Local Veteran Carries American Flag to Finish Line of Malibu Marathon

Out of the 800 runners who completed the Malibu Marathon Sunday, former U.S. Army Sgt. Isaac Hayman finished the 26-mile, 385-yard course with a purpose.

Hayman, who served three tours overseas in Iraq and Korea, ran the race with a 50-pound rucksack and an American flag strapped to his back to show support for his fellow troops.

The race began at 7 a.m. Sunday at the Camarillo Airport, with the first eight miles through Ventura County's flat farmlands. The course then followed Pacific Coast Highway for its final 18 miles, beginning with two miles along the Point Mugu Naval Air Station, then entering the "Keyway to the coast,'' the rock valley passageway to the Pacific Ocean at Point Mugu.