Our Start Line

Being active has always been an important part of our lives. From the time I was 5 years old, we’ve enjoyed going on frequent walks, playing tennis, and swimming in the community pool (starting as early as February 😅). Activities expanded into bowling leagues, hiking trails, and trips to Yosemite National Park. As I got more involved in school sports, however, my parents took to the streets!

In 2013, Jason was living in Puerto Rico and learned that running was a very involved part of the culture. Many people ran not only for exercise, but also for community. There were many 5k races and lots of them were themed as well. Many of his co-workers ran these races and even had competitions with each other. While he and Hillery began to run for exercise, they soon found themselves partaking in many of the PR 5ks as well. Before I knew it, I was even dragged out to these 5ks and I didn’t even like running! Running 5ks had become their new norm and was sometimes a family event, like PR’s color run. Throughout my high school years, Hillery and Jason ran a total of ten 5ks in Puerto Rico signifying their first dive into the running cult that they were unknowingly becoming a part of.

As I was transitioning from high school to college, Hillery was feeling the empty nester’s blues. She decided she wanted to run a marathon because running was obviously the cure to this seasonal depression. They started to put together a training plan and learned that they would have to run 13 miles in one go as part of their training. They, however, did not want to run 13 miles without getting their just rewards: medals and t-shirts. So, they signed up for races that they could implement into their training plan. They signed up for the Long Beach Half Marathon which would be their first half marathon. Naturally, they were nervous and this particular race was a double out-n-back which is known to be a bit more difficult due to having to run the same course twice. Luckily, they ran their half marathon without a hitch, and were elated upon completion (and rightfully so ☺️). They continued their training plan and added some more races to it until it was finally time for their first marathon.

In October 2017, Jason and Hillery knew they were ready to tackle their first marathon. They completed their training, partook in multiple races, and strengthened their resolve. They looked for a marathon within the fall time period that was also within driving distance. They stumbled across the Bizz Johnson marathon in Susanville, CA which perfectly aligned with their time and distance prerequisites, and signed up. As they arrived at their first marathon, they realized that there was something a little different about this race than other races… it was in the boonies! What they didn’t know when they signed up for this race was that it was a trail race. They didn’t know there was distinction between road races –which was their only experience on a paved road, typically in a major city– versus a trail race –which often has rougher terrain, less frequent aid stations, and needs higher attention. At mile 19, Hillery had her first despair moment since her running journey began. Before her was a steep embankment that they’ve never had to tackle when running on pavement. She wanted to quit, thinking to herself that she couldn’t continue on. But, for better or for worse, they were in fact in the boonies.

There was no place to go other than forward. There were no cafes to take a break at or ride-sharing services that could take her to the car. No, she would have to finish the marathon if she ever wanted to go back home and cuddle our cat. So, they ventured on. They headed up the embankment and continued to run and run and run seven more miles until finally, they made it to the finish line! At the end of the race, they were so relieved, proud, and happy to accomplish something that they have never done before despite the unexpected challenges that arose. And for some wild reason, they decided they wanted to do it again. 😱

Hillery and Jason’s second marathon was done in Phoenix, Arizona three months later in January 2018. The race was part of the Rock ’n’ Rock series that includes races all over the US and contains a variety of 5ks, half marathons, and full marathons. Through this race, they also learned of the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame which is a special medal you can get by running 15 races. So, being the running freaks my parents are, they decided that they were going to get in the hall of fame that year. They ran 4 full marathons and 13 half marathons (2 not in the RnR series). Thus, they were deeply ingrained into the running cult, but this… was only the start line.