Our Running Story

  Smiling after a successful birthday run along
strenuous trails in Wisconsin

Of all the things we’re passionate about, running ranks right up at the top. We run almost every day for the simple satisfaction of getting out the door, pushing ourselves and letting our minds roam free.  Since we first met in 2002, we’ve grown together through running.

Many of our favorite days and experiences are based on running.  We plan special runs for our birthdays.  We reserve Saturdays for long runs together through trails or parks.  For many years, we started the New Year with a midnight run through dark and revelrous streets.

I was a member of my college cross country and track and field teams when I met Meredith.  I specialized in the 5k and 10k distances at the Division I level in college, running about 85 miles a week.  My intense passion for the sport inspired Meredith and soon she took up running. Meredith started seriously running in college and realized she had some talent after winning local 5k races and competing in an Olympic distance triathlon.  Meredith was soon the accomplished runner in the relationship.  From 2009-2010, she ran three marathons, including the esteemed Boston Marathon, where, despite dealing with an IT band injury, she still set a PR. While we both still have competitive dreams, running through the beautiful neighborhoods and trails of Portland is our focus.

While our own running is a near daily ritual, we also devote our time to other aspects of the sport. Meredith coaches middle school cross country at Catlin Gabel School and I write about the top professional runners for RunnerSpace.

Along the way, we’ve also done our fair share of race directing. Together, we put on a turkey trot in the suburbs of Chicago called the Frozen Turkey 5k. From 2009-2011, we raised nearly $20,000 for area food banks and hosted some stellar Thanksgiving costume contests. In addition, I put on a variety of road races and track events, and now work with the Portland Track Festival.

We love running.  We hope that we are fortunate enough to be able to run for years to come from a home base that provides us access to quiet and tree-lined city streets.