Keynote Address: Touching The Finish Line
Speaker: Diane Van Dern
For most of us, the thought of completing a marathon seems daunting. For Diane Van Deren, that’s almost a stroll in the park. One of the top ultra-distance runners in the world, Diane has completed a number of 100-mile runs and most recently ran (and won) a 150-mile non-stop run in less than 47 hours!
Diane’s athletic career begin early; she won state high school championship titles in both golf and tennis, and she also excelled in basketball. She toured the U.S. Europe playing professional tennis. However, she was diagnosed with epilepsy while pregnant with her third child. After 10 years of frightening debilitating seizures, she underwent radical brain surgery that removed part of her right temporal lobe. She hasn’t had a seizure since and has gone on to become a world-class endurance athlete. She not only competes in 100-mile trail runs, but also snowshoe races and was a contender in the Iditarod Trail Invitational in Alaska, where she pulled a sled packed with more than 40 pounds of gear (no canine help on this one) for 260 miles in below-freezing temperatures.
Diane feels it’s important to share her personal story with others and is active as a professional motivational speaker. “I enjoy talking about how we all have obstacles in our lives”, she says. “Mine was epilepsy”. She was a finalist for the 2005 Outdoor Person of the Year” award from Hooked on the Outdoors magazine, the same year she was named “Female Trail Runner of the Year”.
Diane’s family has long been active in the steel fabrication industry, and her husband Scott, runs Mountain Steel Supply, a fabrication shop headquartered in Denver. “My legs serve as my words to inspire others to reach their own achievements, Diane says. I appreciate each chance I have to touch the finish line”. |
