by Hanah Cho

Taking two weeks off from work to complete a 156-mile ultramarathon — and in the Sahara Desert of all places — doesn’t sound like much of a vacation. But vacationing wasn’t T. Rowe Price fund manager Jeff Arricale’s mission when he successfully completed the Marathon des Sables (Marathon of the Sands) several weeks ago.

With the support of family, friends and colleagues at the Baltimore money management firm, Arricale entered the marathon to raise money for Johns Hopkins Children’s Center, Special Olympics Maryland and Opportunity International, a nonprofit that offers microfinance programs to the world’s poorest people.

Arricale, 37, and his wife, who live in Monkton, have four young children, ages 9 months to 6 years. His oldest son, Jake, and his younger daughter, Gracie, have children’s interstitial lung disease, an incurable disorder that makes breathing difficult. They have been and continue to be treated at Hopkins by “compassionate, talented and dedicated people there.”

Arricale chose Special Olympics Maryland for its local connection and Opportunity International because of his finance background and the potential for microfinance loans to lift poor people out of poverty.

“This race seemed to be an effective way to bring a lot of things I care about, am interested in and passionate about together,” Arricale says. “And hopefully do some good, have some fun and raise some money and inspire some folks.”

It would be an understatement to say the race, billed as the toughest one on Earth, pushes competitors to their physical and mental limits. Imagine 120-degree days and 30-degree temperature at night; carrying up to a 25-pound backpack filled with mostly food and medicine during the week-long event; traversing across sand dunes and uneven land; and dealing with blisters, back sores and stomach as well as bathroom problems. The race organizers provide water and tents, where competitors try to get some sleep and rest. (Arricale’s most previous item on the race was a picture of his four children.)

He finished 581st out of 802 competitors.

As of Thursday, Arricale had raised about $49,000, almost half way to his goal of $100,000. Arricale says. Many T. Rowe colleagues pledged money with the company’s foundation matching their donations.

For more information on Arricale’s fundraising efforts, contact him at jeff_arricale@troweprice.com.

More at baltimoresun.com

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