I first met Leia running the Hawk in September 2016. I was making a second attempt at completing a 50 miler after DNFing another race two weeks earlier. Leia was running her first 100 miler. That year, the weather forced us to run on the roads, which made it faster but certainly added to the beating on our legs.

I was impressed with the fearlessness Leia charged back out for two more 25-mile loops after completing the first fifty. I was in the pressence a true badass.

In October 2019, she placed first place female and fifth overall in the Heartland 100. She rolled throughf aid stations with a fierce competitive efficiency. At one, she took off before her pacer was fully ready. She is focused and driven.

In January 2020, I had the high honor of running the Second Best 100, a self-supported 100 she and I ran based out of the awesome coffee shop she and her husband own. That day the weather was crazy cold and an ice storm coated the ground the night before. In Yak-traks and screwed shoes, we ran up and down the Trolley Trail. She brilliantly led us to finishing by problem-solving issues as they arose, keeping us fueled and hydrated, and pacing us appropriately. I made it through that incredible run riding on her legendary coattails.

Leia keeps her runs on Strava private, so we played November Leia style. We didn't look at each others milage until the end of the month when we revealed our numbers during a zoom call. She outran me 112 miles to 92.