Her typical birthday presents consist of skiing attire, a bottle of wine and hand-written cards in crayon from her three young children. Yet all Freya Troop wanted this year was to run in the Eugene Marathon.
“For my 40th birthday I wanted a challenge, and I sure got one,” Freya Troop said as she plopped onto the ground after finishing the marathon. Troop finished in 3 hours, 35 minutes, 57 seconds, which placed her 109th out of 296 women competing.
This was Troop’s second marathon ever and first in eight years.
Troop, born in Tasmania, Australia, moved to Boulder, Colorado, in 2009 with her husband, Lee, a three-time Olympic marathon runner for Australia. Lee Troop, who finished 66th in his Olympic debut in 2000, 27th in Athens in 2004 and 60th in Beijing, has passed much of his experience on to his wife but wasn’t in attendance. He was coaching his Boulder Track Club athletes at the Payton Jordan Invitational.
“He is my inspiration,” Troop said. “I could hear his voice in my head telling me not to give up. He would always tell me ‘Keep your focus, stay consistent and imagine our three kids are waiting for you at the finish line.’”
Troop has been running since her childhood but is new to the competitive side. Running through the scenic trails in Boulder, a logical step would be to travel to TrackTown USA, where her husband has competed on numerous occasions.
“I have only heard stories about Eugene from my husband and friends, so I told my friends that we should run a marathon and then go down to Portland and party,” Troop said.
Troop was blown away with the 26.2 miles around Eugene. “When we were running across that huge bridge overlooking the river, I almost thought about stopping and just taking in the view,” she said.
Troop enjoyed the final stretch on Hayward Field but had an interesting alternative motive for sprinting the last 100 meters. “I saw that Hop Valley Beer Garden being set up and I really wanted to try that,” she said. “I think I deserve at least a beer after that.”
Alongside Troop was her Boulder Track Club teammate Zana Buttermore-Baca, a realtor and swim coach. Baca has a unique philosophy behind her love-hate relationship with running. “I run because I love to eat way too much,” she said. “Food is so good. I don’t want to spend money on buying bigger clothes either. That is why I run.”
Baca was satisfied with her half-marathon time, 1:45:02. “Freya told us about the marathon a few months ago but I never really started training until two weeks ago, when I realized how out of shape I was,” she said. “I had a great pace and finished strong. Now I want a big margarita and some enchiladas. Where can I get that?”
Baca has been teammates with Troop for three years now and attributes some of her success to the guidance and support that Troop provides. “ Freya is an all-star out there,” she said. “ She is always telling me to keep pushing, even when I’m running on fumes. That is just who she is.”
Troop and Baca believe that the adrenaline rush and “runner’s high” that takes place during big races are their favorite aspects of running. “Being surrounded by all these people from different states and backgrounds, it shows how this sport can bring people together,” Troop said.
