One year into her stint on the Blaine County Commission, Angenie McCleary, 32, remains Idaho's youngest county commissioner. She's probably still the fastest as well.
Last July, McCleary was named by Idaho Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter to replace retiring Blaine County Commissioner Sarah Michael.
Locals stand a good chance of spotting McCleary on one of her weekly endurance runs if they drive north of Ketchum on state Highway 75 early most Friday mornings. The same goes for people in the Hailey area during most lunch hours during the week, especially if they're near the high school track or out Quigley Canyon. McLeary has more or less been able to pursue her goals as a runner, she said, despite the heavy workload demanded by her work as a county commissioner.
"I'm certainly not running as well," she said. "I'm not in the best shape of my life."
McCleary is famous for arriving back after lunch with a slightly reddish face after a tough workout.
County voters shouldn't assume that McCleary's hours at work suffer from that dedication to running. Now, weekends and nights at home in Ketchum's Warm Springs neighborhood often mean reading up on an issue the commission is set to discuss at the next all-day meeting.
McCleary thinks most people in the Wood River Valley will understand her passion for athletics.
Some of the highlights of McCleary's first year in office include playing a leading role in writing a plan for public transportation in the region. Having the plan in place was a key reason why Blaine County received about $1.6 million in federal stimulus funding to purchase new buses and expand the county's public transportation program.
McCleary also acts as the county representative to South Central Public Health District, Snake River Juvenile Detention Joint Powers Board, the Blaine Manor care facility, the Sun Valley-Ketchum Chamber of Commerce and La Alianza, a nonprofit Latino organization.
Recent challenges have included her work on the contentious airport relocation issue. She took the difficult position of advocating for greater participation in the process by north and south valley cities, an idea that's not universally popular.
Although it's been a challenge to juggle her busy work schedule with her training, McCleary has her eyes set on competing in the Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon Oct. 4 in downtown Minneapolis. The race is a qualifying event for the U.S. Olympic Trials Marathon in 2012.
The event will be McCleary's ninth marathon. While she said she's slowed down a bit in the past year—partly because of the challenging schedule she now leads—McCleary thinks she stands a good chance of running a sub-3-hour marathon in October, a respectable time by anyone's measure.
Her personal best is 2 hours, 54 minutes, a time she's run three times.
These days, her running is more about maintaining balance in her life. She said signing up for the marathon has helped keep that goal intact.
"I almost feel like I need the goal of a marathon to keep that balance of running consistently," she said. "Having a goal keeps me on track—quite literally."
McCleary is still working with her longtime coach from Seattle, Tom Cotner. She said one of the benefits of keeping running as part of her life is a sharper focus when she's changed out of her running shoes and into something more suitable as a county commissioner.
"I'm much more efficient at work," she said. "My main focus is work, not being a competitive runner."
McCleary said her longtime boyfriend—Peter Webb, a former competitive skate skier and bike racer—has encouraged both her running and new line of work.
"He definitely tries to keep me balanced," she said. "He's incredibly supportive."
McCleary's term is set to end on Jan. 11, 2011. She said she'll likely run for the seat again.
"At this point, I've decided to run," she said. "I feel like I've learned so much that it would be valuable to continue on."
Jason Kauffman: jkauffman@mtexpress.com
Blaine County Commissioner Angenie McCleary, shown here running in Quigley Canyon east of Hailey, has been able to juggle her love of competitive distance running with her important public position. McCleary is one year into her role as the youngest county commissioner in Idaho. Photo by David N. Seelig
