Brock Kelly, Tupelo Christian ran 1:14:31 for the half marathon, finished first in the 14-17 division, and was 7th overall (over 18,000 runners).
This Brocks story.
This is my fifth year raising money for St Jude, and the fourth year that I have run (one year was cancelled because of a lightning storm). I've done done the 10k twice, and the half marathon twice. I started running for St Jude because I felt like it was a great use of the abilities that God gave me. The first year that I ran, I ran in honor of Magnolia Jane Reed, a child who had been diagnosed with cancer and had a close connection to our family. The second year, I ran for Brodey Houpt, who was a 7 year old cancer patient at St Jude during that time. I found out about Brodey and his condition from various people around the community in Tupelo. Both of these children are now cancer free and living happy lives. For the past two years, I haven't run for any specific patients but for all of the patients at St Jude while still keeping Magnolia Jane and Brodey in my mind.
What time were you going for?
I was hoping for between a 1:15 and 1:20, but when I got out there on the course I was feeling pretty good and decided to try to beat 1:15.
How did you feel about the run?
I was pretty happy when I got to around mile 8, because I knew I was on track for a good time. When the running became difficult, I remembered the kids at St. Jude that I was running for. That really helped me stay focused on the ultimate goal.
What kind of training did you do to prepare?
Last month (December) alone I ran 222 miles to train for indoor track and to stay in shape for outdoor. The long runs in my training really helped me with this race. My longest single run during this time was 14 miles.
What time were you going for?
I was hoping for between a 1:15 and 1:20, but when I got out there on the course I was feeling pretty good and decided to try to beat 1:15.
How did you feel about the run?
I was pretty happy when I got to around mile 8, because I knew I was on track for a good time. When the running became difficult, I remembered the kids at St. Jude that I was running for. That really helped me stay focused on the ultimate goal.
What kind of training did you do to prepare?
Last month (December) alone I ran 222 miles to train for indoor track and to stay in shape for outdoor. The long runs in my training really helped me with this race. My longest single run during this time was 14 miles.
