Pattonville was one of 16 St. Louis area high schools to have students participate in Students on the GO!, a team-based program to engage high school students in an active and healthy lifestyle year-round.
With team coordinator Ms. Shelley Christian, students trained to run or walk (or a combination of both) the 13.1 mile GO! St. Louis Half Marathon.
15-year-old freshman Lucas Gibson finished 3rd in the Male 19 & Under division (71st overall) with a time of 1:31:02 and a 6:57 pace. Another top finisher from Pattonville was 16-year-old sophomore Patrick Hachmeister who finished 5th in the Male 19 & Under division (87th overall) with a time of 1:32:27; a pace of 7:04 each mile. There were 138 runners in their division.
15-year-old freshman Laura Harder and 17-year-old junior Marisa Loewenstein were the top Pattonville female runners in the 19 & Under division crossing the finish line together with a time of 2:05:40 with a 9:36 pace. They placed 45th and 46th, respectively, in their division of 308 runners, and 1,709th and 1,710th overall.
In total, more than 5,000 runners completed the Half Marathon with the winner clocking in at 1:04:41; in the full marathon, 1,338 runners raced.
Participants followed a 20-week incremental training program schedule. The GO! St. Louis staff, along with outside experts support the team members with motivation, nutrition tips and training tools to carry out the program. Students train a few days a week after school and then complete one weekly long run on Saturdays in Forest Park.
Students and teachers involved in the program earn incentives for attendance that are also a benefit to their running and walking training. These include running shoes, a race-day shirt and finisher’s jacket. Students also receive complimentary entries into other GO! St. Louis events in June and October.
