my story

i carried my childhood dog (frenchie-guy) this entire race

i was fourteen when i fell in love with running.

just an angry pre-teen girl who loved the way it let me escape. during my early years of high school, i was living in an emotionally abusive household, and running became the place i poured every frustration. i turned my pain into a fiery passion that still burns to this day.

running became my safe space. a place to be free. a place to be maddy castleberry, without guilt for being too much. a place where i could finally show up as my truest, most authentic self.

now, at twenty-six, that same mantra lives deep in my soul. this sport wrapped me in its arms and healed me in ways i didn’t know i needed. i still wish i could give fourteen-year-old maddy a hug and tell her that it all works out.

from my final media day at the university of houston

after being injured for the majority of my high school years (thanks to a blissful ignorance that training myself to death would somehow make me elite) running was also what broke me. sustaining these injuries taught me, very early on in life, the significance of proper rest and balance. yet another mantra that has never left my side.

i was still desperate to run in college. after years of dreaming, emailing coaches, and hoping someone would take a chance on a girl with a lot of heart, someone finally did.

that someone was author and my former coach at the university of houston, steve magness.

i was given the opportunity to walk on to the team, and quite frankly, i didn’t stack up against many of my teammates. once again, that never limited me from having massive aspirations within the sport.

i will always give steve his flowers. for three years, i had the privilege of being coached by him, and his impact on my life was immeasurable. he didn’t just coach me as an athlete, he equipped me with the tools to fight any battle life put in front of me.

through tremendous dedication, i steadily progressed from one of the slowest to one of the fastest women — not only on my team, but in my conference. i’m not sharing this because i was on track to break world records, but because it speaks to my work ethic, determination, and, more importantly, my character.

to be continued xx