This past sunday, October 22nd, the Stockton Track and Field Team volunteered at the annual Atlantic City Marathon. The course is a qualifier for the New York and Boston marathons so the large turnout was expected, and there was a half marathon race for runners who wanted something less extreme.

In addition there was a 5k race to honor Stockton’s own G. Larry James on saturday.

It started off as an early morning, the stockton team bus left from Big Blue at six in the morning in order to make it to the start/finish line by a reasonable time. The races all began at eight, and about 15 of my teammates were needed to finish setting up the area. I personally stayed on the bus with around ten other kids and we drove south to Margate, where the runners would be starting mile 19 and turning around at mile 20 to head back to AC.

Our job there was to cheer and encourage these incredible people as loudly as we could! The distance between mile 19 and 20 is where most marathoners “hit the wall,” a colloquialism that means the breaking point. From here until the finish line at 26.2 miles, human bodies are essentially cannibalizing themselves to sustain their energy output. And it hurts. A lot.

We also had water, gatorade, and italian ice for the runners to stay hydrated and keep their blood sugar up.

The first two runners passed by us around 9:50 in the morning, which we calculated to be a five minute and thirty second mile pace. This is incredible for how long they sustained this, and considering they were able to pick up this pace for the last four miles. Despite being ridiculously good athletes, the marathoners in first and second looked to be friends and even shared a water cup between them. It was adorable. The third runner to pass us, the track coach from Stevens University, passed us a few minutes later, and from there the crowds began to filter through.

It was a chaotic cacophony of “WATER WATER, GATORADE,” “GOOD JOB KEEP RUNNING KEEP THAT FIGHT UP,” and loud pop music blaring from the speaker stationed behind the water table, but it was one of the best mornings I’d had in a long time. The runners were incredible people, and it felt good to see them smile at one of us dancing or have them cheer along with us. These people have so much reserve to them.

One of my favorite parts was watching the pacers run by, usually with a group surrounding them. It’s cool to think that these people have run enough marathons, know their bodies so well, and are confident in their skills to be able to run exactly the time boldly displayed on their sign. To be able to know you can finish at exactly three hours and fifteen minutes is unthinkable to me.

The biggest takeaway of the day for me was seeing the unbreakable spirit people have. Their bodies are literally breaking down and they would run by with a smile on their face as happily ask for gatorade. It’s an indescribable feeling, and it pushes me to want to run a marathon myself.

Maybe. Eventually.

The start line of the AC Marathon. Runners are just beginning the 5k race.