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Early on a Saturday morning in October, Dawn McCourt shuffled along the Atlantic City Boardwalk. At a time when sane people were snuggled in bed, she ran. And ran. And ran.

In a couple of short weeks, she'd be on the streets of San Francisco for the Nike Women's Marathon. But, for now, the first-time marathoner was logging one of the tedious training runs that make completing 26.2 miles possible.

To her left and right were brothers and sisters in arms, fellow trainers and runners with the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's Team In Training program. I was one of them. Several side conversations erupted during the eight miles, only six of which McCourt was completing on that day. Talk veered from Halloween to work to an upcoming 5K. At one point, the 37-year-old could be heard gently cursing the marathon experience.

This, she said, would be her first - and only - marathon. You almost believed her.

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Marathons are big business. According to the Running USA Road Running Information Center annual marathon report, the number of finishers in the event has risen from 25,000 in 1976 to 425,000 in 2008.

But move beyond the elite athletes - who run like the wind and are a source of envy amongst recreational runners - and there are two kinds of marathoners in this world: those who finish one and can't wait to do another, and those who … well, those who don't.

"It was very neat. Glad I did it," says Terra Roman, 39, of Absecon, who completed the Marine Corps Marathon through Arlington, Va., and Washington, D.C. - dubbed The People's Marathon - on Oct. 25. "I don't feel the need to do another one."

Taken at her weekend-morning run word, McCourt would be among the one-and-doners, too. But when I remind her of her training declaration a few weeks later, you can almost see her shoulders shrug over the phone.

"I was probably cranky that day," she says.

The fact is, McCourt, 37, of Mays Landing, traveled to California and spent at least a little time during the marathon vowing never to do one again. But her mood changed as soon as she crossed the finish line.

"I decided I could do another one," she says. "And, hopefully, do another one faster."

I'm with McCourt. As soon as I completed my first marathon, the Marine Corps, back in 1999, I couldn't wait to do another one. Why, I will never know. Because there is no reason on Earth why I should have wanted to.

I was 23, cocksure and possessing a very healthy ego back then, and the mood at the start in Arlington was intoxicating. I wore my purple Team In Training singlet with pride, and as the race began it felt as if I was mainlining adrenaline.

The feeling didn't last. While I completed the first half in a respectable 2:11:51, the second half was a nightmare. My legs cramped, my body crumpled to the ground and the call was made for a stretcher. If I had been smart, I'd have remained on the asphalt, grateful to be carted off and put out of my misery. But, no, I felt the need to pop back up, limping to the finish.

And limping doesn't do my hobble-shuffle justice. Out of stubborn pride, I crossed the finish line in 5 hours, 8 minutes, 57 seconds. I placed 10,593 of 14,368 finishers, 484th of 569 men in my 20 to 24 age group.

My body ached for days. I should have been like Roman, content with finishing but realistic enough to know that maybe a full marathon isn't the race for me.

So, what did I do? I decided to run another one.

As a Team In Training coach, JoAnne Barbieri has seen all kinds of runners. She's run three marathons herself. Her first was run just to try something different. Her second is when the marathon bug bit her.

It doesn't take long for her to figure out if someone has been won over by the transformative power of the marathon.

"It's usually once we hit the 16-mile marker you can tell what type of person they're going to be," Barbieri, 27, of Linwood, says. "I do think a lot of people do get bitten by the bug. But it's also based on their experience."

McCourt had a good marathon experience, and it convinced her to plan for her next. Chris Foust, 40, a CPA from Egg Harbor Township, did not have a good experience running the Rehoboth Beach, Del., Marathon last year. While he, like Roman, will never say never to the prospect of doing it again, Foust isn't actively looking for his next marathon.

"I thought running a marathon would be something fun to try. I enjoyed it, but I was very sore for days afterwards," says Foust, who completed his marathon in 5 hours 1 minute. "It took a lot more toll on my body than I was expecting."

A year after my first Marine Corps Marathon, I returned for the race's 25th anniversary. I felt more prepared for my second try, and it showed. I ran smarter, not getting carried away at the start. But my training had suffered; midway through training I moved across the state of Maryland, leaving my training partner behind.

As a result, my preparation suffered. I didn't get the long runs necessary in. So, while my body didn't completely collapse as it had the year before, I couldn't physically run the whole way.

Time to finish: 4 hours, 50 minutes, 37 seconds. I placed 9,890 out of 17,007, the 844th runner to finish in my age range.

More than once, I wondered if maybe 26.2 miles is too much for my body to handle. Foust and Rowan each prefer the half-marathon; it doesn't place as much stress on their daily lives.

"I like the idea of doing a half," Foust says. "I can get that training in and it's not so bad."

"Thirteen is more than enough," Roman says. "And that takes two hours to do."

It's not that they fear 26.2. It just may not be for them. Besides, despite the massive growth in marathoning over the years, it takes guts to lace 'em up and run even one.

At the outset, McCourt thought her first marathon would be her last. And then things changed.

"It was the challenge. It was a bucket list kind of thing," she says. "But it turns out to be quite addictive. Pretty much everyone I know looks at me like I'm crazy these days, because they don't run."

And McCourt is a newbie to the marathon game. Ruth Ann Buch, on the other hand, is an old pro. The 56-year-old Ocean City woman, a nurse in the OR at Shore Memorial Hospital, has run 17 marathons, the last in 2005.

Like many others, her first marathon experience came at the Marine Corps event, in 1990. She'd been a runner before that. She became a marathoner after it.

"I always thought it was a neat goal, and at one point I remember meeting a cousin who had run one, and thought that was pretty cool," Buch says. "Of course, during the marathon you think you'll never do another one. And then on the way home you start planning to do another one. At least, that's the way is is for me."

The cruel thing about Buch's experience is she hasn't been able to satisfy her marathon craving. A series of neck and foot injuries have kept her from achieving a marathon high since 2005. She's not sure when, or if, she'll be able to run another.

And she misses it.

Deeply.

"It's the most satisfying race I do. I guess it's because it presents a goal you can't reach by not trying hard," she says. "After you run for as many years as I have, it becomes a part of your identity, and if you can't do it, you miss it.

"If I could run a marathon again, I'd probably cry because I'd be so happy."

When I finished my second marathon, I swore I'd run another. And another. And another. I thought I'd run one per year. At least.

That didn't happen, but not for lack of desire.

There are two kinds of marathoners in this world. Those who are satisfied running one, and those who can't wait to do another.

Despite a variety of setbacks and ailments, I'm as excited for today's Philadelphia Marathon as I was for my first. And when I cross the finish, my legs will ache, my lungs will burn and my body will say, "No more."

So, what will I do next? Probably decide to run another one.

Contact Kevin Clapp:

609-272-7255

kclapp@pressofac.com

What to watch for

The thing about running a marathon, a big one, is that it's like a big, 26.2-mile-long party. It's easy to get caught up in the excitement, so here are three things I'll be looking out for as I run the Philadelphia Marathon today.

1. Drink early - and often. I'll be carrying a bottle of Gatorade with me, and a handful of PowerBars. But I'll also be sure to get something to drink at each water station to remain as hydrated as possible.

2. Speed kills. Historically, I get caught up in the moment and run too fast too early, sapping my energy for later in the race. It happened in my first marathon, it happened to a lesser extent in my second, and it even happened while running the 5k at last week's Atlantic City Marathon. If I stay within myself and dictate my pace - rather than let my pace dictate me - I should do well.

3. Get a leg up. I've had a bunch of knee and foot problems while training, and leg-cramp issues in previous marathons. How my legs feel at miles 16 and above will determine whether I finish strong ... or gimpy.

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