Fueled by Gratitude: Carrie Birth-Davis
- Kyle Klingler
- Dec 17, 2025
- 8 min read
A lifetime in running is a journey marked by soaring highs and humbling lows. There are the exhilarating moments of personal records and triumphant finishes, and the inevitable setbacks of missed goals and failure. To stay on this path year after year demands a deep well of motivation, roots strong enough to carry an athlete through every season. That drive can be drawn from many sources. For Carrie Birth-Davis, known to many as CB, it begins and ends with gratitude.
Gratitude for the ups and downs throughout the process of trying to find the best within herself. Gratitude for the months of training that lead up to race day to leave it all on the course. And gratitude for every little moment along the way, from the sunrise views on a morning run to the max effort reps on the track.
Carrie just wrapped up a fall season that concluded with the NYC Marathon and Cincinnati's Thanksgiving Day Race. She currently runs with us for Cincinnatus Elite and holds many club masters records. She's been running since 2006 and has raced all over the country and beyond in the last 2 decades. She holds PRs of 17:38 (5k), 37:07 (10k), 1:22:03 (Half Marathon), and 2:54:45 (Marathon).
Check out the interview below as she reflects on this past season, her running beginnings, and future goals.
You just wrapped up the fall season at the NYC marathon. How was that experience?Â
Good! I did NYC as part of the AG World Champs, which was a great experience. I had done it once before in 21’, and while it probably stands as the marathon that I am most proud of, the logistics were such a beast I decided ‘eh, I don’t need to do that again’ 😊 But, when this opportunity popped up I figured this is the ‘way’ to do NYC (private bus, tent, corral, etc). My goal initially had been to get top 5 in my bracket (which I estimated to be like 2:58), but as the year progressed my goal was to get to the line. Ended up running 3:03:53; and I am content and fulfilled with that. I ran even splits around 645-650 through 23, and then I just did not have the fitness to close it out, and it slipped away those last 3 miles. NYC is just special. It’s a headache no doubt, it’s a marathon before you even get to the start line, but it’s a magical day, where one of the biggest cities in the world shuts down for OUR sport. To be a part of that changes you forever.
In the last few years, you’ve ran NYC, Boston, Berlin, and Chicago. Are the rest of the majors the next goal?Â
Yea, the goal has definitely been to put that 6 star medal around my neck. I need London and Tokyo. Goal is London this Spring!
What other goals and races do you have next?
I have always been pretty big on goal setting, I haven’t quite tightened the screws on 2026 yet, but a few on my mind are: RTY (I always run the year so 2,026 miles), I am eyeing a half in January, I’d love to win Top Masters at Run London Fulfilled (time, TBD, gotta get thick into the training block to see what that feels like), Podium (top 3) Masters at Peachtree, Podium Masters at all my fav Cincy Races (Mini Heart, Hyde Park Blast, Hudy 14K).
Why did you first start running?
I played volleyball, basketball and softball growing up and then played softball in college. When I graduated and started working, I deeply missed the competitive vibe. I was struggling. So, on a whim my best friend, now my husband 😊 asked me to do a 5k with him, and I won….and that was that.
Where did you go to college? Are you from Cincinnati originally? If not, how did you get here?
Graduated from Miami Of Ohio, and my path is a tad round about.
Chicago—> Cincy—> Minneapolis --> Cincy—>Boston-->California stint (short)--> Phoenix --> Arkansas --> Cincy
How did running progress over the years from that first 5k you ran? You said you won.. so did it always come naturally to you?
Well, I wouldn't say natural, but I had always been an athlete, so I was very familiar with the discipline and hard work needed to 'be decent'. But essentially, I joined the "earth Drummers" in Cincy when I first lived here and learned all the basics, I mean I knew nothing  I still stay in touch with those folks to this day, and largely owe them for teaching me running. After that, I moved 9x - and shortly after leaving Cincy got connected with Adam and he coached me through all those moves. Every state I moved to, I joined a team and ran all their 'go to' races - trying to win the big ones
You now hold many club masters records for CE. When and how did you find/join Cincinnatus Elite?
I have moved 9x, and running buddies is the best part of the run for me now, so it was the first thing I started to explore when I found out I was moving to Cincy. Ironically, ever year I run the Greenville Half and the past few years I had see the team there and the brain is weird what it sees/remembers. So I googled it and then just emailed Kyle, and the rest was history 😊
Where do you get your training from now? Do you have a coach?
Yup, I have been coached by Adam Goucher for 11 years now. We’ve been through a lot together, and he’s masterfully crafted training through all the highs and lows.
