Nathan Alexander - Runner
Nathan Alexander will be a senior at Wichita High School East. He has been running since seventh grade at Robinson Middle School in both Cross Country and Track. He was a varsity runner for East’s Cross Country team in the 2007 season and Track in the 2008 season. In cross country, he runs the 5K in approximately 17 minutes and 40 seconds. In Track, he runs the 1600-meter and the eight laps of doom, a.k.a., the 3200-meter. At school, he participates in National Honor Society and Orchestra. Nathan plans to pursue a career in mechanical engineering at a still undecided college. Outside of school, he likes to run, play video games, read, play his violin, and make plans to build a spaceship.

Aaron Gurley - Runner
Aaron Gurley will be a freshman at Friends University in Wichita, KS majoring in biology/education. He is an alumni of Wichita High School East’s class of 2008. While at East, Aaron ran on the varsity squad for Cross Country in the 2008 season and the varsity squad for Track from 2006-2008. He was also a member of the varsity swimming squad. In track, Aaron ran the 4×400, 4×800, and open 800 meter. He qualified for the state track meet in 2008 in both the 4×400 and 4×800. Now, Aaron runs cross country and track at Friends University. In his spare time, Aaron enjoys swimming, playing guitar, hanging out with friends, and reciting lines from movies.

Michael Gurley - Runner
Michael W. Gurley will be a senior at Wichita High School East. He ran track his sophomore year and is now an avid runner participating in cross country and track. He runs the 800 meter open and is part of the 4×800 and 4×400 relay teams. He was an alternate for the state qualifying 4×8 relay team in 2007. In school, Michael is a member of Students Against Prejudice and Ultimate Frisbee, and played basketball for the school his first two years. Outside of school, Michael enjoys playing music, running, playing ultimate, disc golfing, and relaxing with friends. After high school, Michael plans to attend an undecided university and major in microbiology or pre-med.

Matthew Heck - Runner and Coordinator
Matthew Heck will be a senior in the International Baccalaureate Programme at Wichita High School East. He has been an active participant in the school’s Darfur Action Group, Ultimate Frisbee Club, Journalism Program, and Marching/Concert/Pep Band. After school, Matthew spends his time running the 5K in cross country and a variety of short distance sprints for Track. Matthew qualified for the State track meet in 2006 and 2007 on the 4×100 and 4×400 relay (though the 4×400 remains his favorite event). Outside of school, he enjoys web development, listening to music, and watching Stargate. Matthew plans to attend a still-undetermined college and major in Computer Science, Journalism, Political Science, or a mixture of two of those.

Adam Heil - Runner
Adam Heil will be a sophomore at Kansas State University where he is pursuing a major in journalism. A 2007 graduate of Trinity Academy in Wichita, Kansas, Adam began running his freshman year of high school. He ran for Trinity’s varsity cross-country team for four years and qualified for the state cross country meet individually in 2005 and 2006. At Kansas State, Adam is involved in various intramural activities. Outside of his education, Adam enjoys running, fishing, grilling, and other sporting endeavors that don’t involve a soccer ball. He hopes to one day lead the Canadian water polo team to a gold medal in the Olympics–after he finishes swimming lessons.

Jacob Heil - Runner and Videographer
Jacob Heil will be a senior at Wichita High School East this coming year. He has been a member of East High’s cross country team since freshman year and has qualified for the state cross country meet in both 2006 and 2007. In addition to cross country, Jacob runs for East High’s track team in the 800 meter, the mile, the two mile, and the steeplechase. He was an alternate on the state-qualifying 4×800 meter relay team in 2007. He is also a photographer and videographer for the East ’s Journalism Department. After high school, Jacob plans to go to a still-undecided college and major in biology. In his spare time he enjoys running, reading, and playing video games.

Adrian Love - Runner
Adrian Love is a graduating senior at Wichita High School East. Outside of academics, Adrian has participated as a varsity member on the Track and Field team. With help, patience, and Matthew Heck, Adrian has led the sprints team for the past two years. He has qualified for the state meet multiple times in the 400 meter dash, the 4×400 meter relay, and the 4×800 meter relay, medaling in the open 400. During his senior year, Adrian ran for the Cross Country team’s varsity squad. Adrian is also a member of East’s Fellowship of Christian Athletes club and assists in various aspects of service at Chisholm Trail Church of Christ. This coming fall, Adrian will attend Wichita State University and pursue a career in computer engineering.

Chris Parker - Runner and Journalist
Chris Parker will be a sophomore at Friends University in Wichita, KS majoring in Journalism. He is an alumni of Clearwater High School class of 2007. In high school, Chris played baseball for his first two years and picked up running junior year in cross country. He was on the varsity squad for every race of his high school running career in both cross country and track. He qualified with his team for state cross country his senior year. Now, Chris runs cross country and track at Friends University. In his spare time Chris enjoys writing, reading, and playing all kinds of sports. He will be posting journal and picture updates throughout the run on CatchItKansas.com.

Kiet Tran - Runner
Kiet Tran will be a senior in the International Baccalaureate Programme at Wichita High School East. He has been a member of East High’s cross country team since his sophomore year and has run for East High’s track team since his freshman year competing in various distance events. Kiet has currently been apart of East High DECA for one year winning many awards and qualifying for DECA Nationals, this year, in Atlanta, Georgia. Besides school activities, Kiet likes to watch movies, anime, run, play video games, and listen to music. Following high school, Kiet plans to attend the University of Kansas with a pharmacy major.