South Fayette police, employees running marathon relay
Mike Benton (front) preps his dog on a lighted leash to lead the way on a pre-dawn three-mile run.
(From left) Police chief John Phoennik, township manager Ryan Eggleston and police seargent John Leininger stretch in Bridgeville cul de sac.
The team printed out last year’s course to approximate their divvied routes. Their names and respective distances are printed at the top.
Streetlights, car headlights and a lighted leash: the only illumination on this frigid, pre-dawn training run.
The Dick’s Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon relay usually requires a five-member team to plod along its 26.2 mile route through Pittsburgh neighborhoods. But come race day on May 3, it’ll be a four-man team from South Fayette hitting the pavement with its oldest runner racing two legs – part of the second one and the last five miles. Township engineer Mike Benton, 60, said it’ll be a logistical challenge.
“I’ve done something like this before, but it’s still going to be tough getting from the South Side over to Bloomfield,” he said. He’s currently slated to run a 3.5 mile stretch after taking the baton from the lead-off runner – police Chief John Phoennik – then darting over to Bloomfield to anchor the last 4.7 miles.
Benton was the one to organize the team, comprised of Phoennik, 50, Sargent John Leininger, 31, and township manager Ryan Eggleston, 33. He said he’s organized a running group or race team with co-workers at every site of employment since he was out of the Marine Corps in the 1980s.
“I spent 13 and a half years in the Marines. Running is just natural there. I did the Marines marathon in the 1990s, but I’ve never really adequately trained for any one race,” Benton said.
Perhaps Benton is being humble. He and the others met before dawn on Jan. 23 for their first group run at his Bridgeville home. The group stretched in the 20-degree weather before setting out on a 3-mile course over hilly suburban streets. Leininger, an Army veteran, also said running isn’t unusual for him.
“I’ve done the Tough Mudder Race in St. Clairsville, Ohio, the past two years. But this is the first kind of straight-distance race I’ve run outside of a 5K here and there,” he said.
Also no stranger to early-morning training were two dogs: Eggleston’s Australian shepherd and Benton’s boxer-mix, pulling the men along with lighted leashes to guide them in the dark.
“We’ve brought them out on our runs since summer,” Eggleston said, explaining that he and Benton have been keeping a modest training schedule on their own.
“For South Fayette to have a team is very exciting for race day, but it’s also helping at the office. It’s building a team atmosphere. We’re certainly proud that this shows camaraderie and team-building,” Eggleston said.
South Fayette is eligible to be designated a Live Well community from Allegheny County in 2015, and Eggleston said this is proof-positive of leading by example when it comes to health and wellness.
As for race day, some are more excited than others.
“You talk to most people and they can’t tell you the day they’re going to die. Well, I know when I am. It’s May 3rd,” Phoennik said with a laugh. “I’m a big guy. So I’m treating this as a challenge to get in shape and lose some weight.”
Phoennik has 5.5 miles to cover when he starts off with the baton, but each runner made it clear they’re not out to win it and they’re only competing against themselves.
“There’s no shame in walking,” Benton said.