About

I started dancing in ballet when I was six years old and tried gymnastics shortly after. Undeniably, I wasn’t very good at either! So, I started playing softball in my hometown league in 6th grade and excelled, earning the nickname “slugger”. In middle school I played team sports, including volleyball, basketball, and track which continued into my high school years. I took a break from sports in college to pursue music, playing and traveling with my university’s band, but I missed the physical activity. For stress relief in grad school, I started weightlifting and running in the hills near Pittsburg. I reconnected with a sport that healed my body and mind. My first 3K road race was a midnight run on the 4th of July in Tampa, FL in 2000…and it hurt like hell! But I was hooked and worked my way up through 5K, 10K, 15K, and half-marathon distances.

Admittedly I got bored with road running and entered the world of triathlon in 2002. I finished a sprint distance or two before signing up for my first Ironman (Germany 2005); I’d already learned that I was more of an endurance athlete than a sprinter. I finished four Ironman races, including Austria 2007, Switzerland 2009, and Canada 2011, and completed a handful of 70.3 distance and sprint triathlons. I loved the full-body training and got into the best shape of my life, both physically and mentally. I also got into kickboxing for a stint, which was an entirely different sport that super-charged my physical toughness.

Halfway through my Ironman career, I discovered Ultrarunning…and loved getting dirty in the trails from day one! My first 50K trail race was in 2007 and my first 100-mile race was in 2010. Since then, I have finished several 50K, 60K, 50M and 100K races. Also under my well-decorated belt buckles are nine 100-mile run finishes, including Ultra-Trail du Mount-Blanc in Chamonix, France (2013) and Fat Dog 120 in British Columbia (2019). In 2017 I upped my game at the Bigfoot 200-mile Endurance Run and loved nearly every minute of it! More recently in 2023, I finished one of the most grueling ultramarathons in the world: Tor des Géants 330k…that was a mind-blowing experience and it took every ounce of my mental strength to finish! 

Always looking for new adventures, I solo fast-packed the 221-mile John Muir Trail in California in 2022, with some assistance from my husband at key points on the trail. I’ve summited over 30 Colorado Fourteeners, as well as Mount Whitney, the highest mountain in the contiguous United States…twice. I have placed in the top five female finishers a handful of times in Ultramarathons but endurance racing for me is more about competing with myself and pushing my own limits rather than competing with others. While being physically fit for an event is important, I’ve learned that the mental game plays an equally crucial role in succeeding at endurance and team sports.

Personally, I have over 40 years of experience in team and individual sports. Professionally I have been licensed since 2000; I am a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in Colorado, a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) in Florida, as well as a Mental Game Coaching Professional (MGCP). I’m excited to share my experience and expertise with new and veteran athletes alike and look forward to helping you perform as a Headstrong Athlete!