After graduating from the University of Virginia in 2005, Whitney Dreier spent two years living out a Harry Potter-esque fantasy – teaching history and coaching lacrosse at a boarding school in England. She finally realized she couldn't survive another British winter or face the thought of having potatoes served at every meal, so she ventured to the Midwest to earn a master's degree in journalism at the University of Missouri.

Her focus was magazine writing and editing, and she graduated in May 2010. Whitney is based in Santa Fe, NM, where she is a freelance writer and research assistant at Outside magazine.

When she's not at a desk, Whitney commutes about town by bike and enjoys hiking northern New Mexico's many trails. She's dabbled in triathlon, snowshoe racing and bike touring (completing her first RAGBRAI – self-contained – in 2010).

Running, however, is her go-to activity and has resulted in many interesting experiences: being followed along the Nile by a group of curious Egyptian preschoolers, wondering how to eat the pickles distributed during the Stockholm Marathon, winning a gigantic frozen turkey at a Thanksgiving race, and most importantly, meeting her husband.

My backyard is: