Army-Navy Ball Run
4-6 Dec., 2008
West Point - Philadelphia

As featured in the Philadelphia Inquirer!
(Click here to view article.)

In the lead-up to the 109th Army-Navy Football Game, we took part in the classic inter-Academy rivalry through our own beloved tradition, the Army-Navy Ball Run.

In this proud and unique way of supporting the Army Team, the West Point Marathoners relayed the game ball non-stop from the US Military Academy at West Point, NY, down the eastern seaboard, all the way into the fighting city of Philadelphia -- the City of Brotherly Love and the very cradle of American independence.

The Ball-Run began during a Thursday night pep rally, when the game ball was delivered to the team via OH-58 Kiowa helicopter. The team ran through a cordon and began on their mission.

Under state police escort, running day and night, these Army athletes passed through New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, along both major and minor roadways. A total distance of over 150 miles, each runner typically ran between ten and twenty miles.

The run concluded at the start of the football game this Saturday at Lincoln Financial Field, when the team ran onto the field and presented the ball to the Army football players.

In recognition of this awesome tradition, the West Point Marathon Team was featured that Friday on 1210 AM (WPHT, The Michael Smerconish Show), in the Philly Inquirer, on CBS3 News, and on the stadium jumbo-tron!