Lori Roberts, our latest People of TRL interview, who’s running her first 10km race at TRL 2015

Ted’s Run for Literacy: When did you start running and why?
Lori Roberts: Sitting around a campfire with friends one night in July 2012, I made a suggestion that the five of us should sign up for the 2013 Manitoba Marathon Relay. We all (reluctantly?) agreed, I started running in the spring 2013, and the Happy Crampers placed 105 out of 395 in our category. After that, I was inspired to try to improve my personal performance. I did not run any “races” in 2014, but continued to find ways to include running in my busy life. I run because it’s inexpensive, simple, and because I can. In December 2014, I broke my wrist in a skating incident and I have lasting issues that requires surgery. I am currently unable to ride a bike, do yoga, or any other exercise that requires force or movement of my wrist so this year I started running a lot more simply because it’s the one thing I CAN do. I started the season off with my first 5km race in May and will finish it off with my first 10km at Ted’s Run for Literacy. I’ve seen such improvement in my endurance that I’m inspired to keep going. I also have a great husband who helps me fit regular runs into our busy routine and it’s encouraging that my young children are becoming interested in running with me!

TRL: Road, trail, or treadmill – where do you like to run?
LR: Did I say I “like” to run? Mostly road, a few trails, never on a treadmill.

TRL: If a movie/TV villain was chasing you who would have you running at top speed?
LR: Whichever ones are the fastest. Because if they weren’t fast, I would run my usual pace and hope that I’ll outlast them.

TRL: What’s the best tip you learned while training for Ted’s Run?
LR: I have a few that are all along the same line – Set a goal and stay committed, believe that I can overcome my negative brain (which always tells me to quit, or provides me with endless excuses not to go), and having a destination or a pre-determined route to keep me from taking a short-cut.

TRL: What does TRL mean to you?
LR: Ted’s Run for Literacy represents the integrity in people to make positive change and to encourage people to work towards a better future. Our youth need support and leadership to know that it is within all of us to succeed. I am excited to participate for the first time this year and look forward to seeing this little race become a major contributor to support literacy and inspire our youth to achieve success.