CHAPMANVILLE, W.Va. (WOWK) — One man is running full steam into the new year as he works to raise money for his church.
Brian Dingess, from Chapmanville, decided to run an ultramarathon, or 100 miles, around the track at Chapmanville Regional High School to raise money for his church, the Morning Star Free Will Baptist Church.
Dingess’ goal was to complete the challenge in less than 24 hours.
His run began at 7 a.m. on New Year’s Eve, and every hour, his support crew would update his mile count and read a scripture passage.
Since Dingess’ run began, he’s had supporters stop by to watch, cheer him on as well as run some laps alongside him.
Dingess’ wife, Christina Dingess, said the community support has been incredible.
“It’s amazing. Like the turnout, the support. It has been amazing,” Dingess said. “More than I could have ever imagined, which is what the Lord is good for. He blesses you in so many ways.”
Christina Dingess said that the goal was to inspire others and support their church.
“You know, hopefully this will be an inspiration to others and lead them to the Lord,” said Christina. “And that is our main goal here. He would have never been here without the Lord. This would have never happened.”
Once Brian Dingess completes his goal, he will break two records. It will be a new personal record for the longest distance run, and before this, the furthest distance he had ever run was 75 miles.
Dingess typically runs on trails, and back in October, he ran 50 miles, covering the distance from the top of Striker Mountain to the Dingess Trail and back.
Along with his personal record, he will also break the record of the longest distance run on the Chapmanville track.