From the Capital Gazette:
Michael Dingham waited until he was 40 to run his first
marathon. Since he's now pushing 50, he figured it was time for another first.
The
Davidsonville father of four will be one of the privileged 36,000 runners to
compete in the Boston Marathon on April 20. The race is one of the
premier running competitions in the world and attention has increased
exponentially since the bombings there in 2013.
Entry
into the event is a coveted opportunity for many of the nation's most
passionate runners. It's one of those rare events where ordinary athletes get
to rub elbows with the elite of their sport. It's sort of like being asked to
try out your beltway-driving skills in the Daytona 500.
Most runners have to post an age-group
qualifying time to gain entry to the race.
Dingham,
49, earned his first trip to the historic 118-year-old race as part of the
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute team.
The
government contract worker will be running to raise funds for cancer research
in honor of a former co-worker, Cindy Scott, who is battling cancer for the
third time.
His
goal is to raise $15,000 and he's already two-thirds of the way to
accomplishing that mission.
"Boston
is definitely one of the premier marathons,'' said Dingham, who has been
running about 50 miles a week in preparation for the 26.2-mile event.
"It's a race that has a tremendous amount of culture associated with it
and a lot of emotion since the bombings. It will be a great experience to
combine that with an inspirational cause to support a good friend.''
Dingham
will be running with a friend from New Hampshire, Dick Correa, and plans to
make the event a special trip for his wife and four children.
"It's
a chance to do something for a good cause and spend some time with family and
friends,'' he said.
While
he is relatively new to marathon running, Dingham isn't a novice at the sport.
He regularly can be spotted cruising the rural roads of Davidsonville four to
five times a week. He competed in triathlons and a couple of half marathons
before giving the longer distance a try.
"I
kind of got suckered into the Marine Corps Marathon,'' said Dingham of the
Washington, D.C., event he completed in about 4½ hours 10 years ago.
He's
not looking to set any age-group records or keep up with the elite runners in
Boston.
"I'm
a finisher, not a speedster,'' he said with a chuckle.
The
fact that the event will be run in the shadow of the penalty phase of the trial
of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev for the bombings at the 2013 Boston
Marathon isn't lost on Dingham.
He
spent more than 20 years working with defense contractor Lockheed-Martin and regularly traveled to Iraq,
Afghanistan and Africa. He has two adopted sons from Liberia and a healthy
knowledge of the global dangers of terrorism.
"I've
spent a good part of my professional career working with military personnel and
first responders,'' he said. "I think I have a good perspective on
terrorist threats. This race and the emotions surrounding it bring home the
freedoms and luxuries that we have in this country. It's not always safe in
other parts of the world and a lot of people don't have an appreciation for the
freedoms that we have in this country.''
But
when he's out on the course, running the streets of Boston, Dingham isn't
likely to be thinking of global terrorism. He'll be engrossed in a sport that
most running enthusiasts treasure because of its cathartic ability to clear the
mind.
"It's
very relaxing to get out of the house, gather your thoughts and just slow
down,'' he said of his mindset while on his training runs. "With four kids
at home, sometimes I need that.''
He
played a little baseball and basketball in high school growing up in southern
New Jersey, but didn't discover the joys of open-road running until later in
life.
Now
he's fully committed to maintaining his fitness level and supporting a good
cause.
