WHEELING — As runners and walkers make their way through the “chicken neck hill” portion of Saturday’s 42nd annual Ogden Newspapers Half Marathon Classic, they might see a familiar face taking in the sights.

Tom Rownd, who for years was one of the many hundreds being challenged by the rugged Friendly City course, is, for the time being, relegated to spectator status.

But health issues haven’t kept him from being an advisor, an encourager, a friend to many area road racers or to the local road racing scene itself.

The Ohio Valley road racing family is a special one, filled with many folks who regularly dot the area’s signature events. Rownd is one of those folks.

A huge supporter of the sport, Rownd is always eager to support both races and runners, promoting both with equal gusto.

Rownd, a longtime member of the former Ohio Valley Runners and Walkers Club, has even translated his desire for helping others into another sport — lacrosse.

He helped coach the Wheeling Phantoms youth teams for a period until prostate cancer reared its ugly head. After Dr. Gregory Merrick and the folks at Wheeling Hospital tackled it, he returned to the field last fall.

“I’m enjoying coaching again,” he said. “The sad part is I’m 66 and I’m out there passing the ball with the kids and thinking I could still play.”

Age might be catching up with Rownd, but it hasn’t diminished his running goals. Mostly a marathoner, Rownd competed in the prestigious Boston event for 21 straight years, but missed the last two running with health issues.

However, he’s prepping for a possible return to the road.

“I’ve actually entered a marathon at the end of August in Wisconsin,” Rownd said. “But I don’t know if I can complete the training. But that’s the goal and I’m goal oriented. I;m hopeful that, somehow, I can get my mileage up and run in a qualifying marathon. It might be a pipe dream. I don’t know.”

In the meantime, Rownd will continue to mentor others, something he said he thoroughly enjoys.

“It’s nothing formal,” he said. “From time to time over the years we’ve gotten with people who’ve wanted to run marathons, so they’ve started training with us as a group. They’ve learned from our collective group, if you will.”

In many ways, Rownd said teaching running is similar to teaching lacrosse.

“When I see kids playing lacrosse at Linsly, (Wheeling) Park and (Wheeling) Central, I feel like I had a hand in that. For example, one of the guys we help goes to Boston and he said he wouldn’t had done it if it wasn’t for you.

“So, that’s satisfying in some small way. Maybe I helped somebody reach a goal. But for me, the best thing about marathon and distance training is the fitness that’s derived from the training.”

And that training can be exhaustive.

“In January, when it’s crappy out and you really don’t feel like going out that day,” Rownd said. “I;m thinking, well, you have this marathon coming up in April and if you don’t do your homework you’re gonna pay for it big time.

“It’s an enduring goal and an enduring payoff.”

For Rownd, there’s no race like Boston and he said “he’s not ready to give up on it yet.” He said many runners he counsels find races like Boston, or even the Ogden or ones in Parkersburg and Charleston intimidating. But, like a columnist in Runner’s World once said “the hardest step is the first step.”

“It is intimidating,” he said. “I’ve run 48 of ’em and every one of them I get scared because, No. 1, I know I’m gonna hurt, and there’s always the fear that you’ll run a bad time or you won’t finish.”

The key, Rownd said, is preparation. And he tries to instill that in those he counsels.

“A marathon will humble you,” he said, “and I’ve been humbled many times.

“You have to respect the event and you have to respect Ogden. You can’t take it for granted.”

If you know of someone in sports in the Ohio Valley whom I could feature as an Ohio Valley Unsung Hero, drop me a line at rthorp@timesleaderonline.com or via Twitter @RickThorp1