– Houston, TX.

Brittany Perkins qualified for the US Olympic Trials in 2020 after she ran 2:44:14 at the Cheveron Houston Marathon on January 20th.  This goal came to fruition when Brittany took 2nd at the NHRMC Wrightsville Beach Marathon with a 2:54.  After that race, the fire was lit and she went for the next level of running accomplishments.

Brittany was a collegiate miler from East Carolina University and had a lot of success in College.  She graduated, got a job in Wilmington, NC, married Matt Perkins and now has a 2 year old daughter Ruby.  Brittany has made many sacrifices with her time and energy to accomplish this goal.  She credits her Husband and Teammates, especially Erin Hogston who trained with her throughout the 16 week build up.  Erin ran a 5 min best time in Houston clocking a 2:48 just shy of her trials cut.  Luckily Erin has an entire year to knock off 3 minutes which we are extremely confident she can do.

“Brittany has worked extremely hard and her 9 min personal best is proof.  Statistically running 9 min faster in a marathon takes one hell of a race at this level, and Brittany pulled it off.  I ran several of our scheduled workouts with her and Erin.  Observing, listening, and knowing all conditions plays a part in how the athlete responds to workouts.  It was always amazing working with Erin and Brittany in workouts because I knew how demanding training is on the body and they persevered in each one” – Coach Tom Clifford.

FROM @bperki15 instagram

“Still hanging out on cloud9. ⛅️ Today is a day that I’ll carry with me forever?? because HOLY CRAP I just qualified for the #OlympicTrials in the #Marathon running a time of 2:44:24. ?‍♀️ It’s an amazing feeling when all the hard work, sweat, and training pays off.
Going into this race I felt prepared and confident in my training. But I’d be lying if there wasn’t a part of me that wasn’t nervous. I had only run a 2:54 prior to this at #wrightsvillebeachmarathon and wasn’t sure if I had been a little too ambitious on setting this goal.
I made sure not to go out too fast (6:43 for the first mile) but the faster paces felt and came naturally. I made a point throughout the race to check in with myself and gauge if I was putting out too much effort or if it was a pace I felt I could maintain.
The tricky thing is, the marathon is so unpredictable- I had a few waves of doubt and thought my body couldn’t handle the pace or I needed some additional nutrition. But, in those moments I told myself to focus on here and now rather than how much further I had -or- I would focus on getting to the next aid station.
With about 5 miles to go, I saw the 2:45 pacer ahead of me. He waved his arms and shouted, “I am at 2:45. You have to get in front of me.” I wasn’t sure I could do it. I let the hurt creep in and dropped my head for a bit. I snapped out of it after a couple strides and thought, “what are you doing?! You’ll be so pissed if you miss it by a few seconds!!” So I made a point to catch up to him and sit. I mimicked his strides and tried to fall into a groove. He pointed out 3 miles to go, 2 miles, then, with one mile to go, I tried to give myself some cushion from him.. (you know, just in case he wasn’t a perfect pacer- btw- he was such a life safer at that time and said the right things to motivate me to go with him). That last mile was the longest mile. I trudged on, but seriously wondered where the heck the finish line was. When I finally saw the timing system, I was in disbelief, shock, thrilled, ready to tell my husband (and family), kiss my kid, and hug my teammates.