Tia grew up in Marin County, taking her first steps on the trails of Mt. Tamalpais. She competed as a hurdler in the first California State Meet at which girls were allowed to participate; it would be another 10 years before women were allowed to run the Olympic marathon. She went on to receive a language degree from UC Berkeley and worked as a translator for a French bank, then supervised the print production department for a pharmaceutical advertising agency. Tia became a full-time mother and community volunteer in 1988. Amongst many volunteer commitments, she tutored reading in East Oakland, did a weekly news radio broadcast for five years at Broadcast Services for the Blind in San Francisco, and ran her first ultra (the Miwok 100K) in May, 2000. She moved to Denver in 2001, ran the Badwater 135 in 2002, earned her Teaching English as a Second Language credential (Cambridge University) in 2003 and took over the Miwok 100K in 2004. In 2007, Tia completed work on her Master Gardener Certificate through Colorado State University, and is now the Editor of UltraRunning Magazine. You can contact her at: tiab@ultrarunning.com Race Director
