Training

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia -- Saudi security officials said yesterday that they had broken up a vast terrorist ring, arresting 172 men who planned to blow up oil installations, attack public officials and military posts, and storm a prison to free terrorist suspects. The wide-ranging plot was uncovered over seven months, officials said, as one lead yielded another, allowing authorities to seize a cache of weapons buried in the desert and more than $5.3 million in cash. The government referred to the ring as a "deviant group," the phrase often used to describe the ideology of al-Qaida.

A dry mouth, creaky knees and muscle soreness that lasts for three days. These are signs the body wasn't meant to run a marathon, said Dr. John Senatore, chief of podiatry and a sports medicine physician at Union Memorial Hospital. That may be affirmation for couch potatoes, but the number of marathons and the number of people willing to run 26.2 miles keep growing. About 410,000 people finished one of about 300 U.S. marathons last year, up from 25,000 three decades earlier, according to Running USA, a group that promotes fitness and tracks trends.

WASHINGTON -- President Clinton ordered the military yesterday to stop its live-fire exercises at a Puerto Rican bombing range that the Pentagon says is vital to combat-ready forces, and to end military training there within five years.Under Clinton's proposal, live-fire bombing could resume only if the residents of Vieques, who have demanded that the military leave, agree to it.The president said he will direct Defense Secretary William S. Cohen to work on a proposal for resuming live-fire training that would include a $40 million community development grant for the island.

FORT KNOX, Ky. -- On 26 acres in the middle of this Army post, work crews are putting the finishing touches on a mock town of 22 pastel-colored buildings, painting the walls, paving the roads, stringing electrical wire and landscaping the grounds.Then will come the armored invasion, when the Army begins to use this state-of-the-art training area to teach tank units how to fight in an urban center.As the training area is envisioned by its creators, computerized technology borrowed from amusement parks will provide the sounds, sights and surprises that tankers and Bradley fighting vehicle crews could expect in a hostile city.

HURRICANE FLOYD is beginning to fade from the memories of most Marylanders, but won't soon be forgotten by one Eldersburg resident.Peggy Faith, a member of the Montgomery County Urban Search and Rescue team, headed south shortly before Floyd's predicted arrival on the East Coast. As part of Maryland Task Force 1, Faith and 61 trained personnel were sent to Shaw Air Force Base near Columbia, S.C.From there, the team went to Jacksonville, N.C., where it assisted with mostly humanitarian efforts -- helping residents retrieve belongings from flooded homes and businesses.

They raise them tough in Mount Carmel, Pa., a small town with one of the winningest high school football teams in the country."All of the guys play football," says Frank Conches, who now lives in Shrewsbury, Pa., "and anyone who plays football for Mount Carmel is usually a success later in life."So maybe it was a natural progression for Conches to tackle the toughest challenge of all -- the triathlon.A triathlete runs 26 miles, bikes 20 miles and swims 1 1/2 miles."I've always done other athletic stuff," says Conches, who was a running back, kickoff returner, punt returner and safety in high school, and a sprinter in college.

John W. Totten scooped up mortar with his trowel and applied it to a waist-high wall of bricks taking shape before him and fellow worker Janet Yount, then scraped the excess from the sides.Totten hails from New York, and Yount is a Kentuckian. Their job was a practice run -- not for ahuge project like a stadium or mansion, but to improve their teaching skills.They were among about 180 people from 31 states and three Canadian provinces hard at work yesterday in the International Masonry Institute's Instructor Certification Program, operating this week on the Linthicum Heights campus of the Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies.

A Maryland State Police car flipped over yesterday at the new driver-training facility in Sykesville, sending the instructor and three instructors-in-training to the Maryland Shock Trauma Center.A trip by helicopter to the hospital was only a precaution, in case of whiplash-type injuries, said Lt. Albert L. Liebno Jr., director of the Police and Correctional Training Commission's driver-training facility on the grounds of Springfield Hospital Center."We were doing a braking exercise with the students," Liebno said.

Stanley Liberman is working on an A.A. degree at the Essex campus of the Community College of Baltimore County and hopes to get a B.S. from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.But he also wants other initials after his name -- MCSE -- and he thinks those might be the most important.Liberman, 21, is among the growing ranks of people who are supplementing or replacing college degrees with corporate-controlled computer certifications.Falling between higher education and vocational training, the certificates are designed and judged by the computer industry.

TOWSON -- A second man was arrested and jailed yesterday on charges of raping a woman in a county police officer's apartment.Frank Sung Ha, 23, was arrested at his home in the 4700 block of Mercury Drive in Rockville and charged with first-degree and second-degree rape, said police spokesman Bill Toohey. On Wednesday, Officer Kyle Alexander Wilson -- who had been on the force for less than a year -- also was charged with first-degree rape and jailed. He has been suspended without pay.According to police documents, the woman was raped Tuesday morning in the Owings Mills apartment while the officer was driving another woman home.

