First-Timers Win 33rd Running of Marine Corps Marathon

By Tim Hipps
Special to American Forces Press Service

Oct. 28, 2008 - First-time marathoners with strong military ties won the men's and women's open divisions of the 33rd Marine Corps Marathon on Oct. 26. Andrew Dumm, 23, of Washington, D.C., won the men's race with a time of 2 hours, 22 minutes, 42 seconds.

He was recruited by his older brother, fifth-place finisher Air Force 1st Lt. Brian Dumm, 25, who is stationed at Molesworth Air Force Base in England, and their father, Kenneth, to make his 26.2-mile race debut in "The People's Marathon." They also were joined at several points on the course by their oldest brother, Tim, who ran onto the streets to urge them along.

Cate Fenster, 37, of Wooster, Ohio, and the daughter of a former Army Ranger, won the women's division with a time of 2:39:32. "I was crying in pain coming up that last hill, the last 200 yards," Fenster said.

She held off runner-up Lindsay Wilkins to win the women's race by 11 seconds.

"At Mile 26, I was crying. I felt good for most of the way, but about Mile 20, I could feel the bricks coming," Fenster said. "I was kind of shocked to win. I'm on Cloud 9."

Fenster is a neurobiology and physiology instructor at the College of Wooster on assignment at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Md. She was born in Frankfurt, Germany, and remembers running with her father through boot camp-like training exercises as a girl.

"On the weekends, dad would always want to go out on some adventure," Fenster recalled of her father, Gary Pichon, who she said served in the Army from 1969 through 1973. "You always had to end up freezing or crying or cold or hungry or caught in some crazy storm for it to be complete. So my husband is always telling me, 'We are not going on one of your dad's-style adventures.' Dad doesn't do those adventures any more, though, because he's 62. He's slowed down some."

Andrew Dumm also slowed down some during the second half of the race, but he managed to win by 1 minute, 10 seconds over runner-up Fred Joslyn, 24, of Rochester, Mich., who finished in 2:23:52.

"I knew it was my first [marathon], and I knew it was going to be OK if I hit the wall, because you usually do in your first marathon," Andrew said. "So I was expecting and fearing that would happen, but being my first marathon also freed me up a little bit to make kind of a bold move."

Brian Dumm, a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy, was elated to watch his brother Andrew, a University of Virginia graduate, run to victory.

"When he took off and went to the front, I couldn't have been happier for him," Brian said of Andrew, who holds the University of Virginia's second-fastest 10-kilometer time of 28:59, set at the Stanford Invitational. "We trade off the family records. I've got the 5K; he's got the 10K."

Brian won the armed forces division and finished sixth overall in the 2007 Marine Corps Marathon. This year, he finished second in the armed forces division.

The event that featured 18,281 runners and wheelchair finishers started and ended at the Marine Corps War Memorial and wound around several of Washington's most famous monuments. It marked the first time the Dumm brothers had run a race together since they were cross-country teammates at nearby Robinson Secondary School.

Army 2nd Lt. Kenneth Foster set the pace for a lead pack of five runners through the first 11 miles. He finished 10th overall in 2:29:59 and was the first Army soldier to cross the finish line.

"I just started running for the All-Army marathon team and this is my first Marine Corps Marathon," said Foster, 22, who ran four seasons of cross country for Mercyhurst College in Erie, Pa., where he holds the 10-kilometer school record of 33:25. "I'm also trying to qualify for the Army World Class Athlete Program."

Foster ran the 2006 Philadelphia Marathon in 2:43:41 and completed the 2007 chase around the City of Brotherly Love in 2:32:50. At Marine Corps, he knocked almost three more minutes off his personal-best time.

"I was on the lead pack for the first 12 miles – then my pace started to drift off, but I was really happy with the way I performed today," said Foster, whose sights are set on qualifying for the 2012 U.S. Olympic Marathon Team Trials. "That's been my goal ever since I was a freshman in college.

"When I was younger," he continued, "I was a little bit naïve, and I wanted to be the new Steve Prefontaine and dominate the 5K, but I just never had that turnover, so that led me to the marathon."

Andrew Dumm joined Foster in the lead pack during the sixth mile and made his winning move near the 12-mile mark while running in East Potomac Park along the Potomac River and around Hains Point.

"That's a pretty early spot for a move, but I just wanted to use Hains Point, because that's a little bit of a lonely stretch of the race to make a move," Dumm said. "It's a pretty good psychological area to do so."

Dumm surged past a stage band playing the theme song from "Rocky" near the 13.1-mile mark and maintained a 150-meter lead the rest of the way. He exchanged high-fives with his brother as they passed each other while running in opposite directions through Crystal City late in the race.

"I was actually pretty surprised at about the halfway point that I had a little bit of a gap," Andrew said. "Once I had that, and I had the crowd behind me, it was just a long 13 miles. Coming back to Crystal City, that is a long bridge with no water stops, no spectators, and a couple of hills.

"Once I got into Crystal City, I knew I had about five miles left and I could probably dig it out," he said. "Once I got across that physical and mental bridge, I knew I was going to be OK."

Navy Seaman Corey Duquette, 26, of Naval Air Station Pensacola, Fla., finished third overall and won the armed forces men's division with a time of 2:24:38; he was followed by Jaron Hawkins, 25, of Frostburg, Md., in 2:25:17; and Brian Dumm in 2:25:58.

Wilkins, 30, of Arlington, Va., finished second among women with a personal-best time of 2:49:04, and was followed by Melissa Tanner, 27, of Bethesda, Md.; Abigail Stiles, 28, of Newport, R.I.; and Rebekah Potts, of Chapel Hill, N.C.

"I cramped on the hill and just couldn't get that extra kick in," Wilkins said of running the final stretch. "I could see her. She was so close. I just didn't have that little extra."

Results of the 33rd running of the Marine Corps Marathon with names, ages, hometowns and times of the top 10 men's and women's finishers:

MEN
1. Andrew Dumm, 23, Washington, D.C., 2 hours, 22 minutes, 42 seconds;
2. Fred Joslyn, 24, Rochester, Mich., 2:23:52;
3. Corey Duquette, 26, Pensacola, Fla., 2:24:38;
4. Jaron Hawkins, 25, Frostburg, Md., 2:25:17;
5. Brian Dumm, 25, Fairfax, Va., 2:25:58;
6. Jose Mirando, 37, Mexico, 2:26:50;
7. Alejandro Valdez, 32, Mexico, 2:27:38;
8. William Christian, 25, APO, 2:27:54;
9. Michael Wardian, Arlington, Va., 2:28:24;
10. Kenneth Foster, Brookville, Pa., 2:29:59.

WOMEN
1. Cate Fenster, 37, Wooster, Ohio, 2:48:53;
2. Lindsay Wilkins, 30, Arlington, Va., 2:49:04;
3. Melissa Tanner, 27, Bethesda, Md., 2:51:43;
4. Abigail Stiles, 28, Newport, R.I., 2:54:45;
5. Rebekah Potts, 26, Chapel Hill, N.C., 2:55:42;
6. Mary Beth Muething, 30, Arlington, Va., 2:55:52;
7. Jaymee Marty, 41, Sacramento, Calif., 2:57:02;
8. Meghan Ridgeley, 29, Reston, Va., 2:58:03;
9. Shawna Wilskey, 36, Burlington, Wash., 2:58:04;
10. Jilane Rodgers, 24, Washington, D.C., 2:58:12.

(Tim Hipps works at the U.S. Army Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation Command.)