Fort Benning, Ga. - The Army 10-miler is Oct. 4 in Washington, D.C., and it\'s already sold out at 30,000 participants, but there is still a chance to compete. The Directorate of Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation will have two more 10-miler time trial qualifiers at 7 a.m. Friday and July 25 at Santiago Gym on Sand Hill.
There are openings on both the mixed and male teams, which will represent Fort Benning. Lori Smith, director of DFMWR fitness facilities, is looking for eight runners for the male team and two women and five men for the mixed team. Smith wants to find males who can run the 10-miler on the Benning course in less than 60 minutes and females who can run it in less than 70 minutes.
"The course at Fort Benning has many rolling hills - it's definitely not a course for beginners," Smith said. "If they can run this course and especially in the middle of a Georgia summer, they can definitely run the course in Washington in October."
Aaron Totten-Lancaster ran a 10-miler qualifier Saturday at Santiago Gym and ended with a time of 56:26:40. Lancaster, who ran the Army 10-miler in 2006, said the Fort Benning course is more difficult than the D.C. course because of the hills.
"The Fort Benning course is hilly so you can't see very far ahead," he said. "Runners will be able to run at least two or three minutes faster on the D.C. course if they stay in shape. And the D.C. course goes by faster because it's a scenic route."
Runners in the 10-miler will pass by the Pentagon, Smithsonian, Lincoln Memorial, U.S. Capitol, Potomac River and Arlington National Cemetery. Nate Pennington, who posted a time of 55:16:70 at the 10-miler qualifier Saturday, said the Army 10-miler is like the "Super Bowl for road racing."
He competed in the Army 10-miler in 2004 and already has a spot on a 10-miler team with the World Class Athlete Program but is at Fort Benning for Basic Officer Leadership Course II. Pennington ran in the qualifier to train for the 10-miler.
"Running 10 miles is a mental game," he said. "You have to stay positive and keep yourself motivated to get to the finish line."
His goal for this year is to be in the top five at the 10-miler.
The qualifiers are open to active-duty, activated reservists and activated National Guardsmen and there is no entry fee. Registration is at 6:30 a.m.
For more information, e-mail Smith at Lori.Smith6@us.army.mil.
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