It’s that time! The Volée team is open, Boston Marathon and the Tenacious Ten are coming up, and these 5 Volée teammates are joining the Haute Volée! These fierce women are all Olympic Trials Qualifiers in the marathon, and looking forward to a fantastic year of racing. Please join us in welcoming Kelsey, Siobhan, Meg, Jocelyn, and Sarah to the Haute Volée!
Kelsey Hodges: I’m an aeronautical engineer [Ed. note: cue "Rocket Scientist"] who moved to Huntsville, AL to help build the rocket that’ll take astronauts back to the moon and who found running along the way. I’m a non-discriminating consumer of carbs, so my hobby is keeping my training well fueled by baking lots of bread and treats - I also play ultimate frisbee to keep the fast twitch muscles firing. Technically, the first time I realized I could run a fast marathon was after a breakout race at the Indy Monumental Half last year a month before my eventual OTQ, but there’s some days I still can’t quite wrap my head around it. While I love working aid stations at local races, my favorite way of getting involved in the running community has been volunteering with the local high school XC/TF team.
Jocelyn Todd: I am currently a PhD student in Biomedical Engineering and my research analyzes the mechanics of cartilage in the hip to determine risk factors for osteoarthritis development. When I'm relaxing from training and my studies, I like to take on interesting side projects like brewing kombucha, learning to play the guitar, baking sourdough, and growing a banana tree in my apartment! I ran my first marathon in 2016 and hit my goal of sub 3 hours, I knew I could handle the training and was hungry to improve, so I set my sights on OTQ! My favorite thing about the running community is how it connects individuals of all walks of life - I like giving back to the community by fueling these connections through volunteering at races, panel discussions, product demos, and of course through the Volée!
Sarah Pease: I'm currently privately coaching clients and volunteer coaching at Indiana University. I love cheering for my favorite teams (Hoosiers, Pacers, & Colts!!), watching lots of basketball, cooking, playing the piano and spending time with my husband and cat (Malcolm). We love to walk my sweet cat on a leash. He enjoys it too! :) I give back to the running community by working with youth runners. I love how excited young runners get about running and racing!
Megan Foster: I’m an artist and professor at RISD. During the semester I live on the highway between New York City and Providence. I listen to A LOT of audiobooks/podcasts and keep a shoe organizer in my trunk. I first realized I could run a fast marathon in 2008. My goal was to break 3:20 and I ran 3:12. I was pumped and mentally cartwheeled across the finish line. My next marathon was 2:59. I’m always excited when I can inspire anyone at any level to get out and do something active. This can be as simple as talking with family or as grand as helping get a new competitive women’s running team off the ground, Distance Project NYC.
Siobhan O’Connor: I teach Middle School History in Philadelphia and get to coach too. Middle School XC and fitness are a ball, but it's impossible not to remember everything pure about running when doing it with 3rd and 4th grade girls at Girls on the Run. I ran my first marathon when I started at my current school six years ago, and by 2015 I thought I could pull off an OTQ one day. Training progressed faster than race results. When I'm not running or teaching, I love to read, garden, and cook, where I have an especially good track record of eating every vegetable in a family size CSA with only two people.
