Collegiate Times

The Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets Raider Company ran 233 miles in 39 hours -- finishing yesterday -- to honor the 233rd birthday of the Marine Corps. The Raider Company is a Marine Officer Development program for those in the Corps' Marine option.

The United States Marine Corps was founded on Nov. 10, 1775 at Tun Tavern in Philadelphia, Pa., by decree of the Second Continental Congress. The Marines' motto is "Semper Fidelis," which means "always faithful." It's an expression every Marine takes to heart.

"We as Marines are unique, we are a very close knit group," said Maj. Christopher Westhoff, a Marine officer instructor in the Raider Company, "The 10th of November is a sacred day for the Marines; this is one of the traditions that you keep sacred."

This was the second year that the company has organized this kind of memorial. Starting Saturday afternoon at 3 p.m., a pair of runners from the company would begin a six-mile run every hour. After the hour mark, the two passed the guidon flag to the next pair, which was waiting at the War Memorial Pylons.  In total, 59 people ran in the event.

Each group started at the Pylons and ran up Kent Street, turned right onto Washington Street, ran past Cassell Coliseum, and made a right at the roundabout. They then ran down past the Drillfield, then right up the hill past Burruss until they reached the Pylons again.  Every hour each pair would make four laps along the same course, which totals right around six miles. They had to make sure that they did it in exactly an hour or less so that they would be on time to pass the Raider Company guidon flag to the next group.

Each individual pair would represent a certain number of years in the history, with the first pair representing years between 1775 and 1781 and the next pair representing 1781 to 1787, and so on. On top of running the six miles in one hour's time, they did their run in boots and uniforms.

"I think that the run physically affects various people in a multiple ways," said James Nilan a senior political science major in the Raider Company. "It certainly was not easy to run, but I think that we were glad that we could get out there and continue a great tradition."

The final five miles of the 233-mile run were completed between 5 a.m. and 6 a.m. Monday morning as the entire Raider Company and Naval Battalion ran throughout campus as a group in formation. They finally finished their run at Shultz dining hall with a cake cutting celebration.

"To me, the run means sacrifice," said Christina Devereux, a sophomore history major who's a member of the Raider Company. "Marines who came before us all sacrificed something to do their jobs well, whether it was time, sweat or blood.  For us to do this 233 (mile) run, we all had to sacrifice a little of our time and sweat as well.  It was just the right thing to do."