Danny Ackerman
Danny is the youngest Pacers employee, yet he has been working in the Alexandria store for more than two years as of Spring 2008. He is a student of local TC Williams High School where he runs Cross Country and Track. He aspires to go to the prestigious University of Michigan in Fall 2009 and he can't wait to get his applications out and begin his career in politics. He would like to think that his key addition to the store is a good joke every now and then but, being the youngest employee, he is much too often the brunt of the store's jokes. You can catch him at local races and at the best Pacers running store, Pacers of Old Town Alexandria.
Doug Axelrod
Doug is a graduate of the University of Mary Washington where he competed on the school’s track and cross country teams. Doug's day job consists of computer programming for a local defense contractor, and his night job is a web design firm which he recently founded. Doug's goals at Pacers include: no-spill replacement of the water cooler, absorbing Spencer's Puma selling powers, finding a non-leacking water bottle, and finally, beating Frank Devar in something. Doug is upset Danny beats him alphabetically.
Brian Baillie
Brian works at the Clarendon store and also competes for the racing team. A graduate of Haverford College, Brian recently made his debut at the Frederick Marathon, running 2:34 for the win. Unfortunately, Brian will be leaving to pursue graduate studies at the University of Southern Illinois this summer. He hopes to continue competing for Pacers in the coming years as he stalks the now tougher Olympic Trials standard in the marathon.
Spencer Beasley
Spencer started running when he was in first grade at his old elementary school in Fairfax. In eighth grade he made the cross country and track team for T.C. Williams. His favorite event during the track seasons is the mile because it's only four laps but every lap is as important as the others. His best times include 4:32 for 1600m, 2:02 for 800m, and 16:10 for 5K. He still continues to run for T.C. Williams and running has been a passion of his since he was little. He has worked at Pacers since May 2007 and says that it has been very fun and exciting to work with all the great and knowledgeable people here.
Kathryn Bexfield
Kathryn graduated from Haverford College where she ran for their cross country and track teams. Kathryn has worked part-time for Pacers since 2004 and can be found mostly at the Old Town location. In her spare time, Kathryn enjoys baking goodies for her Pacers buddies.
George Buckheit
Aside from his frequent work on the sales floor, George Buckheit is the Pacers Racing Team and Pacers Miles Ahead coach. He has worked with everyone from novice runners to Olympic Trials qualifiers. As an athlete, George was a 2-time All-American distance runner while attending Bucknell University and has recorded personal best times of 13:43 for 5,000 meters and 28:39 for 10,000 meters. In recent years, George has guided many DC area runners to new personal bests and the elite athletes he has coached have recorded victories in many of this area’s most prestigious races, including the Marine Corps Marathon.
Mark Censky
Mark was on the two-time high school cross country state finalist team at the Archbishop Hoban School in Akron, Ohio. After graduating college, Mark lived, worked, and competed in San Francisco, Cincinnati, and Boston running both half marathons and full marathons. He especially recommends the "wild and wacky" Bay to Breakers run in California and the Flying Pig Marathon in Cincinnati. Mark works at the Clarendon store and is a big promoter of Pacers Tuesday and Thursday fun runs.
Laura Cloher
Laura is originally from Chicago but moved to Maryland to attend college at College Park. A veteran of many marathons, she is currently training for the Big Sur Marathon in California. She is now a full time teacher, but she hopes some day to be a race course designer, so that she can place strategic "Heartbreak Hills" near the finish of every run.
Lesley Cranshaw
Lesley has been working in the running industry for almost seven years and has recently joined Pacers
as the apparel buyer and manager of the Clarendon store. While not as fast as most of her
co-workers, she is diligent and has completed 10 marathons including two Boston's and two
200 mile relay races. As a mother of 4 grown children and the only grandmother on staff to the
most perfect grand-daughter Chloe, she hopes to provide some inspiration to all those who want
to get their figures back.
Kathy Dalby
Pacers Events
Kathy has worked in the running specialty industry for nearly a decade and has been with
Pacers since the summer of 2002. A California native, Kathy headed east to Michigan State
University where she competed for the mighty Spartans for a year. After college, Kathy
moved to Washington DC where she completed her Masters in Public Health at the George
Washington University.
Currently, Kathy manages Pacers Events
, a road race
management and timing company, and also is an apparel buyer for the stores. In her spare
time, Kathy enjoys coaching for the Girls on the Run program, playing soccer, and running
with the gals on the undefeated Junior Varsity Pacers Running Team.
Justin Dempsey-Chiam
Justin is a recent welcomed addition to the Pacers team. A world traveler, Justin
recently returned to the states after a two-year Peace Corps assignment in
Bangladesh. When not at the store, Justin can be found photographing numerous
local races (see our photo gallery).
Mark Drath
Mark currently runs cross country and track for George Washington University, where he is one of the top runners on the squad. He ran a personal best of 26:34 for the 8k in cross country this season and hopes to best his 4:08 in the 1500 this year in track. He came to DC from LA and hopes to go to law school back on the West Coast after he receives his bachelors degree. Despite his relatively tame upbringing, he claims to be friends with Snoop Dogg, Suge Knight and the ever popular Stanley Kirk Burrell.
