Congratulations go to First Lt. Caitlin Thorn, a student in the Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics at the Air Force Institute of Technology’s Graduate School of Engineering and Management. Lt. Thorn won first place in the military category of the Air Force Half-Marathon.

“I started running in high school after the insistence of the cross country coach,” Lt. Thorn says. “I had played just about every sport I could but had never thought about running just to run.” It didn’t take long for that to change, though. “After running my first race, I was immediately hooked. I went on to run track and cross country at Auburn University and gained All-American honors in the 800 meter as a middle distance runner. Since graduating, I have slowly begun running longer distances. The Air Force Half-Marathon was my third Half—all three being part of the Air Force Marathon—and I plan on racing my first full marathon in Chicago on Oct 12th. I love running because it is an individual as well as a team effort as you are cheering on other runners around you, all of whom have similar goals of completing the race or running a personal best.”

In addition to sticking with running in general, Lt. Thorn has plans to continue running in the Air Force Marathon in particular. “The Air Force Half-Marathon/Marathon has been a very rewarding race to me because not only am I representing the Air Force, but the support for our armed forces throughout the community is apparent in the atmosphere and participation in all the events,” she says. “This Half-Marathon win, in the military category, is my second in three years, and I hope to continue my success in the Full Marathon next year!”