Nov 6, 2012 2 min read

Unable to run the Army Ten-Miler in Washington, D.C., because of his deployment, a Bentleyville military man recently completed the race at a more rugged location.

Sgt. Joey Stafford took part in a 10-mile shadow run Oct. 14 at Forward Operating Base Fenty in Jalalabad, Afghanistan. The base was one of 17 locations across the world that hosted a companion race to the U.S. Army’s premier running event, which aims to build morale, support fitness and bolster community relations.

“Overall, it was a good experience, and I think everyone should at some point in time partake in the Army Ten-Miler,” Stafford said during a video interview with a military reporter.

Stafford called the race “very tiring” and said he trained for it by running laps on the weekends with a fellow soldier, which made things a “little bit easier.”

Spc. Jake Widmann of Marshville, Wis., also ran the race at FOB Fenty.

“A lot of it’s mental,” he said. “Even though I was ready to give up and my legs were dead tired, I think that if you tell yourself you can keep going and push yourself, your body is willing and able to do it.”

Widmann credited the day’s cool weather for making the race enjoyable.

Back in the states, the main event was held Oct. 21 at Fort Lesley J. McNair with a race course that started and ended at the Pentagon as well as ran through the nation’s capital, according to a news release. All of the event’s proceeds went to the Army’s Morale, Welfare and Recreation fund. Over the past few decades, the race has grown from about 1,400 runners in 1985 to 30,000 today with participants from all 50 states.