Olympic swimming medalist Katie Hoff is changing coasts in an effort to jump-start her stagnant career. The Towson resident said yesterday that her decision to leave Baltimore and train in Fullerton, Calif., for the 2012 London Olympics leaves her anxious, excited, sad and more than a little nervous. That swirl of emotions is not unlike those of a freshman heading off to college, she said. For Hoff, though, the stakes are higher. The 20-year-old Towson resident heads west next month to try to regain her form.

A skydiver who died in what police believe was an accident over the weekend was identified Monday as Command Sgt. Maj. Harry Parrish, 53, of Fort Meade. An Army Reservist on active duty, Parrish was in charge of training for Army Reserves and Guard members in the 1st Army Division East at Fort Meade, according to Army spokeswoman Raina Williams. He was well-known at Fort Meade, as the division includes nine brigades east of the Mississippi River, and Fort Meade is the training site for most of them bound for Iraq, Afghanistan and other duties.

The Ravens have begun another passing camp at The Castle, and the team hopes it will find some answers heading into training camp. Decades ago, training camp was the time for experiments. But offseason mini- and passing camps are for experimentation and installations, and training camps have become more for fine-tuning and building team chemistry. So, with that in mind, here's a look at the Top 10 questions or issues facing the Ravens before they open the season in early September at home against the Kansas City Chiefs: 1. Can receiver Demetrius Williams become the deep threat the Ravens desperately need?

WASHINGTON -The Pakistani government has agreed to allow the U.S. a greater role in training its military, part of an informal agreement that will also send counterinsurgency equipment - possibly including helicopters - to help Islamabad step up its offensive against militants. Washington has been watching with growing alarm as Taliban forces have made military gains in Pakistan, and U.S. officials have stepped up pressure on Islamabad to do more. Although the Pakistani military began a broad offensive against the Taliban on Tuesday, senior U.S. defense officials remain deeply worried about Islamabad's ability to beat back the militant advance.

Mechelle Lewis had it all: a dream job on Madison Avenue, a bright future and a social life filled with happy hours. She left to chase her dream - a spot on the U.S. Olympic team. "My goal was to walk in the parade at the opening ceremony," said Lewis, 27, a sprinter raised in Fort Washington. Mission accomplished. In June, Lewis qualified for the 400-meter relay team in Beijing next month. The comeback proved daunting. In 2006, Lewis left a promising advertising career in New York to train full time for the Games.

Aberdeen police honored by Guard Chief Randy M. Rudy of the Aberdeen Police Department recently was presented with an award for employer support of the National Guard and Reserve from the Maryland National Guard. The Police Department has had three officers deployed to active duty since the country went to war against Iraq. Sgt. James McGarvey and Officer First Class Timothy Helf have each been deployed twice to the Middle East. Officer First Class Christopher Bradley has done security details in the United States.

Meeting to focus on Draft Zoning Code The Harford County Department of Planning and Zoning will hold a final public meeting on the Draft Zoning Code, after months of meetings by the Zoning Code Workgroup and various advisory boards. The meeting will be from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Thursday at Joppatowne High School's cafeteria. After the public meetings, a bill for a new zoning code will go to the County Council. The meeting will feature stations where staff will answer questions about proposed changes to the code.

Baltimore is one of 11 cities that will take part in a Small Business Administration program that will provide management training and other programs to 20 inner-city businesses, city and federal leaders said yesterday. Small businesses, which will be accepted first come, first served, will receive up to 80 hours of trainingthis year on topics such as organizational management and market development. The training will be free, SBA officials said. "Having this support will help them to establish their goals," said Mayor Sheila Dixon.

Straight Shooters answers your youth lacrosse questions with the help of US Lacrosse experts. This week's "Straight Shooter" is Matt Zash. Zash was a two-time All-America midfielder at Duke, graduating in 2006. He plays professional lacrosse for the Major Lacrosse League's Philadelphia Barrage and the National Lacrosse League's New York Titans. Zash was a member of the 2003 United States under-19 men's world championship team and played for Team USA in the 2007 Indoor World Lacrosse Championships in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

Children's yoga -- The Yoga Center of Columbia will offer a certificate training course for adults interested in practicing yoga with children. All levels of experience are welcome. Shakta Kaur Khalsa will teach ways to create awareness, promote relaxation and help children who have special needs (such as autism or ADHD) through yoga. No experience is necessary. Radiant Child Yoga Teacher Training will be offered Jan. 4-6 at the Yoga Center, 8950 Route 108, Suite 109. Classes, which are divided equally between lecture and practice, are scheduled from 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Jan. 4; 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Jan. 5; and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Jan. 6. The fee is $585 until Friday; $645 after that date.