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Stow native, other soldiers compete in shadow race at Camp Victory; officials provide shirts, banners
By Jim Carney
Beacon Journal staff writer
Published on Thursday, Sep 25, 2008
In one sense, the Road Runner Akron Marathon — expected to draw nearly 10,000 participants to the city Saturday — already has been run.
Half a world away, in the Iraqi desert heat, 260 soldiers competed in what was called a shadow Road Runner Akron Marathon on Sept. 14.
''We had people crying'' because they were thrilled to take part in a race linked to home, said 37-year-old 1st Sgt. Carl Berg, a 1990 graduate of Stow-Munroe Falls High School.
The race at Camp Victory in Baghdad was a half-marathon, and Berg ran it in one hour and 50 minutes.
''This is the greatest thing,'' he said.
Berg said officials at the Road Runner Akron Marathon sent the soldiers T-shirts and starting- and finishing-line banners for the shadow race.
''All of them loved it and thanked Akron,'' he said.
The race in Iraq started at 5 a.m. so that runners could benefit from the cooler temperatures of early morning. By the end of that day, temperatures were in the 100-degree range, he said.
Berg first served in Iraq during the Gulf War and now is serving there for the second time. He is based at Fort Drum, N.Y., where his wife, Amy Billick Berg, a Stow native, and their four children live.
His mother, Laurie Fueston, of Munroe Falls, said she is proud of her son.
''I think it is great,'' she said, of the shadow marathon.
Berg, whose current Iraq tour began in May and ends in September 2009, joined the Army just a few months after graduation from high school.
He said the mission of his unit — the headquarters company of the 10th Mountain Division — is to ''professionalize the Iraqi security force, to defeat terrorist organizations, professionalize the government and help them transition to a self-sustaining country.''
Berg said he hopes the soldiers' participation in the Iraq shadow race will help the Akron marathon.
''You can never be home while you are here,'' he said, ''but during the hour and 50 minutes you are running, you aren't thinking, 'God, how many more days 'til I go home?' You are actually enjoying yourself.''
Anne Bitong, executive director of the Road Runner Akron Marathon, said officials of the race ''are honored that the troops selected our race for their shadow run.''
We have some ''amazing men and women serving our country, and it is heartwarming to know that the Road Runner Akron Marathon was able to provide a connection to home'' for those who took part, she said.
To see videos of soldiers who took part in the marathon, go to http://www.dvidshub.net/?script=general/general_search.php&table=video&query=akron+marathon&type.
Jim Carney can be reached at 330-996-3576 or jcarney@thebeaconjournal.com.
In one sense, the Road Runner Akron Marathon — expected to draw nearly 10,000 participants to the city Saturday — already has been run.
Get the full article here.
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