McConnell competes in marathon

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Laura L. Valentine
  • 22nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
MCCONNELL AIR FORCE BASE, Kan. --  Twenty-six Team McConnell members competed at the 15th Annual Air Force Marathon Sept. 17, 2011, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio.

McConnell's runners were up against more than 13,000 runners from all 50 states and 12 countries participating in the 10 kilometer run, half marathon or full marathon.

McConnell runners traveled to Ohio with varied levels of racing experience. Many did not have a specific finishing time to strive for, but rather the goal of simply finishing their race.

For Airman 1st Class Chase Muninger, 161st Intelligence Squadron network analyst, running the half marathon was his first long-distance competition. Muninger ran as part of the group of guardsmen from McConnell.

"I had a great time," he said. "I'm extremely glad I took the offer to go and run. It has opened a whole new door for me."

Top finishers for McConnell:
· Airman 1st Class Joshua Neal, 22nd Operation Support Squadron Air Traffic Control journeyman, finished the 10K course in 57:28. Neal placed 76th out of 232 active duty runners.
· Airman 1st Class Devon Thomas, 22nd Aircraft Maintenance crew chief, finished the half marathon in 1:36:06. Thomas placed 57th out of active duty runners and 13th overall for the male age 20 to 24 bracket.
· Master Sgt. Lucas Beaulieu, 22nd Civil Engineer Squadron first sergeant, finished the full marathon in 4:09:42. Beaulieu finished 245th out of 770 active duty runners.

For official results and more information about the annual Air Force Marathon, visit www.usafmarathon.com