Today we turn the spotlight to fierce, gritty and bubbly Ashley Byers, who completed the Brazos Bend 100 last weekend. It’s like 4 marathons y’all – ECK! So maybe fierce and gritty are an understatement!
WHEN DID YOU JOIN VALHALLA + VALKYRIE RACE TEAM?
WHEN DID YOU JOIN VALHALLA + VALKYRIE RACE TEAM?
Joined in October 2020.
WHEN DID YOU START TRIATHLON?
I finished my first triathlon in 2014 called the Couples Sprint Tri in Austin. It was a team based tri where they take you and your partner’s race time and combine them for awards. Ryan and I were in the married category and started the swim together. There were other fun categories like BFFs and more than friends, etc.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR TRIATHLON JOURNEY:
In my first tri I barely made it out of the 800m swim. It was my first open water experience and I had a bad anxiety attack holding on for dear life to a kayak. The volunteer in the kayak encouraged me to flip to my back and keep going. I swam nearly 700m on my back and people hated me that day for running into them, but I got out of the water and finished. Since then I went on to face my open water fears and finished more sprints, 2 Olympic tri’s, 4 – 70.3 IMs and 3 full IMs at IMTX.
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE RACE?
I fell in love with ultra running in 2016 finishing my first ultra, a 36.8 mile one loop self supported course around the bays in FL. I was the 2nd overall female, but only 1 other female signed up! Two women in a male dominated sport which makes me pretty proud, so that podium win in ultra-signup automatically becomes my favorite race.
WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR BIGGEST ACCOMPLISHMENT IN THIS SPORT?
My top accomplishments are in the ultramarathon world vs. triathlon. I have finished a 50k, 50 miler, Habanero 100k, 3 – 100 mile trail runs (to include the recent Brazos Bend 100) and also have a 109 mile trail run finish as 3rd OA female. Most of my 100 milers had a more gracious time cut off of 48, 55 and 72 hours where I could take naps between loops to make the distance. To beat the 32 hour cut off for Brazos Bend 100 was a long shot for me. I DNF’d BB100 in December 2022 after a tough year (breast cancer diagnosis) and made a promise to myself I would keep going back to get it done. So glad that DNF redemption is over! BB100 is hands down my biggest accomplishment but many other races lead me here.
WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR BIGGEST CHALLENGE?
I have never been speedy, so most of my training is solo because my pace does not normally align with others. Being a back of the pack kind of athlete has it’s challenges but in the end I think it has made me more mentally tough.
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE POST RACE FOOD?
Cheese pizza, fried pickles and anything chocolate. And yes, all at once.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR FAMILY.
I have a daughter in her 20’s who I deem as my hippie wild child and my first true love. Ryan and I have been together 15 years and could not have children but he has been an incredible step-dad to Kayla. We have 2 dogs who are our fur babies and Kayla would argue that we favor the pups over her. Sure, maybe some days we do. But we are very proud of the independent young lady she has become owning her own business in the beauty/hair/lashes/make-up industry.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR PROFESSIONAL/PERSONAL LIFE.
Professionally, I do marketing for a global energy company, ChampionX. I just switched jobs 6 months ago after 11 years in the non-profit sector and I love my new job! I oversee all marketing initiatives for a business unit in the natural gas – midstream sector doing their social media, website content, product line messaging, supporting tradeshows, etc. Personally, I volunteer and serve on several charitable organizations such as Breast Cancer Support Groups as a recent survivor, Houston Methodist Patient Advocacy Council and Interfaith of The Woodlands Development Committee. I grew up in a loving home but we were poor and on welfare. To be able to give back to those in need in our community is a passion and privilege.
WHAT IS SOMETHING NO ONE WOULD EVER GUESS/KNOW ABOUT YOU?
I have an unusual fear of heights like being on mall escalators, glass elevators or ski lifts but I love roller coasters. Make it make sense!
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE THING ABOUT THIS TEAM?
Before we were even Vikings many on this team supported and cheered on Team Byers, while we were apart of another team (Renegade Endurance). That’s what Vikings do – you take care of each other but others outside of the team too. When Renegade dissolved, we knew there was no other team we would want to be apart of. We have since then encouraged former Renegades and friends to join V+V and we are so happy they did!
WHO IS YOUR FAVORITE AUTHOR?
Myself 🙂 One day my book will be completed. It’s a story about my life, obstacles and bounce backs to be passed on to my future grandchildren with my motto: If I can, YOU CAN accomplish incredible feats and get through hard times. If others read it, that’s a plus too.
WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE RESTAURANT?
TRIS in The Woodlands.
WHO IS YOUR BIGGEST INSPIRATION?
My husband Ryan. I often blame him for getting me into “this mess” of racing. He started his journey in 2012 and I was very happy just being his sherpa/crew. He has made me brave enough to attempt impossible endeavors and has also coached me through all of my tri’s and IMs and several ultras-100 milers. In 2022 I let him off the hook and hired a female coach for ultra running and what a relief for him LOL! Let’s just say being married to your coach has its pros and cons. But he remains my #1 on and off the race course.
WHAT EXCITING PLANS DO YOU HAVE FOR THE NEXT YEAR?
After BB100, I have no desire to race anymore in 2024 right now. We have lots of travel plans to keep my FOMO at bay. I look forward to supporting Ryan in his future races and cheering on the team.
