Marine Struggles Across The Finish Line Of The Boston Marathon To Honor His Fallen Friends

Chaps4/15/2019 8:39 PM

The story of this Marine is really touching. If you haven’t seen it, here’s some of the background.

As Micah Herndon opened his eyes, nothing was in focus.
His ears were filled with a deafening ring that consumed him.
His body was limp and numb.
“I felt like a broken, stretched out Slinky,” Herndon said.
His United States Marine Corps vehicle had just been the target of a 50-pound improvised explosive device (IED) as part of the Invasion of Marjah in Afghanistan in 2010.
The blast lifted Herndon from his Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) combat vehicle’s gun turret and violently slammed his head back into the vehicle, knocking him unconscious.
A three-minute absence followed and when Herndon finally opened his eyes, he naturally — and frantically — looked himself over for injuries.
“Do I have my legs? Do I have arms? Where am I bleeding?”
Much of the experience was a blur, but Herndon said he can remember his doctor, “Doc Gibson,” hovering over him to check his vitals.
And a song from the doctor’s music device slowly began to push the ringing out of his ears.
The song was soft and it was soothing.
“I honestly do not know why or how, but the song ‘In the Arms of an Angel’ by Sarah McLachlan came on,” Herndon said. “I still can’t believe it. It was one of the happiest moments of my life. It was a mixture of crying and laughing at the same time, knowing I had just survived something that was set out to kill me.”
It was the third IED that had hit Herndon’s Lava Dogs marine division during his deployment to Afghanistan.
The first was a 400-pound IED that hit the seventh vehicle of his convoy that killed his dear friends Mark Juarez and Matthew Ballard, along with British journalist Rupert Hamer, whom Herndon’s division was protecting.
The second IED hit Herndon’s vehicle directly, but miraculously did not detonate at its intended power because of a blasting cap that malfunctioned and allowed for a severe tragedy to be averted.
“For some reason, even after being hit twice, I am still here,” Herndon said. “My family was my strength while I was gone. After things happen, those emotions sit in you and it makes you realize how important family truly is.”
Herndon’s return home was far from the script Hollywood often crafts.
While his family lovingly embraced him, Herndon found struggles in returning to normal daily routines.
“I went from being in a war zone one day to trying to live a normal life the next day,” he said. “We were going on three or more missions a day, constantly on guard and when I got back home, I was still in that mode. I never will be able to get over it, I don’t think, but I am coping. I am trying to get rid of the demons.”
But running has never truly been about Herndon.
He admits to getting curious looks as he runs by competitors, as he repeats the names “Juarez, Ballard, Hamer” over and over again.
They are his reminder that he is not running for himself.
“I run in honor of them,” Herndon said. “They are not here anymore. I am here, and I am able. I am lucky to still have all my limbs. I can still be active. I find fuel in the simple idea that I can run. Some cannot.
“I feel like if I am not running, then I am doing something wrong with my life,” Herndon said. “If I get a heat cramp while running or my feet hurt or I am getting exhausted, I just keep saying their names out loud to myself. They went through much worse, so I run for them and their families.”

Such an incredible story and it allows me to explain a reason that Dave Portnoy and I get along so well. Lots of people don’t get that Marines bust each other’s balls or tits all the time. After listening to over 156 episodes of Zero Blog Thirty, Dave gets that and values it.

It’s what makes him special. So, thanks for bringing this story to our attention, Dave. Without your twitter account, many people wouldnt know the story. Semper Fi. Brick by Brick. Step by step.

You can catch up with Dave and be an active listener right here!