It is all about balance for Memphis resident Barb Wells. A busy mom with a toddler and a new baby, she works hard at balancing family, career and running. Not wanting to sacrifice any of her precious family time, Barb is out the door running, flashlight in hand, before many of us hit the snooze button on our alarm clocks for the first time. But the early start to her day does not bother her, in fact, she enjoys this time to herself and is grateful that she is able to continue running, despite her full days.

Barb was not impressed with running when she first became involved with it in high school. After a season of track, she became disillusioned with what she felt was too much of a focus on individual competition. She decided to stick with what she viewed as moreteam-oriented sports and played volleyball, basketball and softball for her duration of high school After graduating, she went on to attend college at LeMoyne and was a member of the lacrosse team. It was there, that she saw running in a new light. She found that running was a great way to stay fit in the off-season, so she began running on her own. Not only was there a physical benefit to running, she soon found that it also served as a great outlet for relieving stress.

After college Barb continued to run on her own and in 1995, she entered her first road race, the Grunt Run 10K. She does not recall her time but remembers placing second in her age group and the excitement she felt being around so many other runners who were all having such a good time. It was this good feeling that hooked her and she began participating in many more races. 

With numerous races to her credit, Barb has earned many age-group awards and some pr’s along the way. She was the first female finisher at the 2001 Paige’s Butterfly Run, where she completed the course in a personal best of 20:56. She prefers running the slightly longer races such as 8K’s and 10K’s. She recently completed the Fulton River Run 8K, where she earned third female overall honors, as well as placing in her age-group at the popular Stoney’s Harborfest 10K. When it comes to all-time favorite races, the ARC race tops her list. She had a younger brother who had severe cerebral palsy and mental retardation. Barb and her family had a close association with the ARC for the five years he was alive and are very fond of the organization.

Barb has completed one marathon and her first effort was impressive. She finished the 1999 Cape Cod marathon in 3:33. "After I finished I was so proud and amazed with myself because at this point in my life, it was the most I had ever challenged myself physically and succeeded." She feels she got help along the way from her husband and his parents who went along to cheer her on. They supplied her with that little extra emotional fuel to keep her going. When the time is right, perhaps next year, Barb is hoping to run another marathon as she genuinely enjoyed the experience.

Besides family life and logging nearly thirty miles a week, Barb also works outside the home. Once in the social work field, she changed career paths four years ago. She is currently in a PhD program in pharmacology at Upsate Medical Center, working full-time as a graduate assistant on her thesis research. It leaves her little time for hobbies, although she does enjoy photography. She is interested in taking up others once she finds more time in her schedule. For now, she is happiest spending time with her husband Brian and their boys Christopher and Hunter and being able to fit in her career and running along the way.

August, 2002