9th, 2022 Grandma's Marathon; 3rd, 2019 California International Marathon

My family is awesome. My dad was an exceptional mid-D runner in college and, as a kid, I remember being so amazed that he could leave the house and run for hours. He definitely played a huge part in inspiring me to be a runner. My mom joined the track team in high school because it was the first time they were offering sports for girls, and even though she didn't care about track, she wanted to send the message that girls like sports, too, so that the opportunity still would be there for the young women who came after her. Thanks mom! My brother and sisters have been so supportive of my racing and tolerating my relentless talk about running. Shout out to Priscilla for staying on the phone with me through literally hundreds of miles this year and helping me feel like I'm not out there training alone. And Benjamin is so wonderful about the 8:30 p.m. bedtimes and 4:45 a.m. alarms. I would be lost without the support of my loved ones!

Becoming a college coach.

I qualified for these Trials off a pretty disastrous training cycle. The six weeks leading up to the race were so bad I was asking people if it was ethical for me to line up in the elite field, knowing I probably couldn’t finish. Luckily I have great friends (thank you Angela and Paul) who insisted that not only was it ethical, but that it was too late to give my spot to someone else. As I raced I was sure I would drop out “the next mile” and then the next and so on. It wasn’t until about mile 21 when I switched the mindset to, “Well, I guess I missed my window to drop. We’re closing this thing out or will die trying ... and maybe there’s an OTQ in this if you hold on.” I laughed when I saw the clock coming across the line. I didn’t really look much at time during the race. Not only was I seeing an OTQ, but a lifetime best! After I finished, I sort of staggered around dazed and in shock at what had just happened. A very kind volunteer asked me if I was OK or needed anything. I asked for a hug and he obliged.

"I am with you always, even unto the end of the world." - Matthew 28:20

Breaking 7-minutes in the middle school mile. First OTQ and 3rd place finish at 2019 CIM, then watching the dozens of women who also qualified that day stream across the line and burst into tears of simultaneous relief and triumph. I still get chills. 2022 Grandma's Marathon time was the surprise PR.