Feature
Hard to the Finish
The story of one woman’s journey from hardship to health
By Nancy Reinisch
“This was the first time in my life I did something just for me,” said Brandi Salvatierra, 35 years old, survivor of child abuse and drug addiction, and now a first-time triathlete.
Salvatierra, joined the 2011 Roaring Fork Women’s Triathlon Team on the suggestion of one of her salon clients, Adriana Ayala-Hire. Salvatierra owns Hair Trendz beauty salon at Sunnyside Retirement Center in Glenwood Springs, Colo. She said she always admired Ayala-Hire because she was so fit and energetic. And when Ayala-Hire, assistant coach of the Roaring Fork Women’s Tri Team, invited her to join, Salvatierra was both excited and anxious.
“I’ve quit so many things in my life that I was afraid this might be another one,” she said. Salvatierra has good reason to worry about follow through.
She was born in Michigan and was the only child of a drug-and alcohol-addicted mother. Her father left when she was 2. Her mother was a journeyman electrician and followed construction sites and “unhealthy men” from state to state to gain work. She described her mother as being physically and psychologically abusive and never quite allowed her to have a safe childhood. “I really never had a chance to make friends when I was growing up because we moved so many times. I think I moved 13 times in 13 years because of my mom,” she said.
On Christmas, when Salvatierra was 13, the police found her mother dead in a hotel room as a result of a drug overdose. Salvatierra was then shuffled to various foster homes as a ward of the state until she was allowed to finally live with her Grandma Betty. “I got into a lot of drugs and alcohol myself during that time,” she said. “And I was heading down the same path as my mom.” Grandma Betty saw the downward spiral and had her committed to alcohol and drug rehab. After stints at two rehab centers, Salvatierra was placed at Third Street Center in Denver and it was there that Salvatierra finally said, “Enough!” and began her drug-free recovery. She said the staff, the patients, and becoming a Christian helped turn her life around.
42 USA TRIATHLON SPRING 2012
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