Marathon winners run for more than personal victory

  • Published
  • By James Baker
  • Skywrighter Staff
WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio --  The 2007 United States Air Force Marathon proved to be an historic occurrence as Josh Cox from San Diego blazed the course with a time of 2 hours, 20 minutes and 57 seconds. His time eclipsed the old marathon record of 2:27.41 set by Andrew Herr in 1998. 

In addition to breaking the course record, the 32-year-old qualified for the Nov. 3 Olympic Trials in New York City's Central Park. In order to qualify for the prestigious event, he had to finish in less than 2:22. 

"It was great. I pretty much ran the race I planned to, so it was a perfect day for me," said Cox. 

Cox was very emotional upon the conclusion of the race which he dedicated to his late father, Donald Cox. The marathon winner said he took off six months last year to spend time at his bedside as he battled cancer. 

"I ran this race for my dad, who passed away this year," Cox said. "I'm very thankful for the gifts God has given me. I'm not the owner of the gifts, just the bearer.
"I needed this (Olympic) qualifier for him. I wouldn't have traded those six months with him for anything." 

Cox decided to run the marathon only days in advance and cited the near-perfect running weather and camaraderie of the Air Force for reasons he chose the course to make his bid for the Olympic trials. 

"I looked at the 10-day forecast for this race and noticed how nice it was supposed to be," he said. "I immediately contacted the necessary people to get me here and I was on a plane to Dayton." 

He led from start to finish and finished nearly 11 minutes ahead of his nearest competitor, Chuck Engle. 

"It was a great, challenging course and an awesome training run," said Cox. 

While the male winner was confident he would cross the finish line first, the female champion couldn't have been more surprised when she found out she was victorious. 

Second Lieutenant Karissa Goodrich of Goodfellow Air Force Base in San Angelo, Texas, finished with a time of 3:06.54, eclipsing her own personal best by a half-hour and further surprising herself by qualifying for the Boston Marathon. 

"It was a nice, open course with ideal conditions," said the 22-year old. "I was stunned when I found out I won. I attribute training in the hot weather of Texas for the success I had today.
"It's amazing to be the first one in. It is a forward step in my running career, that's for sure." 

Goodrich ran with her father, Col. Scott Goodrich, when she was 14. After running her third marathon, he recently told her he would like to try his first, starting a friendly family rivalry. 

"He can't have his daughter show him up, so he decided he had to run at least one in his lifetime," she said.