Step & Spine Physical Therapy owners to run Phoenix Marathon, sponsors team

SISTERS, OR – The owners of Step & Spine Physical Therapy (Sisters and Redmond) will not only be sponsoring a team at this weekend’s Phoenix Marathon in Mesa, AZ. Physical therapist Barrett Ford and his wife, co-owner Jodi Ford, will also be running in the event.

The Fords will join three other members of the Step & Spine Physical Therapy Team in completing the 26.2-mile Boston Marathon Qualifier on Saturday, Feb. 28. Two other team members will complete the weekend’s half-marathon event.

According to Jodi Ford, hosting the team provided her and Barrett with an opportunity to share their expertise in performance training and other strategies for success.

“Through this team, we have opportunities to run with people in our group, run on our own and to collaborate about what to eat, when we run long distances, which trails are muddy, etc.,” Ford said. “We also get to share our aches and pains and how fast we are recovering from training. Sometimes we just go for a bike ride to cross train.” .

The mission of the Phoenix Marathon mirrors that of Step & Spine Physical Therapy: to benefit community wellness. The marathon event does so by sponsoring the Phoenix Marathon Foundation, which provides scholarships for high school students who have participated in running athletics and are dedicated to pursuing a higher education.

Barrett Ford, lead physical therapist of Step & Spine Physical Therapy, is no stranger to marathons, having completed his first at the age of 11. At the Phoenix Marathon, he said he’s looking forward to shedding the winter gear.

“I’m excited to take off all my heavy snow gear and run in some shorts and a T-shirt,” he said. “I’m hoping that less weight will propel me forward with great speed and that I’ll feel 23 again.”

Joining the Fords on the Step & Spine Physical Therapy will be Eric Liddell, Mindy Hollman and Cory Hollman in the full marathon and Mike and Diana Banta in the half-marathon.