Home » Membership » Runner Spotlights » Hope Seck

Hope Seck

Q: When did you begin running and why?
For most of my life, I would have called myself “someone who jogs.” I’ve always liked having the option of lacing up and going out for a few miles, but I wasn’t consistent or confident in my identity as a runner. I started playing around with distance while trying to re-find myself after becoming a mom, and in 2018, I ran the Pittsburgh Marathon—my first—at 11 weeks pregnant with my son Nathan. After he was born, I went all in on running.

Q: How did you find out about DCRR and when did you join?
I found out about DCRR from former member Katie Sprinkel, who invited me to Thursday morning track. I joined in late 2019, right before the pandemic put social runs on ice. But I loved the Thursday solo workouts coaches Big Guy and Rich continued to send out and I did them religiously.

Q: What are you training for right now?
I’ve run two marathons thi vspring and both of them were miles slower than my PR time. And yet they were incredibly full of joy. As I build back with no races currently on my calendar, my hope is to get faster and set some new PRs while still hanging onto that joy. Frankly, I’m not fast enough to sacrifice joy for speed. Not many of us are.

Q: What is the most important lesson running has taught you?
Which to choose? There are so many! When I was just starting to build my running endurance and training in the hills around my north Arlington neighborhood, I used to imagine each hill I climbed was loaded into my legs as fuel for future achievements, which made me feel powerful. I’ve learned through running that nothing is lost—no aspect of consistency or discipline or hard work. It’s all loaded in and contributing to who I’m becoming.

Q: What is your favorite route in the area?
I actually love the Arlington Triangle and any route that incorporates the Four Mile Run trail. When I can, I also like to do a point-to-point long run that ends at Mount Vernon.

Q: What race day traditions do you have?
My kids have a thousand cowbells for the purpose of cheering me on in races, and they always forget them at home. So I’ll tell them to remember their cowbells and give them each hugs and kisses before heading out the door. They are the best hype squad anyone could ask for.

Q: What is your favorite post-race meal?
My post-race tradition involves several hours of nausea, which makes food a lot less appealing. After a good hard long run, my favorite go-to is an egg everything bagel with lox, cream cheese, capers and all the veggies from Bethesda Bagels.

Q: What is your proudest running moment?
It would be hard to beat crossing the finish line at the 2023 Shamrock Marathon to—finally—nail down my first Boston qualifying time. I went up on my toes to give my husband Ben a victory hug and both my calves immediately seized and he had to lower me into a wheelchair. Worth it.

Q: What is your favorite running book and/or movie?
There’s an hourlong Tracksmith film called Church of the Long Run that basically captures a woman running up a mountain and back down again in real time, set to a lovely meditative music track. I don’t go out of my way to consume books or movies about running, but I find watching the act of running to be really calming and mesmerizing.

Q: What is your life like outside of running?
I like to call myself a “lady of leisure” because my life is hard to put into a box. I’m a full-time homeschooling mom of three and I’m also a freelance journalist who writes for newspapers and magazines about military and national security, aerospace, and sometimes real estate off the side of my nonexistent desk. I also teach Sunday school, high school journalism and public speaking, and English as a Second Language. And I enjoy feeding people whenever I can.