Micah Herndon was not willing to quit. Even if it meant crawling the last few feet of the Boston Marathon on his hands and knees, inches at a time. He had someone to fight for.
Several other veterans competed in the Boston Marathon on Tuesday, all determined to finish their mission.
The 26-mile Boston Marathon can be grueling for some. But Micah Herndon was willing to do whatever it took to cross the finish line.
Herndon, a former lead machine-gunner in the Marine Corps' "Lava Dogs" division, was running to honor three Marines he served with who died in Afghanistan in 2010, the Ohio Record-Courier first reported.
"I run in honor of them," Herndon told the Record-Courier. "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.
"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."
Herndon finished with a time of 3 hours and 38 minutes.