Mm-hmm

... judge the lineup based on what you see there per se, 'cause there's a lot of international athletes that are at the bottom of that list that I only recognize 'cause I've, like, raced the same races as some or raced against them.

And so seeing that was really exciting.

So going into the elite presentation and kind of my own mental preparation for the race was very much so filled with this, like, okay, big stage, excitement, nerves, um, anticipation.

I was just-- I felt so ready and excited for it.

And from, um, from the moment, you know, we all got up on the s- the stage or whatever it was, as a group of the top 10 women or favored women, just to be, you know, standing next to them and, and everyone had, like, equal excitement.

I think there was a ton of excitement and, and anticipation for that being the first race in a long time, skyrace in the US.

Mm-hmm.

And I would love to maybe start off the show with maybe you'd introduce yourself and just let us know a bit about you and the style of running and the things that you enjoy.

Yeah, totally.

Great to be here.

Yeah, so I'm born and raised in the Pacific Northwest of the US, so grew up in Seattle.

So the sea level... lush green forest running and big mountains are no new thing to me.

And I'm really excited to race Beast of Big Creek here in practically sort of my backyard.

But I grew up playing soccer, not running.

So like, what are the thoughts that you have when you're planning your season?

around

you.

This will probably be different unless a bunch of clouds of mist roll, roll in.

You never know, but, um, yeah, just being mindful to race my race and my pace.

and not feeling uneasy when I'm by myself because that creeps in for sure if you don't have anyone to pace against or there's not anybody behind you.

Sometimes when I'm running or racing against other women, I just start cheering the other person on or chatting.

There's a camaraderie that builds even when you're competing against each other.

Um, Is there any plans to make any switch-ups or change anything and practice something you might not be able to practice for other races that might be more A objectives?