Had the opportunity Sunday to attend the 38th running of the Marine Corps Marathon and watch my son Charles and his partner Margy finish the course. I had lived in the Washington, DC area for most of my life and was here when this started in 1976 but this is the first time I’ve ever gone done to the river front and the Mall to watch it being run.

The first few years this “Peoples’ Marathon” was not heavily subscribed but that’s changed over time. Early on its runners numbered in the hundreds; today there were more than 30,000 registered and traversing the route that runs through a section of Arlington, across the Potomac and into Rock Creek Park, past the Lincoln Memorial and down the Mall before turning south back across the river to Crystal City and then back north past the Pentagon and finishing near Roslyn in the shadow of the Marine Corps Iwo Jima Memorial. A mostly flat topography but 26.2 miles is still 26.2 miles.

The weather was incredible. Started out a bit chilly and overcast but the sun was soon shining and the temps rising into the mid 50’s. And no wind – a boon to runners and spectators alike.

I have to admit I shot about 600 images but in events of this type it’s difficult to get by on single takes of anything. For your viewing pleasure I paired the lot down to manageable volume. You can click-through on the images above or just click here.