What are some of your proudest achievements in the sport thus far?
I do not own a DNF and being a 'tiny' part of the athletes I coach goals/dreams (it's so so fufilling)
Favorite race of all time?
Errrghhhhhhhh can we do it by distance
5K:Â CVS Caremark Classic, Providence RI
10K:Â Santa Monica Classic, Santa Monica, CA and Peachtree 10k in Atlanta, GA
Half: AZ RNR Half, Phoenix, AZ or Hidden Gem Half Marathon, HF Flossmor, IL (this race is the best)
Full: Berlin Marathon, Berlin Germany
Other:Â Falmouth 7 miler, Falmouth, MA
Honorable Mention:Â Grandmas Half Marathon (Duluth, MN actually called Gary Bjourkand, but no one knows that), Cherry Blossom 10 mile (DC), Bix 7 (Iowa), Bloomsday 12K (Spokane Washington)
A couple more favorites. Favorite workout? Favorite shoe?
I have a hard time staying focused and get bored easily, so my favorite workouts are ones that mix it up so I am constantly switching distances and paces, so lots of times Adam will do like 800/300s or K’s/200s etc. My favorite stride scheme is 15/45, 30/60, 45/90 X 4 sets….this becomes a mathematical endeavor on the run 😊 As for shoes, anything BUT nike 😊
For a running career this long, what has kept you in the sport year after year?Â
I love the process SO much. When I was younger, I was all about the numbers on the clock, but life happens, and perspective has made me realize what I actually love is the lifestyle. If you step back, runners are a unique bunch - - we don’t think anything of it, but we’re like a tribe that just gets each other. I love running before the sun comes up, I love doubles in the heat of the day, I love workout Wednesdays - and the feeling of completing those total marathon grinders on the track, I love racing SO much, I love setting goals and working backwards of what it will take, I love pancakes after long runs, I love Justin by my side on the bike, but most of all I love my running buddies.  There is NO better way to get to know someone than to go on a run with them. Then do that for months on end and the relationships you build are the ones that really matter.
Who or what has been your biggest inspiration in running?
Less a person, more a thing…Gratitude. Like a lot of people, my life has been impacted by cancer. And whether it’s via loss, supporting, or fighting it, it’s given me such a different perspective on running. Every night, I go to sleep excited to wake up and run in the morning. And every morning, I get up thankful that I get to do it. I am just so grateful to be able to run because I know what it’s like to have it taken away. It doesn’t mean I am out there for fun. I have goals and am extremely driven and focused, but the final number doesn’t crush me. I just hope I’ll get another crack at it, and grateful I got the chance I did.Â
What is your greatest running memory so far?
This might be weird, but it’s the first thing that popped in my head. My good friend Kara was diagnosed with Dystonia, and unfortunately, it has really impacted her running. On top of that I am guessing as a PRO once you retire it’s hard to ‘race’ again because you have these impossible standards you are held to, either by others or in your head. Net, between the transition space out of professional running and her dystonia diagnosis she largely stopped racing altogether, something I know she loved so much. So, I BEGGED her to do a 5k with me, I thought I could take the stress away from it all as she could just say she was pacing my ass. I FINALLY got her to say yes (greatest sell job of all time) 😊 and in 2023 we did the 5K before the Chicago Marathon. I can’t really describe it, but before me I saw Joy return to her in a way I have never seen in a human before. And I think the greatest joy in life is when you see someone you love experience it. Again, it’s hard to explain, but running next to her I felt it go through me, and when we crossed the line, I felt her breath literally taken away. I walked away and let her be for a second and from a distance I saw what the greatest gift in my life was perhaps - - - someone get joy BACK, not taken away, but BACK. I’ll never forget that morning. I’ve never told her this, but it’s a memory embedded in my brain that has no name for it, but I felt it, and it was incredible.
What advice do you have for someone new to running?
If I am honest, I think I get more joy now coaching then my own running. And I don’t know if its really ‘advice’ I can give, or more lived experiences I can share? The biggest being, love the process, love it so much, and the outcomes will come. The more you obsess on the outcomes, the more your behaviors, tendencies, and choices will fail you. The more you obsess on the process the more your behaviors, tendencies, and choices will lead you to become a better person.
CB's brightness and positivity are an important part of why the running world is so great. Her perspective on having gratitude and loving the process are a key reminder on how to stay in love with this little hobby of ours year after year. Good luck to Carrie as she continues to chase goals and we will likely be making more edits to the club records board in the near future!
