Running

In October 2008, I decided to lace up some beat up tennis shoes and go for a jog. I made it almost a quarter of a mile before I had to stop, wheezing with my hands on my knees. Taking a hard, honest look at myself, I realized that in the four years since I had left college, I had added almost 20% to my body weight and lost any of the meager athletic ability I had possessed in my teens and early 20s.

Since I was living in Indianapolis at the time, I promised myself I was going to start training and run the Indianapolis 500 Festival Mini-Marathon the following May. The next few months were filled with some trail and error learning, but I made it to the starting line in May comparatively fit and finished my first half-marathon. I ran the Chicago Marathon in the fall as my first full marathon and haven’t looked back since.

I’ve went on to have age-group podium finishes in 10Ks and half-marathons, as well as finishing my first 50k trail race in 2014. After another four years filled with every other race distance, I will be gearing up for my second attempt at a 100-miler, Run Rabbit Run in Steamboat Springs, CO this September.

NM Trail-Races I recommend

  • Cedro Peak
  • Deadman Peaks
  • Jemez Mountain Races
  • Ultra Santa Fe