Going the extra mile - Warren member running marathon for charity

by Senior Airman Dan Gage
90th Missile Wing Public Affairs

7/20/2012 - F. E. WARREN AIR FORCE BASE, Wyo. -- In less than two months, 15,000 runners will converge on Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, for the 16th running of the Air Force Marathon.

Among the thousands stepping off the starting line will be one of Warren's own, Airman 1st Class Mark Currell, 319th Missile Squadron chef, as he raises money for the Air Force Enlisted Village.

Just three days before the 65th anniversary of the U.S. Air Force, Currell will join Air Force Global Strike Command's Elite team in his fundraising effort, and attempt to win the 26.2-mile race, which will travel through the National Museum of the United States Air Force, the Air Force Institute of Technology, Headquarters Air Force Materiel Command, the Wright-Patterson AFB flight line, Huffman Prairie Flying Field, and the Wright Brothers Memorial Monument.

Currell, who has been stationed here since March 2011, grew up in Washington where he ran competitively throughout high school and college. This will be his third marathon, but his first as a member of an AF team.

"Mark stepped up to the challenge of being our major command elite team member, representing our command and raising funds for the Air Force Enlisted Village," said Chief Master Sgt. Brian Hornback, AFGSC command chief. "His willingness to take the lead has placed him and our MAJCOM out front as the benchmark for this year's marathon teams."

Running for the AFGSC team came after some work according to Currell.

"I had been looking for a team earlier in the year but found I had missed the cut off," explained Currell. "After looking into a permissive temporary duty my supervisor told me about this opportunity. After that I went through my chain of command and here I am."

Currell is confident in his ability to win and raise money and awareness for the enlisted village.

"I wanted to do the AF Marathon in particular," said Currell. "I want to raise awareness in the base community of the benefits of staying active and running, and the ability to help other AF members is an added bonus."

Since arriving at Warren, Currell has become active in the Cheyenne community through running.

"I've always had a competitive mentality and love promoting the sport while helping people train," Currell added while discussing his volunteer work with a local high school track team.

"Unlike a lot of other organized sports, you don't need a team to go out and run," he said. "Running is a great lifetime sport and you can take it with you everywhere."

The ability to be versatile in training is a trait Currell now finds very useful.

"Being a missile chef involves a lot of travel to remote areas for extended periods," he explained. "My job keeps me busy, but I'm training whenever I can, when I'm not cooking or performing other duties around the missile alert facility.

"Every job has its ups and downs, and some people have a hard time traveling out to the field," Currell added. "Running can be a great way to improve yourself and makes it easier for me while in the field. I think it's good to change your training conditions up and I enjoy running on the gravel roads now as well."

Though the race is still two months away, Currell is confident in his ability, and is focusing his attention on fundraising efforts.

"Mark's a hard charging Airman," said Hornback. "He displays outstanding initiative and motivation to make a difference, and I am proud to have him on our team."