I’ve never been a runner. I was always interested in the arts instead of sports, and my childhood was chaotic, so sports didn’t come first. I didn’t get the opportunity to discover which sports I was interested in due to money or situational barriers, and I was quite shy as well. I did do track and field for a few weeks in middle school, but I wasn’t fast, so I gave that up quickly.
Fast forward to the summer of 2023, when I first met my partner, Logan. We were both into climbing, and we bonded over the outdoors and doing cool, difficult stuff that challenged us physically and mentally. One day, Logan told me about Courtney Dauwalter, and told me to watch the YouTube videos about her. I disregarded the suggestion, until one day I watched a video about her setting the crazy 10-hour record on the Moab 240, beating everyone, including the men.
I couldn’t believe that people ran for several days and nights without stopping or sleeping very much, and 240 miles didn’t seem fathomable. So, naturally, I was immediately in love with the sport. I did hours of research, fell into the rabbit hole of Barkley Marathons documentaries, and instantly found myself signing up for races that I wasn’t nearly trained enough for.
I did my first trail race at the Brighton Cirque Series with Logan, and it was the most exhilarating, fun, and motivating activity I had ever done. I continued signing up for races, even though I was back of the pack each time, and I did my first marathon at Arches Marathon and Half by Madmoose Events. That one was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. I took seven hours to complete it, as I had no idea what I had signed up for, and it was a particularly hot day in Moab. Even still, I was hooked.
My first official ultramarathon was Moab’s Red Hot 55k in February 2025. I was having the best day of my life out on that course, and was extremely emotional the entire time, but specifcally towards the finish line. The fact that I’d never thought myself to be athletic, but I was about to finish something that most people will never do in their lifetime, felt pretty insane.
I’m inspired by so many people in life and running, but specifically, Courtney Dauwalter. She has the most amazing attitude about running and pushing our limits, and she’s inspired me to be a more positive, curious person. I met Courtney at the Women of the Wasatch run club in Salt Lake City sometime late 2024. She came for a meet and greet with the club, and ran with us for 4 miles. I was determined to stay right behind her the whole time, and after 30 minutes of trying to find the courage, I finally said something to her. It felt euphoric to meet and run with a person who I look up to, and who basically got me interested in this sport.
Along with Courtney, I’m also inspired by my sister Kaylee and brother in-law James, who are doing amazing things with their career and hobbies, and I’m very inspired by my partner, Logan, who is a mountaineer, trail-runner, climber, and overall good human being.
3. What did you listen to when you started ultrarunning? What do you listen to now? If they are different, what do you think influenced that change?
When I started running, I felt like I needed to listen to music the whole time. Music is a huge motivator for me, and I grew up singing and writing music, so overall it’s a big part of my life. I made a playlist for the first marathon that I did, and it got me through some tough parts of the course. During the next race, which was just a 30k, I listened to music for about half of the course. While I wasn’t listening to music, I chatted with some other runners. I realized that motivation comes from other people too, as it distracts me from what I’m feeling, and the negative thought patterns. Now, I listen to music at the highlights of the race, like the start, the really tough parts where I want to quit, and the finish. I think the main thing that changed what I listen to is just the gained appreciation for the sport in how it changes your thought patterns. I used to be very self-destructive, and very negative. I needed something to drown out those kinds of thoughts, or else I would just quit. Now that I know each race is just a long day adventuring in the mountains, I’m able to clear up some of the negative thoughts, and instead, think about things that excite me, and think about the struggles as digging deeper into my pain cave, which I have Courtney to thank for that metaphor.
4. Do you have a specific running playlist?
I listen to whatever music I’m craving in the moment, but here’s my main race playlist:
When you’re out there for five or 6 hours, giving your best effort for that long, and there’s no cell service or people around you, there’s a point where your brain tries to bargain with you. Every five seconds, your brain tells you to quit. It screams at you for doing this, saying that you’d be better off in bed eating ice cream. You have to listen to these thoughts and at least consider them, because your body is in pain, you have dust in every crevice, and you just want to lay in bed. Non-runners see us do these really long distances and cannot fathom how we do this willingly and joyfully. They see the pain and the distance, but they don’t look further into the reason we do it.
Ultrarunners are trained to hear things differently. When we’re excited, we hear the cheering crowds, and we feel euphoria, while other people do drugs to feel the same way. When we’re tired, and it’s the middle of the night, we hear a stick break or a bunny in the bushes, and we feel as if our life is being threatened, so we move faster. When we’re about to finish a hard effort, and we put on our favorite, most motivating songs, we feel on top of the world. Additionally, we’re in tune with our bodies. We listen to our bodies telling us different things. Heartbeat, stomach growling, knees cracking, it all tells us something important, and we have the ability to listen. That’s something I don’t think non-runners would understand until they experience it.