Julie Esch
Julie came to Pacers via Wisconsin where she was a member of the University of Wisconsin Triathlon Team.
She has competed in the Ironman Wisconsin, where she completed the race in 11 hours 23 minutes.
She is currently a grad student at Marymount.
Tara Fenske
A recent transplant from Chicago, Tara works part-time at Pacers and also trains with the Pacers Racing Team. A solid runner, Tara has run 3:13 at the 2006 Boston Marathon and 63:06 at the GW Parkway 10 Miler. Tara also coaches for the Girls on the Run program and enjoys reading and playing with her cats, Silver and Bell.
Chris Fryxell
The longest-serving current employee of Pacers, Chris Fryxell has worked at the store for nearly 15 years, first under the leadership of his father and founder of Pacers, Steve Fryxell, and now for the Farley family. When not managing his electrical business, Chris can be found working Sundays at the Alexandria store assisting long-standing and new customers. A Pacers favorite, Chris has the uncanny ability of assessing a customer's shoe size the moment they walk into the store and with such a degree of accuracy that he plans on taking his talents on tour to a carnival near you.
J.J. Gilday
J.J. Gilday grew up in Richmond, VA where he lettered and was captain of both the Cross Country and Track & Field teams (albeit a slow captain). He attended Old Dominion University where he competed on the rowing team and earned a BS in Exercise Science. He moved to Northern Virginia in 1999 and currently works for the Department of Justice. He has run 12 marathons, has worked part-time at Pacers for over 5 years and currently trains with George Buckheit and members of the Pacers racing team and Miles Ahead runners.
Beth Gilbert
Beth is one of the many New Jersey natives to work for the Pacers staff. She ran cross country in high school and continued running recreationally at UVA. Currently, in between her construction management job and part-time work at Pacers, she is training for a spring half marathon, where she hopes to eclipse the 2 hour mark. Beth has a dream of one day running the Midnight Sun Run in Fairbanks, Alaska, and claims to have often trained for the race in the wee hours of morning while in school at Charlottesville
Rich Harris
Rich Harris came to work for Pacers in the late summer of 2005, a year after he arrived in DC from Western Massachusetts. He arrived in Western Massachusetts from the great state of New Jersey, a place he continues to represent hard. His job title at Pacers is Resident Expert in Clarendon and he is more than happy to offer an opinion on close to anything. Late in the winter months he is often confused with Frank Shorter.
Courtney Harrison
Courtney is an avid runner who first realized her love for the sport in high school-- when she started running to stay in shape for field hockey and lacrosse seasons. Seeking to take her running to the next level, Courtney signed up for the Aids Marathon Training Program in the fall of 2005. After completing the Miami Marathon in January of 2006, Courtney was hooked. She has since completed two more marathons-- Chicago in 2006 and 2007 -- among many other 5Ks, 10Ks, 10 Milers and Half marathons. She joined the Pacers' staff in June of 2006 and her most favorite part about working at the store is getting to share her love for running with customers. In addition to running and working part-time at Pacers, Courtney works in Government Affairs and she is a coach for the Girls on the Run program. Her goal as a runner is to eventually qualify for and complete the Boston Marathon
Mark Hogan
Mark currently attends and runs for Villanova University under the coaching of Marcus O’Sullivan. He hails from Clifton and ran varsity cross country and track all four years at Centreville High School. He began working at Pacers in March 2008 when the Fairfax location was just getting built and he is grateful that his work does not consist of hammers and shelving anymore. His future goals include earning his Master of Arts in Mathematics at Villanova.
Christian Hicks
Christian is a Minnesota native and has been a Pacers employee since August of 2007. He has an outdoor retail background, but currently works full time as a consultant for a communications firm in DC. Christian is mainly a marathon/ultra-marathon runner, but don't be surprised to find him in a 5k here and there. As a youth, Christian excelled in snowshoeing, placing in the 1999 Northwoods Snowshoe Championship (MN) in the 15 and under category.
Erik Kean
Store Manager/Miles Ahead Training Program Assistant Coach
Erik has worked in the running specialty industry for over eight years with
three of these years at Pacers. A gifted runner, Erik was a top high school
cross country runner in his home state of Wyoming and was captain of the
Princeton University cross country team. Erik runs competitively as a
post-collegiate, with a personal best record of 2:20:38 at the 2003 California
International Marathon where he placed 3rd overall. Erik raced in the 2004
Marathon Olympic Trials and is currently training for the 2008 trials.
When not managing the Old Town store, Erik serves as an assistant coach of the
Miles Ahead
Training Program. Erik has coached numerous
individuals to personal bests in all distances and individually and collectively
coaches over 40 local runners. When not running, Erik enjoys reading and spending
time with his family.
Tom Kniffen
Tom has run 25-35 miles per week since 1976 when he was a first-year law student. For the last 5 years he runs primarily 10 milers, with his last Marathon being the 2001 Marine Corps. An Arlington resident, Tom frequently runs the Mount Vernon Trail and National Mall. He firmly believes that Pacers is a great place to work.
