MORGANTOWN — Saturday was “hump day” but not in the mid-week blues kind of way. Veterans and friends hit the pavement for the first-ever Veterans Hump on the rail-trail in Sabraton.
A “hump” is exercise that includes carrying weight according to Marines.
Clif VanGilder co-founded Motown Marines alongside Mike Quick. He said his organization has participated in the Morgantown Marathon for the past two years, however it wasn’t cost effective.
“We decided to use the rail-trail and do all this on the side and we were able to do this event for veterans for free,” he said.
VanGilder said some people trained and ran for a couple weeks, but some people just go with the flow.
CJ Ghuste, founder of Operation Activet was a co-sponsor of the 8k Saturday. Ghuste said the two organizations share the same cause, so it’s easy to work together.
“It’s a great partnership, really, as far as I can tell. It’s easy for us to get together. We’re on the phone everyday making sure things are happening the way they’re supposed to happen,” said Ghuste.
VanGilder said the hump drew about 85 veterans and participants. Eight kilometers is around 5.6 miles.
“Some people ran, some people humped. We did it in about an hour,” said VanGilder.
Ghuste said one vet finished in 55 minutes, carrying 45 pounds on his back.
Though their missions are not exactly the same, Ghuste said they resonate in similar ways. Motown Marines does color guards and funeral details. Operation Activet brings together vets for camping trips, paintball and other activities.
“For us to come together, it lined up perfectly,” said Ghuste.
The two veterans hope to build on their partnership and host another Veterans Hump next year. They thanked Classics 3 for their generosity.
“We want to get more businesses. We thank Mona Supply and several other people that have helped make this successful, but next year we hope to get more people in the community in Morgantown involved,” said VanGilder.
Ghuste, whose organization has been active for a little over a year, said through the summer he plans to host more paintball meet-ups and tailgates. He also has organized a veteran’s softball team.
When the weather cools down bowling is on the agenda, and he’s working with Defense in Depth to get some range time for the veterans. A Veterans Bash is also in the on the agenda.
“We’ve got a lot of stuff in the works. One thing at a time,” said Ghuste.
Ghuste said the community supports both organizations so much and the things they do.
“We just wish that more veterans’ organizations in this town would work together, and that’s our mission. ’Cause there’s a lot of veterans’ organization that do a lot of different things,” said VanGIlder.
“Nobody’s doing the same thing. We hope someday they can cross over and work together and have a partnership.”
