Meet Marine Corps Marathon Winner, Army Captain and West Potomac Grad Kelly Brown Calway

West Potomac High School graduate Kelly Brown Calway was the first female finisher in the 2013 Marine Corps Marathon last month.

Calway, who has a 6-year-old daughter, is also a Captain in the U.S. Army and is currently stationed in Kuwait. Mount Vernon Patch caught up with her in an email interview to talk about her win.  

She finished the race in 2 hours 42 minutes and 15 seconds. 

So can you tell me about yourself? 

I'm a Captain in the Army and am married to another Army Captain, we have a six year old daughter.

I'm an Army brat, so I've love all over the country. I lived in Northern Virginia twice and attended Stratford Landing (6th grade (1995-1996), Carl Sandberg (1996-1998), and West Potomac (2000-2002). 

How long have you been a competitive runner?

I've been running competitively since third grade! Over 21 years!

What attracts you to running?

I love the challenge. I always have.

When did you start training for the Marine Corps Marathon? Have you run the marathon before? How many times?

I am basically always training, but really started focusing on this marathon in June. I have run the MCM once before in 2008.

What did you do to prepare for the marathon? How many miles would you say you ran a week?

I train 7 days a week, 1-2 times per day. Each week consisted of 2 speed workouts and a long run (16-22 miles).  I gradually increased my mileage to 85 miles per week in preparation for the marathon.

Can you talk about race day?

I had a few goals for the race: qualify for the 2016 Olympic Marathon Trials, win the Armed forces Marathon championship, and have fun (because it was going to be my last race before deploying).

My coach and I created a race strategy about a week out from the race. Over the week I visualized the marathon and mentally practiced the race plan: go out in control around a 6:05 pace and hold that until mile 12. Then, if I felt good, dip down to a 6:00 min mile.

Race day was the perfect conditions for a marathon. The weather was excellent, the race support was great, there were tons of fabulous spectators on the course. Running around the Capitol and all of the monuments was very inspiring.

While you were running in the marathon, was it clear during the race that you were a front runner?

Yes. I knew where I was right from the start. I had a teammate who was ahead of me for the first 10k, but rather than start out too hard, I decided to keep her in sight and reel her in. So I let her go and did just that at about 10k.  From that point on, I knew I was in the lead.

What was it like when you crossed the finish line?

It was awesome!!! I was so happy to break the tape, stop running, and represent the US Army and my family!  It was my first major marathon win and I was so proud!  

How did you celebrate the win?

I didn't have too much time to celebrate. I had to fly home at 0600 the next morning and pack up for my deployment. I was able to visit with my daughter (she's living with my parents while I'm gone) and present her with the trophy which was a wonderful celebration.

Do you plan on running in the marathon again?

Definitely!