Trent Briney learned to run on the foothills trails and back alleys of Colorado Springs.
Those paths led him to a fourth-place finish in the 2004 U.S. Olympic Marathon Team Trials. And though he missed qualifying for the Summer Games by only 30 seconds, he walked away with a smile on his face and a determination to compete at a high level.
"It was just one of those days," he said. "I told myself, 'let's not set limits and see how much I can get out of my body."
On Saturday, he'll test himself again at the 2012 U.S. Olympic Marathon Team Trials in Houston, Texas. The top three men and women will qualify to run in the Summer Games in London, England.
Briney, who graduated from Manitou Springs High School in 1996 and who ran at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs, admits that it won't be easy.
"I would love to say that I'm running to make the Olympic team," Briney said. "But that would be irrational based on how I'm really feeling."
Briney is 33 with hundreds of races behind him. Those miles have made him fit and mature. He realizes the competition is tougher now than it was eight years ago.
"I'm trying to go with a positive mindset," he said. "I want to be strong through race, make good decisions and do as good as I possibly can. I'd love to run under 2:15 again and for some reason I have this inner voice telling me I need to do that before I'm done."
His personal best time is 2:12:34, set at the 2004 Olympic Trials. It was only his second marathon. He qualified that year for the 2005 World Championship Team, but injuries prevent him from pulling on a Team USA jersey.
He still dreams of representing his country on the world stage. Briney may have maturity and wisdom working for him, but he's not ready to give up on running fast.
"If I can make a world championship team at 34 or 36, that will be fine by me," he said.
Briney works at the Boulder Running Company and runs for MarathonGuide.com. He spent years living in and running the hilly country around Flagstaff, Ariz., but recently made the choice to move to Boulder with his girlfriend Jacqui Taljaard.
"I've found that running new trails keeps you excited about running," Briney said. "If you don't have that energy for it, than what are you really doing?"
Though an Olympic qualifying position is a long shot, Briney said he is happy to be returning to the trials for the third time.
"There is something about the trials, you take pride in it and you're happy you're there," he said. "It's hard to go into a big, exciting race without trying to be hero at front. But sometimes you just have to be where you're at in life. Hopefully, I represent well for all the training buddies I've had and guys who have tried for trials and never made it, guys who don't have the opportunity to be on that starting line."
What keeps him running?
"I don't know what I would do without it," he said. "It would be weird to have evenings and weekends free. I still have questions. Should I try triathlon or ultra? Why quit if I still enjoy it?"

Don't be surprised if Briney takes on the the Pikes Peak Ascent or Marathon sometime soon.

"That's something I always wanted to do since high school," he said. "Maybe this year."

Others from Colorado Springs who are in the field include: Tommy Neal (Boulder Running Company), Ian Burrell (Air Academy High grad), Joseph Chirlee (U.S. Army private), Adrian Chouinard (Boulder Running Company), Kelly Callway (Army Cpt.), Alisha Williams (Boulder Running Company), and Wendy Thomas (St. Mary's High grad).

Kim Dobson, of Aurora, who won the 2011 Pikes Peak Ascent and Pikes Peak Road Ascent, is also in the field.

NBC will broadcast two hours of same-day coverage from 1-3 p.m. The comprehensive coverage will be the first time that both men’s and women’s Olympic Trials have been televised on the same day.

More info about the Olympic Marathon Trials here.