Where did She grow up?
I moved around quite a bit growing up, and I think it made me more independent and adventurous by the time I was in high school. I was born in Omaha, Nebraska, and shortly after moved to Laramie, Wyoming. Then we moved to Ft. Collins, Colorado, and eventually to Flagstaff, Arizona, where I went to elementary school. After my parents’ divorce, I moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico, with my mom while my dad and brother stayed in Flagstaff. When I was sixteen, I spent a year in Perth, Australia, where I got hooked on surfing and the ocean. Then I was off to Hawaii for college.
Who or what inspired you growing up?
I knew who all the pro female surfers were from the 80s and 90s. I remember searching for female surfers in videos or magazines, but if I could actually watch one surf in real life it was pretty exciting for me. This was rare in Western Australia and even in Hawaii in the mid- to late 90s. I’m glad to see it’s a little different now, and I see women out in the water frequently.
What do you like to do for fun on your free time?
I love spending time in the water—surfing and especially spearfishing. I’ve spent a lot of my life working on charter dive boats and enjoy freediving the Channel Islands and Mexico, where I currently live on my sailboat. I also spend a lot of my free time running trails and ultra-marathons. My work allows me to travel, so I take advantage of that. Time spent with my family has also become more important to me, and I’m fortunate that I have active parents that I can hike, ski, swim, and run with.
How has your education, background, or personal experiences prepared you for the work that you
Going through smokejumper rookie training as a female at an older age was a challenge for me, but I didn’t have the confidence to apply when I was younger. I wish I had, because it might have been easier physically! I’ve got a lot under my belt at this point, including 13 years of fire experience; my education (which includes a BS in geography, a BFA in studio art, an MFA, and I’m currently working on my Masters in GIS); my experiences as a boat captain on dive boats, fishing boats, and my personal sailboat; and years of being involved in a variety of competitive sports, including mountain bike racing, competitive surfing and swimming, and running ultra-marathons. Whenever I face challenges, whether they are physical, mental, or emotional—and I think that ultimately they are all intertwined—I can look back at all the other challenges in my past and remind myself that I’ve probably faced something similar. The ultra-running has been particularly helpful because I know that I have the endurance to keep going even if I’m in a lot of pain. I have also found that this concept of endurance carries over to life challenges that are much lengthier, such as my San Diego Fire Academy training, which was 18 weeks long, and the eight-week-long smokejumper rookie training.
Credit : Forest Service U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
About us
Previously known as Fire Research Institute, we are changing our name to Wildland Fire Research Institute. The Institute was founded in 1983 to benefit research in fire across the globe.