10/31/2017
Happy Halloween, y'all! It's my pleasure to announce that we have added six new members to our team!! Without further ado, here are quick bios from each of our new members!
Marleigh Durham started running in 5th grade and set records at her middle and high schools. After taking a break during college, Marleigh moved to the Roanoke Valley and fell in love with the outdoors all over again. Most recently, Marleigh finished third overall at the Salem Half Marathon, and she's looking forward to toeing the line in Richmond for her first marathon in a couple weeks! Marleigh also is gearing up for her first ultramarathon next year.
Seth Pennington recently found his love for running after being active all his life and has big goals for the coming year. Seth is looking to complete his first 100-miler next June and is excited to grow as a runner as part of RET on his way to achieving his goals.
Christopher "Toph" Blankenship ran his first marathon in 2011 and finished in 4:10. He most recently completed the Marine Corps Marathon in 3:25, and has the goal to complete the North Face Endurance 50-miler this coming April. His other goals as a member of RET include a sub-3:20 marathon, being competitive in the 2018 RNUTS series, and placing in his age group in local races. Toph is looking forward to being challenged as a member of RET and setting the bar higher for himself.
Sabra Robitaille started out as a gymnast but got into running in middle school. She ran cross country and track in high school, before getting into 5k, 10k, half and full marathon races. Sabra wanted to push herself even more and decided to run the Blue Ridge Double Marathon in 2013. She has also completed the brutal Mountain Ma*****st 50-mile trail race. After having her son in 2015, Sabra can be seen pushing him in a stroller in shorter road races. As seen in her picture, Sabra placed 3rd overall at the inaugural RET RunCross event in September.
Emily Thompson is a grad student at VTCRI. She began running at the beginning of 2016 as a stress-reliever and way to meet people after moving to the area. Since then, Emily has competed in races ranging from 5k to the half marathon. She plans on running her first marathon next Spring and racing more on the trails, with plans of racing the RNUTS series in 2018.
Emma Kozlowski started training seriously as a runner in the Spring of 2016. Now she competes in races throughout the region ranging from 10k to the half marathon. Emma is coached by Anna Weber, an elite runner sponsored by Oiselle, and is excited to now also have the support of RET to reach her running goals. Emma is not only a runner, however. She spends much of her free time riding her horse and competes in local horse shows.
As team president, I am very excited to see our team growing and thriving together. There's nothing better than surrounding yourself with highly motivated, determined individuals with big goals and aspirations. I'm looking forward to growing with each one of our new members as runners and individuals!
Sincerely,
Patrick Woodford
RET Co-Founder/President
