Wife, mom, writer, seeker, volunteer, runner… all of these things describe our next amazing Runner of the Month! A natural storyteller with a huge heart for helping others, Vicky Travis has been a part of NRC ever since completing the first NRC C25K program in 2013. It was only then, at the age of 47 and after many unsuccessful gos, that she finally found what she needed to keep running – community.
Vicky was born in Columbus, OH, but before she was out of the crib, her family moved to a suburb of Detroit, MI called Royal Oak. There, she grew up alongside her younger sister, and was not what you would call a daring athlete. She tried ice skating, but her first attempt at a waltz jump, landed Vicky on her chin with 9 stitches! It would be later in life, as her own children were graduating high school, before Vicky would take another leap to commit to a sport through NRC.
With athletics off the agenda, Vicky was free to do more of something she loved – writing. Her confidence bloomed through the small, yet frequent encouragements of her 7th grade English teacher, Mrs. Kober. By the time she was in high school, Vicky had focused in on journalism as a career and followed her passion all the way to The Tennessean.
Not only a 25-year veteran of Nashville’s premiere daily newspaper, Vicky’s work has appeared in books, university publications, magazines and online. She has covered just about any subject you can imagine in her writing career, making each story grab you right from the beginning with her straight-forward, conversational way with words.
You may have seen her recently released book, Nolensville (Images of America) written with Beth Lothers, in which they highlight the rich local history of the town and the families who built it. It’s full of amazing stories! If you’d like to buy your own copy, just ask Vicky at your next NRC run!
For 10 years, Vicky kept readers of the The Tennessean up to date on the growing town of Nolensville in her regular column. One notable story in 2010 followed a fledgling running club who met at Martin’s BBQ and called themselves the “Hog Drivers”. Vicky, who knew the head Hog Driver, Scott Alexander, from years of going to the same kids’ ball games, was excited to share the story on this fun and neighborly group with other Nolensvillians. Still, it would be a while before she felt called to join.
While working at the Williamson A.M. in 2000, Vicky was coerced into signing up for their Franklin Classic 5K team. With no training and long before she knew what an “interval” was, Vicky struggled, but powered through to the finish. Five years later, the memory had faded enough for her to try again. Spurred by a good cause, she completed her second 5K, but still wasn’t ready to commit to a running routine.
Then, in 2007, she had been running for about a year, did a local 5K and ran the whole thing, finishing with a PR! It might have been the game changer, but unfortunately, her progress was stopped in its tracks. Vicky suffered 3 slipped discs (not running related) that weren’t just painful, but affected her gait so that she walked with an uneven step.
It took her 6 years to regain her confidence. Vicky began with a mailbox run. Using mailboxes as her progress trackers, she increased her runs slowly and in 2013, she came out to run with NRC. She remembers fellow NRCer Laurie Bostelman coining the term “wogging” to describe their unique method.
Then, Vicky signed up for the first NRC C25K program and discovered the magic of interval running in the 4:1 group! She met an amazing group of people, whom she still calls friends. After the 5K, her crew decided to settle into 3:1s, so that’s where she has stayed and loves it!
“It’s a happy middle,” smiles Vicky. “We’re kind of the Welcome Committee for the C25Kers who come out to NRC on Wednesdays. Plus, at that pace, we find lots of lucky pennies!”
Luck or not, Vicky has run consistently since 2013 and has completed six half marathons. She felt her best after the 2015 Middle Half’s not-so-hilly course, but isn’t opposed to running hills which she proved in taking on the Nolington Marathon (NRC’s unofficial marathon challenge) this March (2019). In fact, she loved the sights as they broke up the rollercoaster of a course into 3 runs that altogether had a total ascent of 1771 feet!
Vicky met the love of her life, Kent who is a graphic artist, while working at The Tennessean. They tied the knot in 1992 and started looking for their first home. Their realtor took them to Nolensville where they could build a brand new house and get more for their money.
It’s hard to imagine, but Stonebrook was the only neighborhood at that time. This is pre-Sonic, y’all! They knew it was where they needed to be, so they bought the lot and built the home where they would raise their two children, Jacob (24) and Sophie (22).
Vicky takes joy in the simple things. She jokes that her and Kent have “date night” once a week at Kroger, and they are incredibly active with their church, Woodmont Hills Church of Christ, teaching Sunday School for 1st and 2nd graders.
Volunteering is a passion for Vicky. For example, she helps each year as a NRC C25K mentor and, through her church, she gives her time and talents helping refugee families in a nearby community. Each month, her group responds to fulfill specific family needs, offer friendship and even help teach English, which has led to her to try learning Swahili.
Vicky is such an incredible representative of our club! She admits she didn’t expect the social time to be so important, but the family-like community of NRC is what keeps her coming back.
“The inclusiveness is special,” Vicky says about NRC. “I came for fitness, but it turned into so much more!”
So the next Saturday morning you walk into Mama’s Java and see half the restaurant in running clothes, drinking coffee and sharing laughs; pull up a chair and ask for Vicky. You can bet she will be among them with a smile and a really great story!
SPEED ROUND – Vicky Travis
Most Scenic Run: Beautiful country roads of the RC Cola-Moon Pie 10 miler in historic Bell Buckle, TN
Life List Race: Seaside Half Marathon
Hidden Talent: I’m the “finder” for our family!
1 Thing You Wish Was Never Invented: Bubble Tea, I tried it once and that was enough for me.
Dream Splurge: Hawaiian Vacation (no race running required)