Biola senior Brandon Marx, one of three students who ran to Huntington Beach Saturday finds running is his catalyst for prayer and reflection.

“It brings me to a point of helplessness where I find myself relying on God in every step,” said Marx.

For Marx, becoming an avid runner was inspired by his father. Eventually growing to love the sport and competing with his father, he was at first pushed into it from his dad’s concern about his weight. “I was the typical 13-year-old fat kid who never did anything physically,” Brandon explained. “He forced me to run for nearly a year and it changed my life. He ran with me and stayed with me at my pace through the years, even though I slowed him down immensely.”

When Marx came to Biola in 2007 he was amazed at the close proximity of the Pacific after moving from Cleveland, Ohio. He began toying with the idea of challenging himself to run the straight shot to the beach. In spring 2008, Marx and senior Ryan McBirney ran to the beach for the first time. Marx ran the stretch again in fall 2008 with another friend, sophomore Chris Newell.

McBirney ran track in high school and hated it. Yet, he chose to do the beach run on account of the challenge of feeling the physical and spiritual exertion. Most importantly, he stated, it is relying on God for the endurance.

Newell takes exercise in stride when there is a goal in mind. In preparation for Saturday, he ran two to three times a week in lengths ranging from three to five miles.

“Initially when I started running, I just started doing more and more, working up each week to give myself more stamina,” the sophomore said.

Advantages of the strenuous 19-mile run are the memories made during the journey and realizing the depth of support from friends. The three have maintained a great relationship because of the deep level reached while experiencing something extremely difficult.

“Hydration is key,” Marx stated. “On each of these runs, we make multiple stops for water. It is always interesting to stop in Subways, In-N-Outs and gas stations along the way. People always look at us strange –a few sweaty, stinky guys walking in with water bottles, filling up and walking back out.”

After seeing the palm trees a few miles away, waiting for the light to cross Pacific Coast Highway into the “promised land” is a highlight for McBirney.

“The last few miles were very hard, and my body just wanted to shut down, but in these hard times, just being fully submitted to God in prayer gave me the strength that I needed to persevere,” he said.

Next year, the three are hoping to get more involvement from the Biola campus by setting up a marathon that will be an extended version of their annual beach run.