PUBLISHED 09/25/2006
The Soldier: Major William Maples
Major William Maples, a six-time finisher of California's Badwater Ultramarathon, couldn't make the event this year because he had what might be called a conflict in his schedule: He was deployed in Iraq.
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| ©Patrik Giardino |
So on July 14 he ran his own version of the 135-mile race, mapping out a 10.4-mile loop around the perimeter of Camp Taqaddum. Maples, 40, a Dallas native, completed the "Iraqi Badwater" in 37 hours and 59 minutes, sprinting the last 100 feet through a toilet-paper finish line. Badwater officials sent Maples a race bib, and fellow marines ran short legs with him. He stopped only once, at 60 miles, when enemy rockets landed nearby. "People reach the age of 25 and stop challenging themselves," Maples says. "I don't see any reason to do that." But his effort wasn't merely an individual pursuit. He asked family and friends at home to support him by sending school supplies for Iraqi children. In August, 52 boxes arrived at Camp Taqaddum and were distributed to local villages.
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