If you told me in high school that ultra running would be my future sport of choice, I would have thought you were insane. Growing up in Apex, NC, I was a full blown skateboarder and overall board sport enthusiast. Running was just an activity I implemented to lose weight after being called fatty at the bus stop in middle school, so I developed this weird love-hate relationship with the sport. It was a means to an end for me, not a means to life. As you might have guessed, that has all changed.

After 3 knee surgeries, I pursued mountain biking as a ‘low impact’ hobby to fuel my need for adrenaline and a fitness challenge. Knowing I wasn’t the fastest in the short game, I considered what it would take to train for events longer than the average person would want to endure hoping there would be less competition. Enter my new addiction to endurance sports. Eventually, I evolved from three hour mountain bikes races to full indoctrination of the ultra running lifestyle. I’m addicted to the process of seeking my breaking point and learning what it takes to push past the haunting voice that says “I’m ready to quit”. That is the space I believe I learn most about my character and tendencies to be remolded into someone new. Running is a tool for change, both personally and communally, which I feel obligated to put to practice and invite others along.