions will accomplish. Tell people about the success of the Fund. People want to see how their contributions will change the lives of some of our heroes.
Step 3: The Follow-ups: Some people will have every intention of giving....however, they will forget because of busy lifestyles. Send them a copy of a newspaper article or Google Alert to update them as you move through your campaign.
We have some serious superstars on the fundraising front! Many runners have raised well more than the $300 commitment…many, many thanks to the following people who have worked diligently to raise donations and awareness for the Fund.
"Over $500 Club"
Team Esprit de Corps • $6,082.50
Michael Griffin • $4,220.00
Jason Bohm • $2,550.00
Naomi Elmer • $2,135.00
Juliet Lauricella • $2,075.00
Jill Seale • $1,945.00
Nancy Mallon • $1,650.00
Tom Strite • $1,570.00
Julia Aurigemma • $1,502.20
Travis Jones • $1,450.00
Leticia Rodriguez • $1,270.00
Chris Boyd • $1,250.00
Joanna Graham • $1,160.00
Peggy White • $1,157.00
David Lovelace • $1,151.00
Team “RAW” • $1,150.00
Trina Sams-Manning • $1,150.00
Chad Reader • $1,000.00
Steve Harrelson • $875.00
Anthony Wetherell • $805.00
Bradley Havenar • $750.00
Nathan Solomon • $660.00
Michael Ross • $650.00
Sarah Wellington • $625.00
Andrew Duncan • $610.00
BJ Schaknowski • $590.00
David Fobar • $555.10
Jeffrey Falactic • $550.00
Shauntell Sheriff • $536.00
Lois Arbogast • $530.00
Christina Garner • $500.00
Elizabeth Hayes • $510.00
How can I get in the “Over $500 Club" you ask? What a great question! First, please remind donors that every donation counts, no matter how big or how small. Ten dollars will feed a family at a Marine's bedside; $20 will get them transportation to and from the hospital, and $100 will get them a night's lodging to be near their loved one. With permission, I am quoting Doc Junod's fundraising advice:
"Those of you who have intended to help move this wonderful initiative along...it is time to move along. Remember, the best of all activities is to support those who are in need. Our Marines do not pledge support, they deliver it. So, if you have approached someone who has promised support and they have not delivered, gently remind them that they still have time to help.
If you need assistance with fundraising, such as pamphlets, sample letters, assistance with creating your webpage, etc., please do not hesitate to ask.
We are here to help!
Travel Around the DC Metro Area
Now is the time to start planning for your lodging and travel within the DC Metro area. We are currently researching the possibility of getting a block of rooms at a hotel relatively close to the start line. We will keep you posted and encourage any feedback from those interested in this possibility.
Metro
The Metro is an excellent way to move about the city. You should plan to utilize it and we will keep you posted on the best Metro Station to get to the race. We are hopeful that our hotel of choice will have a shuttle to the Pentagon parking lot. You will basically follow the crowd of people and there will be a lot of people!
Metro Tickets can be purchased on line at
www.wmata.com or at the MCM Expo. It is best to pre order due to the number of patrons using the Metro service.
You can also check the course map at
www.marinemarathon.com to help get acquainted with the city and where you might want to visit while were and what you will be running past.
A Reminder…
That each runner has committed to a $300 fundraising goal. If you intend to sponsor yourself for the $300, we encourage you to submit that payment now so that we can account for those who've met the goal. If you write a check, please ensure your name and MCM is on the memo line and that you enter it into your Active donations.
Important Dates to Remember
October 26, 2008: Race Day and Stay hydrated
October 23, 24, and 25, 2008: Packet and bib pickup at the MCM Health and Fitness expo and the time to pick up your goodies at our booth.
Even if you have a strict schedule you can always use some helpful tips and such, so here is a great website to help with your training. http://www.halhigdon.com. Hal is an accomplished marathoner and wrote the book (34 books actually) that many runners live by. He shares a lot of useful and helpful stuff so check it out when you have a chance.
Also, Road Runner Sports is a great place to shop for shoes. Not just because they have a wide variety to choose from and higher quality shoes, but they can also analyze your stride and your feet via computer. They can tell you what shoes will be best for you based on their analysis. (You can also become a member. This actually gets you cool stuff for less money and if you buy 5 pairs of shoes a year you may get a 6th pair for free!! Check them out for details).
You can also analyze your feet the old fashioned by lightly wetting the bottom of your feet and stepping onto some paper. This will tell you whether you have high or low arches so you can get the right shoes for your feet. Take care of your feet even when you’re not running, they have to last you a very long time. Now is the time to start finding comfortable race day shoes and running in them.
Stay healthy out there and happy training!
10K Runners
You must first register with the
MCM.
Then you may fundraise on behalf of the IMSFF by creating your own
fundraising page. Please contact
jholland.semperfifund@gmail.com
***If you have questions regarding the MCM or Fundraising, please contact us at info@semperfifund.org..***
*No Federal or Marine Corps endorsement of advertisers or sponsors is implied.*
