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Runners start the half marathon at the 2024 Moonlight Run in Palo Alto on Sept. 20, 2024. Photo by Anna Hoch-Kenney. 
Participants start the 5k walk at the 2024 Moonlight Run in Palo Alto on Sept. 20, 2024. Photo by Anna Hoch-Kenney. 
Participants start the 5k walk at the 2024 Moonlight Run in Palo Alto on Sept. 20, 2024. Photo by Anna Hoch-Kenney. 
From left to right, Leslie Payne, Vienna the dog, and Carolina Ochoa pass the finish line at the 2024 Moonlight Run in Palo Alto on Sept. 20, 2024. Photo by Anna Hoch-Kenney. 
Finn Scott, 8, climbs the rock climbing wall at the 2024 Moonlight Run in Palo Alto on Sept. 20, 2024. Photo by Anna Hoch-Kenney. 
Participants head out for the 5k run at the 2024 Moonlight Run in Palo Alto on Sept. 20, 2024. Photo by Anna Hoch-Kenney.
Celebrating four decades of community gathering, the Palo Alto Weekly’s Moonlight Run returned on Friday night to much fanfare, as locals descended onto the Baylands to run, walk and jog under the moonlight.
This year’s event, in its 40th year, attracted participants of all ages to participate in the 5K walk and run, the 10K event and the half marathon distance. It was a clear night on Friday, with a bright orange sunset and a nearly full moon welcoming participants of all ages to the Baylands course.
The annual event is organized by the Palo Alto Weekly, with the support of multiple community organizations and businesses as sponsors, including Stanford Medicine and the city of Palo Alto. The proceeds from the run go to the Weekly’s Holiday Fund, which supports more than 100 local nonprofits serving locals in need.
On the men’s side, Kaeden Brinkman finished first in the half marathon with a time of 1:16:47.70, followed by Chris Holve at 1:17:47.32 in second and Peter Chang at 1:20:23.29 in third. The women’s top half marathon finisher was Hanna Kang at 1:43:00.51, with Kristin Haskell in second at 1:47:11.09 and Qing Lucich with a time at 1:48:38.88.
This year’s Ramanujam Parthasarathy Running Free Award was given out to 81-year-old Franklin Crow who had a 10K time of 55:48.56. The now-annual award honors the first-place finisher of the 10K in the 70+ age bracket. The award is a donation from a local family in honor and memory of the wife’s father, who ran until he was 83 for the joy and freedom it gave him. The family says the Moonlight Run was the sole purpose for his visits to Palo Alto.
Full results are available at https://www.paloaltoonline.com/moonlight-run/
