Varsity Boys’ and Girls’ Cross Country runners continued their annual tradition of volunteering at the Chicago Marathon on Sunday, Oct. 12, senior Kaitlyn Burns, cross country runner, said. Each year, the team volunteers at the marathon through Fleet Feet Chicago–a running shoe store, owned by a former South cross country runner’s parents, which sets up this volunteer opportunity each year, Burns said.

Fleet Feet places volunteers on Aid Station 8, located on Wells Street between North Avenue and Burton Place in Chicago, one of the most popular aid stations. Burns has handed out water and Gatorade to runners at the station since her sophomore year. 

“It’s definitely very inspiring to see the elite runners,” Burns said. “When I’m older, I want to do marathons after seeing them.”

Junior Jack Lyons, cross country runner, started volunteering his freshman year when his senior teammates encouraged him to sign up. Lyons is not only inspired by the runners, but also appreciates this opportunity to spend more time with his teammates. 

According to Illinois High School Association (IHSA) rules, high school runners are not allowed to race outside of the schedule created by coaches, Lyons explained, so to run in this marathon would sacrifice their season. However, senior Adriana Stevens, cross country runner, wants to run a marathon in the future after getting to watch the skills marathon runners have.

“You get to see the people that are running their marathons in under three hours or people with five minute miles,” Stevens said. “Seeing real professional runners from around the world is pretty cool and inspiring, especially being a runner myself.”