Lana Leung
Lana began working for Pacers in May 2007 and began running in 2002. Her passion for the sport developed upon completing the 2003 Marine Corps Marathon. Since then Lana has completed numerous half and full marathons as well as her first ultra in November 2007, the JFK 50 Mile in 10 hours and 39 minutes. Lana's claim to fame is being the first female running model featured in the New Balance NBx collection of running apparel and shoes. Aside from running, working at Pacers, and working in the IT industry, Lana enjoys practicing yoga and spending time with her family and friends.
Jeremy Lowry
Store Manager Alexandria
Jeremy is back at Pacers for a second stint after he took time off to pursue a graduate degree in accounting. Jeremy ran track and cross country at Virginia Tech, and has run a personal best time of 2:33 in the marathon. Jeremy has often been mistaken for Steve Prefontaine, but he is always quick to point out that Pre, if he were alive today, would be almost 57 years old.
Colleen McMichael
Colleen started working at Pacers in February of 2005. She excels as the Resident
Expert in Training in the Old Town store. She loves working at Pacers-so much so,
she can't even fathom spending her Spring Break in Miami, but rather, work at
Pacers in the 30 degree weather. She is currently enrolled at the University of
Mary Washington. While she does not run for school, she enjoys racing with the
community in Fredericksburg. She studies a lot and prides herself on being able
to hum all the songs in the Cranium "humdinger" category. She entertained the idea
of owning her own running store but thought that medical school might be easier.
Wendy Moltrup
Wendy is a new employee with Pacers having started in November of 2007. She works as one of the floor managers and also assists with the marketing and communications for Pacers. Wendy came to Pacers after a stint on Capitol Hill and in government relations. Her desire to enable others live a healthier lifestyle inspired her to earn a Masters of Science in Health Promotion Management. She is also a Certified Personal Trainer with the National Academy of Sports Medicine, and a certified distance running coach with the Road Runners Club of America. One of her goals is to help people realize that making healthier choices can be affordable, fun, and does not mean you have to start eating tofu.
Ryan Murphy
Ryan attended and ran for the University of Virginia as an undergraduate. It was at UVA that he first worked in a running specialty store. He began working at Pacers in April 2008 during his first year of graduate school at George Mason University. He currently runs for Mason as well.
Andrew Murray
A long-time DC native runner, Andrew still fondly remembers many now-defunct local events including: Fritzbee's 10K, Hangover Classic 8K, The Glenn Brenner 5K, and Captain 20's scary gerbil races on WDCA-TV. When he isn't working part-time in the Arlington store, you can find him training with the Miles Ahead program.
Dwayne Rax
Dwayne started working at Pacers in August of 2007. He is currently a student at Howard
and plans on going to law school after he finishes his degree. He was a former 800 meter
runner in high school with personal best time of 1:57. He currently is training to beat Brian
Farley in the 5K distance.
Jenna Sokolowski
Jenna's been running for almost exactly half of her life - first at Lake Braddock Secondary School then also for Syracuse University, where she majored in Musical Theatre. There she explored her "creative" side. When asked to express her feelings about having worked at Pacers since January of 2005, she wrote this ditty: "Don't be fooled by the kicks I got. I'm still, I'm still Jenna from the block." Pretty original, huh? Not quite finished. Anyway, until it's completed, she'll keep training to run another marathon and continue to act on the stages of DC and Baltimore. From the eternal wisdom of Brian Farley: "Word".
George Thorton
George Thornton has been fitting runners for nine years. He started running track at Robert E. Lee High School, followed by one year of distance running with the Air Force. He spent six years as a firefighter in the Air Force before going into law enforcement as a Special Operations Officer. When not wielding a gun, he enjoys competing in various Firefighter & SWAT challenges. You don't want to mess with George.
Robbie Wade
Robbie was born in Portlaw Co Waterford Ireland, he came to DC area via Chicago to work and run for Pacers. Robbie has been running for 14 years but when he steps out of bed in the morning it feels more like 50 years. After a steady start he ran for Ireland at the European Cross Country Championships in 2001. He moved to Chicago in 2001 to attend Loyola University Chicago where he was a two time NCAA qualifier in Cross Country, after graduating he moved up to the marathon and ran a debut 2:24:14 at the 2006 California International Marathon. When not running at 7:45am with Chris Farley, Robbie enjoys socializing with his friends, horse racing, apple picking, and listening to country music.
Kristen Wyckoff
A long time family friend, Kristen can most often be found managing registration and volunteers for Pacers Events and at store events. You may also catch her helping customers in the stores on weekends and weeknights. Kristen works full-time for ChildHelp USA and enjoys spending time with her children and friends.
Sarah Ziherl
A newer member of the Pacers crew, this Northern New Hampshire native was raised on granola, back country skiing, and small town life. Currently studying International Relations at American University, Sarah caught the running bug after training for her first Marathon in Berlin, Germany. When she’s not running, Sarah enjoys spending time with friends and planning her next adventure abroad.
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