Start Line Stories: Ali & Emily - Fast Friends for 13 Years Running

In 2011, Ali Feller and Emily Halnon met in person because they shared two significant, life-changing interests: they both loved to write and they both loved to run – and, of course, they loved to write about running. The location of that meeting? No surprise, it was a road race. The two running bloggers (back when that was a big thing) met that fateful March weekend at the National Half Marathon in Washington, DC and became fast friends who forged a long-lasting friendship.

Now, 13 years later, they will run together again at the 2024 Eugene Marathon. The day before, on Saturday, April 27 at 12 noon, Emily will be Ali’s special guest at the Ali on the Run Live Show at the Eugene Marathon Health & Wellness Expo. Attendees will get the opportunity to see both Ali and Emily that afternoon and hear about Emily’s debut book To the Gorge (which, surprise surprise, is also full of running), and will be released 10 days early – specifically for Eugene Marathon weekend.

We hope you enjoy this special edition of our Start Line Stories series, featuring both Ali and Emily. Read their full story below and catch them live on marathon weekend.

Name(s): Ali Feller and Emily Halnon

Where are you from and where is home now? 

Ali: I’m from Hopkinton, New Hampshire and I’m back there now.

Emily: I’m from Lincoln, Vermont and now I live here in Eugene.

Why did you choose to sign up for Eugene in 2024? 

Ali: There’s actually a long back story… I was first introduced to Eugene by way of Emily Halnon in 2011. This was during the heyday of running blogs and Emily and I each had one: hers was Sweat Once A Day, and mine was Ali On the Run. I was a huge fan of Emily’s blog and, at the National Half Marathon in March of 2011, I got to meet Emily Sweats IRL. I was so excited! I was a stereotypical fan girl and that quickly turned into: do you want to stay with me this weekend? I was training for my first marathon at the time, and I was planning to run my second marathon in 2012. That was going to be Eugene because of Emily. Sadly, I never made it to the Eugene start line in 2012 due to over-training and an injury, but Emily did make it, and she ran a 3:08 and I remember tracking her and thinking the whole time: she’s my hero, I HAVE to make it out to Eugene one day! So it was Emily who put Eugene on the map for me.

Then last year, in 2023 – after taking seven years away from the marathon and after spending two weeks in Eugene in July of 2022 – working for the World Championships Oregon22 Media Ops team – I got the itch to run a marathon again and I decided on Eugene. So last year I flew out, I ran the marathon, and I had the most amazing cheer section: Emily, her dog Dilly, our friend Sarah, and lots of sequins. This year felt like a no-brainer to come back, but I’m doing the half this year because last year, three days before I ran the Eugene Marathon, I found a lump that turned into a cancer diagnosis. So, in the last year I’ve done chemo, surgeries, everything, and Emily’s been by my side through it all and now we are going to run together.

Emily: What’s getting me to the 2024 start line is that I adore Ali and I want to support her! But I do have my own fun history with the Eugene Marathon. Back in 2012, I was living in DC and I was trying to find a race that would be prime for running a PR. A friend in Seattle suggested Eugene, so a group of us flew out and we had an absolutely magical weekend; we all ran massive PRs, some hit BQs for the first time, I cut 20 minutes off my marathon time, and we had so much fun from start to finish. Eugene Marathon felt like a marathon full of puppies, rainbows, and PRs.

That was my first time to Eugene and that experience put Eugene on the map for me. When I started thinking about moving to the West Coast soon after, Eugene was on my mind and that marathon in 2012 played a large role in motivating me to make Eugene my home. And in 2018, my mom ran the Eugene half and it was her last trip out to see me before she passed away from a rare cancer in 2020 (her bold, brave, inspiring spirit is really what the book is about). So it’s very full circle, to be able to come back and officially release my book on Eugene Marathon weekend.

What is currently motivating you to get to the start line in April?

Ali: Right now, it’s all about running for fun and enjoying it. Last year, I was all about training, training, training and not missing a mile. This year, I’m thinking about having an amazing girls’ trip with my friends and running 13.1 miles with one of my favorite persons in the world. Emily has been there for me since we met: to celebrate with me in the best moments of my life and to support me through all of the hardest times. Some of those have been on the run – like late in the 2023 Eugene Marathon when I was having a rough time and Emily was there and it made it better for a little while; and some have been off the run, like when she flew out to be with me at my first round of chemo. She’s an amazing friend and the best running buddy.

Emily: My start line is all about Ali! She’s been by my side through so many hard things in the past few years, especially through my mom’s sickness and death, and – I write about this in the book – when we are going through our hardest times, in life and running, one of the most powerful things our friends and loved ones can do is show up and love us through the toughest lows. She’s been there for me, and this year, I got to be there for her as she went through some of the hardest days of her life, which, at times, meant doing less fun stuff, like chemotherapy. It’s great to be counting down the days to a more celebratory – and very fun – milestone for Ali.

I’m also excited to celebrate the release of my book at the Eugene Marathon – and the idea of doing it while running through the streets of Eugene in this city and community that’s played a pivotal role in my life, is a dream.

Do you have a specific goal for the race? 

Ali: Fun zone for 13.1 miles!

Emily: Same! I just want to be in the Fun Zone with Ali.

How many marathons have you completed and what was your first marathon and/or road race?

Ali: My seventh marathon was Eugene in 2023. My first was Hamptons Marathon in 2011.

Emily: I need to fact check this, but probably 24ish. I’m more of a long-distance trail runner these days. My very first marathon was the Marine Corps Marathon in 2007; I did it with my mom, Andrea, and she beat me by 20 minutes.

Why run? 

Ali: I say you should run if it’s something that makes your life better. That might happen on the run, or after the run, or running might make your life better in the long run. If any of those apply, then run. For me, running helps make a good day better and it helps turn around a bad day. This is from a dancer girl who saw running as punishment, but running changed my life, so I say give running an opportunity to change your life.

Emily – I run because it gives me a way to explore my limits, because it’s where I access some of my greatest joy, and because my mom will always inspire me to run. My mom is every reason I’m a runner because she ran her first marathon at age 50 and I was wildly inspired to do one myself. And running is where I’ve felt closest to my mom since losing her. Running is also full of fun zones for me. There’s nothing I love more than sharing trails and miles with my dog, Dilly, and so many friends. My happiest place in the world is probably frolicking around beautiful mountains with friends and dogs all day and then sitting in a camp chair with a bag of chips.

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Emily’s book To The Gorge: Running, Grief, and Resilience & 460 Miles on the Pacific Crest Trail will be available for the first time at the Eugene Marathon expo in the Run Hub booth on Friday and Saturday, April 26-27. To the Gorge is about Emily’s 460-mile record-breaking run across Oregon’s Pacific Crest Trail to celebrate her mom’s life. Emily will be Ali’s special guest at the Ali On the Run Live Show during the Eugene Marathon Health & Wellness Expo on Saturday, April 27th at 12 noon on the Expo Stage presented by Eugene, Cascades & Coast. You can buy Emily’s book at the Run Hub booth, see the show, and stay after to get your book signed and grab a picture with Ali and Emily. Then, on race morning, make sure Ali and Emily never leave the Fun Zone and give them a big “Go Ali, Go Emily” when you see them in the Start Corral, out on the course, or rounding the final turn on the track headed to the finish at Hayward Field.