Brad Sandefur is a trainer who works at NAS Whidbey Island’s Gym and Fitness Center. One of his duties is to teach people to run and judging from his class Wednesday morning, he does it well. Several people showed up for his Wednesday morning speed training class where they stretch and hop and kick and sprint with their knees up. They looked expectant.

Sandefur also teaches people to run in the half-marathon, 13.1 miles to be exact, during the Whidbey Island Marathon slated this year for April 10. The group is called the NAS Whidbey Marathon Training Club and has about 35 members.

The club is something that Sandefur clearly enjoys.

“We have been doing it for about five years and it keeps getting larger,” Sandefur said. “There are beginner runners in the group that don’t think they can do it, but they do. Our goal is we don’t concentrate on time — the goal is to finish.”

Sandefur, a former Marine, looks like he could still work out with Marine Corps men and women though his days in the service were more than 20 years ago.

With the NAS Whidbey Training Club, he assesses each runnerís abilities, breaks them into groups according to experience, and starts them running. Much of the running during the week takes place on the Seaview Trail, a 3.3 marked jogging trail that borders the base.

On the weekend, the Marathon Training Club also does rural runs, three to six miles. Sandefur adds on a mile of distance to the course each week. About 10 members of the 35 runners in Snadefur’s running class participate in the Whidbey half-marathon.

The members are pretty well divided, half are active duty and have are retirees, half are men and half are women.

Sandefur said besides the obvious health benefits, running delivers a payoff that everyone can appreciate.

“The weather might be crummy and you don’t feel like going out but after you’ve run, you get a payoff and you’re glad you ran,” Sandefur said.