Woman Turning To Napa For Olympic Qualifier

If she makes it, this will be her second U.S. Olympic Trials.

Patty Rogers, a four-time NCAA All-American at the University of Colorado has one goal this March: qualify for the 2012 U.S. Olympic Trials Marathon. On Sunday, March 6, she will be lining up at the start of the 33rd annual Kaiser Permanente Napa Valley Marathon with the intention of running 2:46 or faster.

“That would be my goal,” said Rogers, “[to] just try to go that pace for as long as I can, and hopefully get the time. I’m just going to try to really go for that. It just looks like a good course. It looks beautiful.”

Rogers, who was a walk-on athlete at Colorado, will be running the Napa Valley Marathon for the first time. With a field of 2,400, the race is sold out.

Napa has been good to Olympic Trials hopefuls. Four runners qualified for the 2008 Trials, running the scenic marathon that winds through wine country.

Rogers had qualified for the 2008 Trials and placed 91st there.

For More: Napa Valley Register