gO! Runner of the Day- Leslie Myrick

I’m 52 and have lived in Auburn for about eight years. I have been a self-employed bookkeeper since 2005. I am also a student at Sierra College and Sac State and I’ll be graduating with my degree in Accounting in December.

I’m married to Chuck. He works for Astadia: The #1 Cloud Consulting and Integration Company. He works as a technical architect of and in the clouds, with the title of “Principal Consultant.” He travels often to places like China, India, Dallas, and San Francisco.

My husband and I have raised six children, two sons and four daughters – who are now 28, 25, 23, 23, 16, and 15. James is a technical administrator at Facebook in Palo Alto. Anna is studying cosmetology at Solano College. She is also a single mom of Anthony who will be six in November. Karl just graduated from Chico in Mechanical Engineering. Kristin is a gymnastics instructor in Grandby, Colorado and has about four other jobs. Beth is a senior and enjoys theater and choir. Abby is a sophomore and runs for the Cross Country team. They attend Placer High.

I got the idea of running from my mom. She was a major runner with the San Diego Track Club during the 70s and 80s, winning many first place trophies. When I was in high school, she would share a beer with me afterwards. It made running feel so rewarding and it had a nice mother/daughter bonding thing going also.

Some of my hobbies have included art (weaving and art history), cooking (ethnic studies), sailing (30-ft Kings Cruiser out of Oxnard to the Channel Island), and hiking/camping (mostly in California). I have studied music history and love listening to a variety of genres that cover the scope from Bach to Black Eyed Peas.

My athletics included playing basketball in high school and running with my friends after class in college (in my 20’s). Since then , running has been an inconsistent hobby as it was virtually impossible to get away with six children to watch over. I often tried to get going again, but I couldn't make the commitment.

I started running again in January as a New Year’s Resolution. I began slowly and painfully. My first run lasted for about six minutes. I also joined the No Boundaries group in March. I’m so glad I did, because it made a huge difference in my attitude and ultimately in my progress.

One of my current running goals is to run a nine-minute pace in a 5K. My long-term goal is to run as fast as our fast gO! runners – but not as fast as Josh. Hey, if Barbara Miller who’s 69 can do a 7:37 minute mile, why not me?

At the end of the day: when I grow up I want to be a CPA. I hope to be running and competing as often as possible, having fun living my life, and being centered in all things. When I retire, I’ll probably volunteer as a math tutor, help restore forests and build more houses for Habitat for Humanity. I’ll live to be 103. My ashes will be scattered in the water near the Catalina Islands.