Graphic illustration by Mark Weckman

BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan — Running a marathon is grueling and arduous enough, but some of the braver of heart are not satisfied with the standard 26.22 miles long-distance race. Others just have to go that extra mile, if not an extra 23.78 miles.

Maj. Matthew Butler, Group Support company commander for 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne), happens to be one of those individuals. When deciding what to do for his 40th birthday, Butler to forgo the candles, cake and birthday cards and opted instead to run a 50-mile ultramarathon at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, June 24.

Anyone knows going into a challenge like this they would have to dig deep to push themselves through all 264,000 feet of the race, but Butler had a little extra motivation available to help him complete his trial. He knew that with every stride and every mile he was raising money for the Families of our nation’s most elite fallen heroes.

Butler decided it was only fitting to celebrate his 40th while honoring his fallen brothers by raising money for the Special Operations Warrior Foundation, which funds scholarships, helps with extra healthcare and provides counseling for the Families of special operations service members from every branch who have lost a warrior in direct combat.

“I have been asked many times why I am doing this,” Butler said. “There are two main reasons: One, to honor the sacrifice of my Special Forces brothers. Two, I would hope someone would do the same for my children.”

Butler has found a large source of motivation to draw inspiration from to propel him all those miles, but he also had a history of long-distance running and the experience that comes with it and he felt he was running out of time to put that experience to use.

“Several years ago, I ran marathons,” he said. “I had a goal of someday running an ultramarathon. So, I kind of had that lifelong goal, but as I got older, I stopped running marathons. I thought I was never going to run another, let alone an ultra. When I approached turning 40, I realized it’s now or never, and that I’m not getting any younger or any healthier.”
It’s easy to assume that Butler has some kind of deep affinity for running, but apparently, that is anything but the case.

“The Army is originally what got me into running,” he said. “I hated running. In fact, I still do.”
What he lacked in love, he made up for in preparation. He assembled a team that would help him keep his pace, provide him food and drinks and trail him in a vehicle to ward off any other speedy drivers. The day before the run, he and his pacers also enjoyed one last meal before beginning the run that consisted of pasta, mashed potatoes and gravy to provide the necessary carbohydrates to keep his energy levels up.

He would need every edge he could get. Running 50 miles is hard enough, but the conditions for any kind of a foot race are less than optimal at Bagram Airfield.

“The elevation, being 5,500 feet, limits your oxygen, the terrain is difficult because there are no smooth surfaces, potholes, rocks, gravel, uneven roads, different roads, no roads,” Butler said. “The traffic is awful. The roads are barely wide enough to accommodate two vehicles, let alone two semis and a runner. There’s dust and smoke from the trash incinerators. It’s all pretty brutal. You have to be careful.”

That’s why, even right up until the last minutes before the run, Butler and his crew took time to ensure all the equipment was up to speed, had one final stretching session under the guidance of a physical therapist and had one last safety brief. After that, they were off to the starting point.
A group of well wishers gathered at the back end of the airfield in the midnight darkness to wish Butler luck. He was appreciative, but remained distant. It was evident by the look in his eyes that he was focused on the mission.

Finally, midnight arrived and it was time to get underway. Armed with Irish drinking songs on his iPod, a GPS unit to keep an accurate track of how far he ran, experience and Families of the fallen to motivate him, Butler took the first stride of his 264,000-foot race.

The first three laps of the roughly nine-mile loop were relatively easy according to Butler. He had run the equivalent of a normal marathon on Bagram multiple times in preparation for his 50-mile trek. But the cool air eventually gave way to the desert sun that by the end of day would peak at a scorching 107 degrees.

Butler and his crew ran a 10-minute mile pace for about 24 miles. “It’s a pretty slow pace by most people’s standards,” Butler said. “But it was a conscious effort on our part to run a deliberately slow pace in order to preserve our energy.”

With almost half the race behind him, Butler took his first long break. The short, 10-minute break consisted of eating, drinking, stretching and medics doing what they could with all the blisters forming on his and other runners’ feet.

Butler knew going into challenge, there would be many “gut checks.” Lap four proved to be just that, causing him to drop his pace to 13-minutes-per-mile.

“So the majority of my concern was with laps four and five,” he said. “I was right. And so it was, lap four was a dark, painful ordeal. I really began to question my decision to do this, the reality of finishing, and my overall sanity level.”

“I tried to draw on every source of motivation I could think of. Family, special operations, fallen comrades, the Special Operations Warrior Foundations, Families who benefit from these types of events, personal experiences and sheer determination were what made up the majority of my thoughts.”

Butler kept pushing himself to take the next step, hoping the pain most of his body was feeling would eventually be replaced by numbness. It was his mind that went numb between laps four and five. “Somewhere during laps four and five, I lost track of where we were and laps started to blend into one another,” he said. “But by having the GPS, I was able to get a sanity/reality check at any time, just by asking.”

When he only had 10 miles left to go, he could see the end in sight. With three miles left to go though, bad blisters on his feet began to worsen. He could have stopped to tend to his wounds because he was about 45 minutes ahead of his goal of finishing the race in 12 hours.
As he approached the 50-mile finish line, well wishers gathered to cheer him on during his final steps.

He turned the corner and entered Camp Vance, headquarters of Combined Joint Special Operations Forces — Afghanistan. Shortly after, the GPS unit flashed 50-miles and the race was over, mission accomplished.

The symbolism wasn’t lost on anyone who gathered to congratulate him. It was to names of the men etched in the stone that propelled him the grind out those toughest miles. It was the Families of those men who would receive the $9,100 that had already been raised before Butler took his first step. If you are interested in learning more about the Special Operations Warrior Foundation, visit
www.specialops.org.