Corporate Sponsors:
I have been running competitively since high school, and it has certainly taken a team of people behind me in order to reach my running goals. New Balance, Inc. was my first athletic apparel sponsor from 1997- 2004. Reebok, Inc. stepped in and with their support I was able to put physical therapy on hold and run full-time from 2004-2012. They even continued my sponsorship during my pregnancy. A few years later ASICS America picked me up after I won the 2015 USA Marathon Championships in their shoes. I am current currently stilled sponsored by them.
Coaching:
The most important element that makes or breaks an athlete. I have been fortunate enough to have amazing coaching my entire career starting with Doug Pierce at Forsyth Country Day school in North Carolina who coached me to 11 out of 12 State Championships in track and 2 in cross Country form 1989-1993.
Joan Nesbit Mabe was my Cross Country and Track and Field Coach my entire time at UNC Chapel Hill from 1993-1997. She nurtured my running career at allowed me to work on my speed without pushing me into distance races too early. Under Joan I became on All-American on a DMR relay, set a school record in the 1500 meters, and won 2 ACC Championship titles in the 1500 and 5,000 meters and placed 13th in the 1500m NCAA meet in 1997. She also contunied to coach me post-collegiately until 1998, where I had immediate success on the road races scene making several USA Teams. Aside from the coaching, Joan has always been my idol and mentor as a woman and a mom.
The husband and I moved back to my hometown of Winston-Salem, NC and I started working with John Goodridge of Wake Forest University. I credit him for helping me get to that next elite level with some longer and more intense workouts that seemed to help me flourish as a distance runner. We worked together from 1998-2000 until he accepted another job in Michigan.
I had a brief stint of coaching myself in 2000 and really enjoyed the challenge. I set personal bests this year on the track while attending Physical Therapy school and placed 11th in the 10,000 and 7th in the 5,000 meters at the 2000 Olympic Trials.
In 2000, Jon and I asked world-renowned Coach Bob Sevene to coach us and we moved to Boston. Under Sev I qualified for 5 USA World Championship Teams, won 4 national Titles in various distances. Most importantly, I made the 2008 Olympic Marathon Team and was the only female finisher placing 27th. He coached me to all my personal bests. He’s not only a great coach, but also a surrogate Grandfather to my children.
In 2015 with life and family getting busy and running slowing a bit, I decided it was easier to coach myself and have been doing that since 2015. I won the 2015 USA marathon Championships in Los Angeles.
