Meet The Team
Backcountry Physical Therapy
Dr. Scott Runyon, PT, DPT
Owner and Founder of Backcountry Physical Therapy
Dr. Scott Runyon is a sports physical therapist who graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2011 with a Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology. He then went on to study physical therapy at Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science — earning his doctorate in 2014. For two years following this, he traveled the country as a contract physical therapist to experience different settings of therapy in almost every region of the United States. During that time, he was always attracted to areas where he could find the most active populations and help patients reach high-level goals. He settled in Colorado in 2016 with his wife, Heather, and has been dedicated to treating orthopedic injuries, especially in athletes. He volunteers at Palmer High School working with the athletic trainer to provide injury consultations to student-athletes at games and practices.
Scott is an avid outdoorsman. He moved to Colorado to live an outdoor lifestyle. He enjoys hiking, skiing, fishing, climbing, and whitewater sports and is willing to try almost any mountain activity. He also enjoys playing and watching most team sports.
Credentials:
Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology — the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign — 2011
Doctorate in Physical Therapy — Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science — 2014
Functional Dry Needling — Level 1 — 2018
Emergency Medical Response in Sports Venues — 2018
Dr. Sam Valdez
Dr. Sam Valdez graduated from Shenandoah University’s DPT program in 2016. Since then she has enjoyed treating patients in many different settings from inpatient rehab to aquatic therapy to most recently treating military members and their families overseas in Japan. She is very excited to be living in Colorado now to continue to explore her own passions like snowboarding, hiking and climbing and to get the opportunity to work with Rocky Mountain athletes to help them get back to some of those same activities. Since becoming a mom Sam has really enjoyed getting outdoors in new ways with her baby and has developed a love for helping other mom’s stay active and pain free during and after pregnancy as well.
Jessica Madding
Administrative Assistant
Jessica Madding, a Sports Business graduate from Maryville University, originally comes from St. Louis, Missouri, and is excited to now be living in Colorado Springs. In her spare time, she trains for a bodybuilding competition, explores hiking trails, and admires classic cars. Since moving to Colorado, she has loved the vibrant, active community and is eager to discover more hiking spots and take up snowboarding!
