Current Residence: Escondido, CA

Hometown: Urbana, IL

Qualifying Race and Time: Grandmas Marathon 2:34:17

How did you feel when you qualified? What was that experience like? Pretty shocked. I had a rough final 6 weeks going into the race, dealing with illness, an infected tooth, and a body that just wasn’t cooperating. I considered not going and even asked my friends if it was “ethical” to take a spot in the elite field when I wasn’t even sure if I could finish. After being convinced that it was too late to give the spot to someone else anyhow, I decided to race, but with pretty low expectations. This was 100% a “run the mile you’re in” situation. It never really felt easy, but it never got too terrible either. By mile ~18-19 I had started to commit to finishing no matter what. It wasn’t until the last 60m when I saw the clock and that it hit me I had just PRd, OTQ’d, and finished 9th. A volunteer asked me if I was ok and if I needed anything (because I must have looked so dazed!) I asked for a hug 😄

What dream are you chasing at the Trials? There are some remarkably fast women over 40 (like Sara Hall) who have qualified. I’d like to sneak into the top 5 masters. With respect to the entire field, I think the goal will be top 50. And since I tend to like hot weather, I’m not taking a PR off the table 😄